The rapid evolution of technology these days often challenges brands to stay on top of the customer service game. Many brands embrace the omnichannel approach, but optimizing the experience across all channels for all different kinds of consumers is no easy task. Yet with the abundance of channels available today for sales and service, one old-school medium is rising quickly as a prime channel for customer engagement: video.Many customer service studies have found that personalization and a humanized approach are very important to modern-day customers, thereby making video an ideal channel for engagement in multiple contexts. Gartner has predicted that more than 100 of the 500 largest global businesses will introduce video-based chat by 2018, while a Nielsen study found that 85% of U.S. internet users watch videos online. Internet Retailer further reports that viewers are 85% more likely to purchase a product after watching a video about it.Video may be used in a variety of ways to deliver meaningful customer experiences. For example, customer service agents may use video chat to deliver a highly personalized, real-time experience. By being able to see customers’ emotional expressions, agents may use these cues to adjust their tone of voice and overall approach to the customers’ needs, while customers can see an agent’s empathetic response in return. Video chat therefore gives customer service a personal touch, and customers will save time, gain information more effectively through such tools as screen sharing, and ultimately feel greater loyalty toward a brand for offering a seamless, engaged customer experience. Companies may also use video to educate customers by offering video customer support. Providing videos with answers to FAQs featuring actual people (preferably employees) is one excellent way to connect with customers for a more personal experience, while animated videos can likewise increase the aesthetic appeal of a brand through compelling storytelling. Videos may also be used as tutorials offering solutions to issues with detailed visuals to guide the support process. Technology is further evolving to use customer data as a means of delivering personalized videos for stronger customer service and even marketing targeted at each specific customer’s needs.On that note, video also serves as an excellent tool for marketing and brand advocacy. Customers like to know a brand’s story, and brands have a more humanized appearance if they share their origins and their journey with their customers. Sharing a story about a small family business growing into a larger corporation with charitable business practices can attract customers’ interest and loyalty, for example. These stories can be shared through company-produced videos and featured on the company website and social media channels. Videos may also be used as advertisements to demonstrate how products and services work with the interest of making the brand more accessible to current and prospective customers. And once brands develop a loyal following, happy customers often turn into brand advocates–a Forbes study found that 81% of the customers surveyed claimed that social media posts of friends and family influenced their purchase decisions, while 78% of respondents noted that a company’s social media posts impacted their purchase decisions. Brands can therefore engage customers on these platforms by delivering meaningful video messages about their values and accomplishments through news clips, testimonials, and interviews highlighting the company’s achievements. Brands may also encourage customers to share their video content on social media and use them as a tool for engaging the social media community. Retail brands may even offer rewards or competitions for user-generated videos that promote brand advocacy.Video is an increasingly dynamic channel enabling brands to inform, support, and engage current and potential customers in meaningful ways and with a human touch. Learn about Vocalcom contact center software solutions with excellent video customer engagement.
