By Connectly Team
Conversations shape the world of business. They spark innovative new ideas, help recommendations spread through word of mouth, and lead to corporate deals and mergers. And, increasingly, they're playing a role in eCommerce.
In the last decade or so, conversational commerce has come to the forefront of marketing, sales, and customer retention strategy. But what is conversational commerce exactly? And how does it benefit your business?
By combining genuine human interaction with AI, conversational commerce gives you a two-way line of communication with new leads as well as loyal customers. It's the future of customer experience—and it's already here.
Conversational commerce is a customer relationship strategy that combines two-way messaging with shopping and marketing. The technology allows customers to make purchases, ask questions, set up returns, give feedback, and much more—all from the comfort of their favorite online platforms.
Conversational commerce is often touted as an omnichannel solution. Why? Because it facilitates the customer-brand connection through numerous popular messaging channels at once. Customers may speak with humans, AI-powered bots, or a combination of the two through chat apps, social media, and voice assistants like WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, WeChat, Amazon Echo, iMessage, and SMS.
Popularized by Chris Messina—former Developer Experience Lead at Uber (and inventor of the hashtag)—the idea of conversational commerce turns eCommerce on its head. It promotes relationship-building and personalized experiences by establishing a direct and convenient link between customer and company.
Because, when you think about it, conversational commerce is nothing new. For thousands of years, buyers engaged face-to-face with sellers in markets across the world. But the rise of one-click online shopping erased the direct line of communication between consumers and brand representatives.
"Humans crave connection," even in their online shopping experiences. Today's app-based conversational commerce aims to bring back the age-old concept of two-way business in our modern, hyperconnected era.
Conversational commerce is a tried-and-true method of building and maintaining customer relationships. According to a KPMG survey, "86% of loyal customers are likely to recommend a brand to family or friends."
Per KPMG, 56% of consumers look for quality customer service, while 55% want an easy shopping experience. Conversational commerce makes these goals possible.
Chatbots help redirect low-level traffic away from humans. For example, WordPress hosting provider WP Engine uses an automated chatbot to welcome website visitors, actively greeting customers and providing an effortless way to learn more.
Once a consumer is considering your business, you can use a conversational commerce marketing platform to continue the conversation via WhatsApp, WeChat, or SMS—sending case studies, whitepapers, product recommendations, blog posts, and more.
Automated conversational commerce can guide customers through a purchase. Chilean gas company Lipigas found success with WhatsApp-based conversational commerce: "By allowing customers to place orders 24/7, the company saw a 60% reduction in operational time while increasing the conversion rate."
Conversations saved within messaging apps keep you top of mind. Customers can reach out post-purchase about returns, product questions, feedback, or tech issues—and you can proactively send surveys, "we miss you" texts, or promo codes.
WhatsApp has more than two billion active users who send over 100 billion messages every day. In more than 100 countries, WhatsApp is the most popular messaging app.
Text message open rates can reach 98%, compared to email's 20% open rate.
Live chat helps customers who are already on your website, with a message icon assuring them that support is never far away.
Products like Amazon's Echo and Google Home allow for a hands-free, voice-only commerce experience. Customers of Canada's TD Bank can even use their Amazon Alexa to find exchange rates, obtain stock quotes, and inquire about accounts.
As the world's top businesses shift to conversational commerce, it's easy to see why. It puts the customer back in control of the conversation, allowing them to reach out how, when, and where they want.
And for much of the world, the how is through WhatsApp. With an enormous user base that continues to grow, WhatsApp is the ideal tool for communicating with consumers worldwide.
For a code-free approach to conversational commerce over WhatsApp, consider Connectly. Through AI-powered Natural Language Processing (NLP) and real-time data, Connectly can help you boost response rate, click-through rate, conversions, and more.
Book a demo today to find out more about the Connectly approach to conversational commerce.
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