In a ringing endorsement of next generation messaging, leading British retailer Asda has launched the largest RCS-based messaging service in the UK for its online grocery customers.
Working with Infobip, the new initiative will help to support messaging across the full online customer journey, including order confirmation, delivery times and substitutions. The roll-out has made Asda the first major UK grocer to launch RCS business messaging in the UK.
Heralded as the next generation of SMS, RCS business messaging brings a mobile app’s rich functionality into the messaging platform. This will now enable Asda to provide rich media experiences to its customers via a channel they trust – the native messages app – with no additional installation or downloading. The messages showcase Asda’s logo, brand name, and links, giving customers peace of mind knowing they can trust the sender.
The collaboration between Infobip and Asda increases brand awareness through logos and promotion for Asda Rewards App; and increases security as the sender is verified by operators.
Asda’s traffic has made it the largest branded messaging/RCS brand in the UK.
Commenting on the new initiative, Martin Coates, Comms Product Manager from Asda says: “Ensuring our customers receive exceptional customer service is a key focus for us and we’re excited to be the first retailer to offer this innovation to customers. The idea is that that by providing customers with that additional peace of mind, we’ll boost customer engagement and reduce the number of failed deliveries.”
“Infobip’s CX workshop helped us identify how to improve Asda’s entire customer journey through automation, AI, rich conversational communication, and a customer-first approach, which has led to this first step into RCS business messaging.”
Krešo Žmak, VP Products, from Infobip, adds: “Asda is now the first UK grocer to stand out from the competition in this way, elevating its customer engagement and attracting higher engagement rates. The next generation of messaging is here, and it is set to provide consumers the features and functionality they look for in chat apps, in the comfortable confines of their mobile device’s native messaging platform, and from branded and verified sender they can trust.”
