TechBytes with Anand Janefalkar, Founder and CEO at UJET

What mobile usage trends do you see amongst Millennials and Generation Z consumers that is transforming customer support?

There are a handful of support trends that we are seeing that center around Millennial and Gen Z consumers. The first is that the value being placed on experience has never been higher. In fact, 80% of customers now see their experience with a company as valuable as the actual product.

The second, is not just that Millennials and Gen Z are heavy users of mobile devices, they are using channels such as video, mobile apps, and messaging to not only consume content, but connect and interact with each other.

As the adoption and use of multiple mobile channels increases and the value of customer experience continues to rise, support organizations must begin laying the foundation to allow Millennial and Gen Z customers to not only connect with them through these multiple channels, but create a fluid experience that allows these customers to seamlessly move between them.

Since most Millennials and Generation Z consumers own smart phones, what are some key recommendations you have for businesses as they seek to provide a seamless support experience?

First, it is critical to meet customers where they are. This means providing a seamless support experience across mobile channels such as voice, messaging, in-app, web, and more. Customers should not have to alter their channels or behaviors in order to connect with your support team.

Second, it’s important that your support team have the right tools in place in order to not only connect data, but make it actionable. Whether this is being able to intelligently route customers to the right agent or self-service option, or allowing agents to automatically surface critical and contextual data, making data actionable makes it easy for support teams to provide a more unique and personal experience while also resolving customer issues faster.

How important is messaging support and has email gone by the wayside for this demographic?

Email can still an important channel, especially for non-urgent issues or especially notifications. However, it is important that email become more personalized to remain an effective tool for interacting with customers.

Messaging has become a critical support channel for Millennials and Gen Z customers. And when infused with conversational AI and Automation, messaging can not only be the channel-of-choice for this demographic, it can be available on a 24-hour basis.

Chatbots get a lot of attention these days. What is your view on how businesses should use chatbots in their customer support mix?

While chatbots are one of the most talked about advancements in customer support and will certainly play a key role in the evolution of the contact center, businesses need to realize that a chatbot alone will not increase customer satisfaction. Instead, support organizations need to intelligently integrate chatbots into their technology stack. By connecting chatbots to the larger contact center ecosystem, contextual information can easily and automatically flow through the chatbot to either resolve issues right away, or intelligently route customers and the context of the conversation to a live agent who can further help.

How many customer service interactions are happening on social networks and how important is this channel to the success of a business’s customer service strategy?

Being responsive on social media presents businesses with an opportunity to provide real-time interactions with customers. Social media support should involve not only addressing issues, but proactively engaging with customers to surface positive experiences and increase brand loyalty.

It is also important to realize that in many cases, customers turn to social media when other support channels have let them down. While social media should be a part of an overall customer service strategy, investing in a fluid and streamlined experience across other channels can help mitigate negative customer service interactions on social networks.

Why is customer experience and customer support so deeply connected today?

Customer experience is increasingly being looked at as both pre and post-purchase interactions with a brand. In our latest e-book, “The Expanding Wallets and Purchasing Decisions of Millennials and Gen Z” we found that 76% of all generations view customer service as a “true test” of how much a company values them.

Personalized support leads to a better experience and can be a key factor when it comes to winning business from Millennial and Gen Z customers and making them champions of your brand.