Given some of the decisions it has made with respect to blocking text messages, Twilio might not be a name that a lot of people in the ARM industry love hearing these days, but the company is tied in to a lot of different industries and it has released a report about how brands can and should be engaging with customers and there are some takeaways that collection operations may want to note.
The Disconnect: More than 80% of brands say they have a deep understanding of their customers. But only 46% of consumers agree that this statement is true. The future of customer engagement is about individualization, Twilio noted. This includes specifically targeted messages and offers, communicating in specific channels, and anticipating what people are calling about before they have a chance to say anything. This is why more than three-quarters of companies say that personalized customer engagement is a high or critical priority in 2024.
The Five Trends: The report highlighted five trends:
- Using artificial intelligence can greatly improve customer engagement
- Protecting customer data is key to maintaining trust
- Some brands aren’t letting go of third-party cookies
- Younger consumers want better digital experiences
- Brands need to close the customer experience gap
Anyone paying attention to trends in consumer behavior likely would have been able to guess some or all of these trends and they aren’t likely to come as a shock to anyone who has been paying attention, but the report offers some useful data and insights into each of the trends that may influence how companies in the ARM industry choose to interact and communicate with consumers.