Before we get into the topic, I urge you to think about the recent best conversation. I am sure you would be going back to the conversation where you had the equal opportunity to talk and put forward your opinion! And why do you go back to that particular conversation?

Because it made you feel included!

People do not really feel included in conversations where one person keeps talking while the other must stay there are listening to them! Conversational messaging addresses this very problem. Conversational messaging is a paradigm where both the parties involved get to converse. Such conversations are transparent, clear, personal, and engaging.

Understanding the importance of conversational messaging, SaaS companies across the globe are embracing it. If you are still wondering about conversational messaging and how it leads to customer engagement, here is a comprehensive guide –

Conversational messaging: What is it?

Earlier in the day, we have seen businesses use emails and SMS to reach out to their customers. While these serve as impactful ways of communication, they miss out on the aspect of the engagement. Engagement can happen when the conversation is two-sided.

Conversational messaging paves a path for two-way communication where both the business and customers engage with each other. Conversational messaging platforms such as messaging platforms and chatbots offer interconnected capabilities, so both parties get to interact on the platform.

For SaaS companies, this type of communication fosters customer engagement and thus helps nurture healthier customer relationships.

Conversational messaging: Why is it important?

Real-time conversations with customers are important in today’s business environments where customer satisfaction is the foundation for business growth. Customer engagement paves the path to increased customer satisfaction and company profits, and contributes to market share gain.

Considering this, companies are constantly seeking new and improved ways to engage customers. Conversational messaging, as the name suggests, is natural, intuitive, and conversational. This makes it the most impactful format for customer engagement.

B2B SaaS companies are increasingly adopting conversational messaging as a strategy because it entails a more personalized approach when interacting with customers. For instance, imagine the scenario where a customer is talking to an agent on chat. The conversation is happening to and fro; it is one-on-one, and there is scope for immediate resolution.

Conversational messaging: Advantages

As we have already discussed so far, conversational messaging comes in as a game-changer in the way businesses communicate with their consumers. Adopting it as a strategy opens doors to the following benefits –

1. 24×7 availability

Conversational messaging platforms help businesses stay available 24×7 for the customers to reach out to them. Additionally, customers can choose the language convenient for them.

2. It helps scale

Conversational messaging solutions can handle millions of inquiries simultaneously, and these interactions can be highly tailored. With the help of AI and Natural Language Processing, consumer queries and grievances are assessed and transformed into a structured query that the business is prepared to respond to.

3. Easy to manage seasonality

With conversational interactions, businesses no longer need to analyze the client footfall or volume trends to plan to staff. Businesses can manage activity peaks and valleys with the use of conversational messaging.

4. Collect valuable data

Conversational interactions involve customers sharing their needs, demands, and problems in their own words. This serves as valuable feedback that can be collected to be analyzed later.

5. Paves the path to conversational marketing

Marketers can use conversational messaging to tailor and interactively design advertising campaigns for every platform. For instance, developers can include chatbots; campaigns and catalogues can be combined into one smooth experience for small businesses; app developers can create smaller programs with lightweight experiences that eliminate the need for expensive app marketing.

6. Can include rich media

With conversational messaging, it is possible to include images, video, audio, documents, etc.

For customers, conversational messaging is more convenient. For one, today’s customers prefer text communications over calls and want it immediately. They do not have the patience or the time to want for longer times to connect to an agent. They demand instantaneous resolutions. Both of them can be addressed via conversational AI such as chatbots.

Conversational Messaging: Features

Though they are pre-scripted, conversational messaging has content quite different from the other formats of the content we have been using. Some of the features that distinguish conversational messaging include –

1. Short and to-the-point messages: Conversational interactions are usually short dialogue exchanges happening between two parties. They usually happen on smaller mobile screens. Therefore, the messages tend to be shorter, crisp, and to the point.
2. Straightforward questions: Current-day customers wish to cut through the chase and have direct responses to their questions. This is one of the most ideal features of conversational messaging. While the conversations are longer, the responses are often direct and do not consume too much time.
3. Personalization: Conversational interactions are much like real-life conversations. They happen directly between the two parties. Hence, there is more room for personalized dialogue.
4. Natural language: Conversational AI, which serves as the cornerstone for conversational messaging, uses Natural Language Processing (NLP). Because of this, the conversations happen in natural, everyday language.

Conversational Messaging offers a great solution to improve the overall customer experience with these features.

Conversational Messaging: Example

To make conversational interactions possible and more efficient, SaaS companies are using Conversational AI. Today, there are a number of Conversational AI platforms that make computers think and behave like humans and thus make interactions more impactful. FAQ Chatbots, virtual personal assistants, and virtual agents are examples of conversational AI.

Conversational Messaging: Dos for Customer Engagement

Planning to blend conversational messaging into your strategy? Here are a few things to keep in your mind –

1. Be quick to respond

Your customers expect you to provide them with quick and prompt responses. They tend to get impatient when the responses are delayed. In fact, they considered it impolite to wait more than 20 minutes to get a response and may also leave the conversation as well as your brand. Therefore, you need to ensure that your responses are always on time.

2. Ask for their consent

When conversing with the customers, you may have to access some personal, sensitive information. But before doing so, you must ask for their consent. You can do this right before you start the conversation by giving a disclaimer and then providing the GDPR. Along with asking for their consent, you should also allow them to opt out when they do not accept it, ensure anonymity, and notify them when there is a data breach.

3. Make sure to ask personalized questions

Conversational messaging, in essence, means that the dialogues exchanged should have a natural flow. For this, you should ask the right questions specific to the customer and their problem/ query. It is better if you have a pre-written script revolving around your offering or the frequent queries from your customers. Coming up with scripts based on specific use cases can be useful.

4. End the dialogue with an actionable call to action

Just like the start of the conversation is important, ending it on a satisfying note, too, is important. Apart from giving the customers a satisfying conclusion, you should also include a call-to-action (CTA) depending on your goal. For instance, your CTA could be diverted to a feedback page if that is what you are looking for.

5. Do not forget to follow up

Make sure that you send timely follow-ups after conversing with customers. After delivering customers’ orders or a few days after resolving their tickets, be sure to follow up with them. Even if they do not initially come out with a concern, this is a terrific approach to let them know that your team is watching out for them.

Concluding Thoughts

Conversational messaging is here to stay and is of extreme value for CRMs looking to boost their engagement. When including it in your communication strategy, you must keep one aim in mind – building and strengthening customer relations. For this to happen, you will have to focus on making the conversations personalized while also delivering value.

Hope this article has helped you understand conversational messaging better, and I urge you to include it in your strategy to boost customer engagement!

Good Luck.

---