Why Mobile Customer Service Is No Longer Optional

by Iain Leckie

Driven by recent advances in voice recognition combined with the commercial success of Siri, Apple’s personal assistant, everyone wants to have an agent in the user’s pocket. While providing customer access through mobile devices is the correct strategy, the problem rapidly becomes a case of adapting the traditional web service channels to a mobile scenario.

Deemed too difficult to pursue, many companies mistakenly veer away from a mobile customer service implementation in favour of doing nothing. As a result, mobile customer service fails to become a core part of a comprehensive customer experience strategy.  Before you continue to “do nothing,” consider these facts:

• By the end of 2012, consumers will be willing to perform all possible customer service functions themselves. (Gartner)
• By 2014, more smartphones than computers will access the Internet. (Gartner)
• Customer service agents must have access to the full history of a customer’s prior interactions over all the communication channels – voice, chat, email, and newer social channels like Facebook and Twitter. (Forrester)

Source: Navigate the Future of Customer Service, 2012

 

In this scenario, organisations which fail to include smartphones, tablets or even game consoles into their overall customer service strategy are missing big opportunities to reach and engage with customers who are not only willing to self-serve, but who are looking for it and demanding it.