How Leading Businesses Are Boosting Customer Satisfaction With Real-Time Communication Tools

In the 20th century, branding mattered. In the early 21st century, it was all about attention – how many eyeballs could you get on your products and services? Now, the new movement is towards intimacy. Companies are trying to get closer than ever before to their customers, snuggling up with them, so to speak. 

This process is unfolding because of changing consumer attitudes. Customers expect more from the businesses with which they interact, always looking for quick answers and prompt responses to queries. People are looking for responsive firms that meet their needs in real-time, instead of those that sit passively, waiting for them to do the legwork. 

As such, the challenges are clear. Companies need to provide a seamless experience across multiple channels to meet their clients’ high expectations and deliver exceptional customer service. As always, brands fall along a spectrum. Some are forging ahead, developing new and powerful tools to satisfy their audiences. Others remain mired in the past, believing old methods still work and that adaptation is unnecessary. 

Fortunately, solutions are already available (and have been for some time). The mass texting service, Text-em-all, for instance, has been enabling firms to send timely information to customers for years. The technology is not new. 

However, it noticed that many corporate entities still don’t understand the power and value of this type of communication. Despite offering a plethora of options, such as reminders and emergency notifications, Text-em-all still reports that only a few elite firms use these services. Most companies just aren’t interested or still don’t understand the paradigm shift taking place. They remain well behind the curve and stuck in old marketing strategies, such as gaining attention or building a voice. They are unaware that intimacy and timeliness are the new differentiators. 

Real-time communication tools are software applications that enable instant and synchronous communication between two or more parties. They include chat, voice, video, screen sharing, co-browsing, and more. 

No specific communication channel is necessarily better than any other – and the big brands seem to know this. As Text-em-all points out, even old-fashioned SMS has a critical place in brands’ communication ecosystems. The technology has a certain nostalgia and immediacy about it, helping firms sustain more direct communication with their audiences. 

Companies are experiencing significant benefits from adopting these tools, primarily a reduction in customer frustration. Clients no longer need to wait for long periods of time to get a response from a business, or switch between different channels to get the help they need. Integrated solutions make it easier to get support from a single point of contact, without having to repeat conversations or negotiate separate channels. 

Top brands are also finding that real-time communication tools help them improve customer loyalty and retention. Clients are far more likely to stay if they feel they can pick up the metaphorical phone at any time and get in touch with the firm. Businesses that adopt this strategy put themselves at a tremendous advantage over the competition, thanks to a fast and convenient service. Again, customers are much more likely to feel valued and supported throughout their journey. 

No surprises, loyalty, and retention also benefit firms greatly when they adopt real-time communication. Clients are more likely to stay with them if they show interest and empathy consistently. They are more likely to recommend their business to others and maintain a positive brand impression. 

You can see this already in how personal brands on social media build their audiences. Most are incredibly responsive to any communications they receive, responding individually to the people who follow them, and taking the time to address their needs. 

The same should be true of larger firms. Rather than seeing communication as a process, the most successful firms view it as a point of leverage. If they can remain in constant communication with their target market, those people are more likely to choose them over their competitors. 

Finally, communication tools that operate in real-time improve conversions and revenues. Clients are more likely to buy from you if you offer real-time assistance and guidance, helping them overcome “pain points” and doubts, and leading them inexorably to a sale.

Of course, firms should maintain high ethical practices throughout this process. You don’t want to promise customers things you know you can’t deliver. However, you do want to make sure you remain in front of them for longer. Customers are much more likely to buy from you or upgrade if you can provide personalized recommendations that will improve their lives significantly. 

Text-em-all understands all these benefits and more. It sees real-time communication as a genuine strategy for companies that are struggling to grow or retain their audiences. Part of its offering is helping brands deliver those “annoying” messages that are hard to get out via other channels. Customers will invariably delete promotional emails or avoid opening them at all, but they don’t usually pass over texts. 

For example, businesses are using SMS to encourage customers to complete surveys, Text-em-all says. Online forms are great, but quick and easy text-based feedback may be more potent and provide better information. 

It also says that brands should use text as a real-time communication tool for other stakeholders. For example, firms should use SMS for emergency notifications or job openings, or to fill open shifts. These sorts of communications are more likely to result in favorable responses for the company at large. 

But what about the labor-intensiveness of real-time communication? Historically, that was an issue (and the main reason organizations didn’t do it). But things are changing. According to Text-em-all, new automation tools are arriving all the time, reducing workload while improving communication quality. Software solutions now enable businesses to respond to customers from various text-based triggers, providing them with personalized responses without human input. With ChatGPT integration and other large language model integrations on the horizon, this process will likely accelerate. 

As you can see, real-time communication tools are a powerful way to enhance customer service and grow a business. Are you using them?