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Half of consumers want video calling to improve customer service experiences 

video

Research from Puzzel, the leading innovator of cloud-based contact centre solutions, reveals video as the future of customer service, with 45% of UK consumers interested in using video as a customer service channel, particularly for more complicated issues.

Commissioned among more than 1,500 UK consumers, the research finds that almost a third of customers (29%) have been left unsatisfied by the level of service they’ve received when contacting a company’s customer service. A further 35% of consumers cite communication issues as the core reason for their dissatisfaction, including advisors not understanding their point of view (13%), not being aware of any previous conversations that have already taken place (13%) and the customer being unable to physically demonstrate what the problem is (9%).

The real-time nature of over-the-phone support means it has so often been the go-to choice when contacting customer support, but 1 in 5 consumers (18%) find it difficult to effectively communicate with customer service agents when they can’t see them and physically demonstrate the problem they’re experiencing.  As millions of people continue to use video to connect with their colleagues, friends and family, a quarter (24%) now feel that being able to communicate with businesses via video as well, would go a long way to improving their customer service experience.

Thomas Rødseth, Chief Technology Officer at Puzzel, commented, “For businesses – especially retailers – the transition from in-person interactions to video communications has been an earth-shaking shift. We’ve seen video facilitate an almost seamless transition to remote working, but it has real longevity across all industries. Today, customers expect fast, seamless service across all customer service channels, from voice to email, web chat, and more. But most importantly, they expect the same level of attention, empathy and care from contact centres as they would receive in-store.

“Video enables businesses to deliver fast and empathetic customer service, and saves customers the frustration of having to describe their issues over the phone. It improves efficiencies by speeding up the resolution process, which is a win-win for everyone. It provides a friendlier support experience and boosts customer retention by helping them get more out of a business’ product or service. Video is the future for contact centres as customer service teams equip themselves to deliver the level of empathy and personalisation that customers now crave”, Rødseth concludes.

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