As customers become more certain of what they expect from brands, it is critical for brands to stay up-to-date. Today, sending out email blasts and placing ads on different online platforms alone aren’t enough to draw customer attention. Customers are looking for a personalized and relevant experience that considers their wants and needs. A solid conversational commerce strategy can help brands give these discerning customers what they want. 

What Is Conversational Commerce? 

Conversational commerce uses the power of messaging to help shoppers transact. Using a two-way dialogue that is personalized and relevant, conversational commerce leverages messaging channels, such as SMS, to meet customers where they already spend their time. In fact, more people are communicating via messaging platforms than any other platform today. 

On one side of the dialogue, brands can send personalized offers based on reliable customer data. On the other side of the conversation, shoppers can ask top-of-mind questions while interacting with the brand before and after making a purchase. This all happens in the messaging app of the shopper’s choice. 

Is Conversational Commerce Better for Retention or Acquisition?

Although conversational commerce works well for both, it is an excellent means to boost customer retention. Conversational commerce is well suited for retention because messaging platforms like SMS can leverage existing data the shopper has already shared with you. This may include past purchase history, abandoned shopping carts, searches, and more. With this data, brands can send timely messages to opted-in users to remind them when it’s time to reorder their favorite products, or nudge them towards making a related purchase. Since these shoppers are already familiar with your brand, it makes sense to re-engage them in a conversation about how they can get the most out of their shopping experience. 

One key benefit of conversational commerce is that the entire customer journey from entry point to transaction can take place within the messaging app. For example, you can send your shopper a message through SMS about a relevant product and offer them the option to reply, “Buy” to complete the purchase. If you have their payment information stored, they can complete the purchase in two simple clicks. 

You could also have a contextual button on your website that knows when a returning shopper is on a page for a product they’ve purchased before, and leads them into a conversation about the product inside a messaging channel such as SMS. Unlike webchat, where the user needs to stay on the website, this conversation can now happen “on-the-go”. 

How Conversational Commerce Improves the Customer Journey

The main way that conversational commerce improves the customer journey is by ensuring that your interactions with customers are personalized and relevant. This reduces friction by simplifying the entire customer experience. 

Customers have different points of frustration as they move through the purchase journey. If the process becomes confusing, annoying, or unclear at any point, they are likely to abandon it. This is the moment you need to be able to reach them. Anticipating the potential shopper frustration and addressing them in a timely manner, is part of what conversational commerce can offer.

Every conversation you have with your customers gives you more insight into what they want and need. You have a direct line of communication to each customer, but, equally importantly, they have a direct line to you. This mimics the in-store assisted shopping experience. 

As your customers ask questions and make purchases, you can learn what they want. Rather than sending them email blasts with potentially irrelevant offers, you can target them with what interests them. 

For example, if you have a customer who has abandoned a shopping cart, you can send them a product card and offer a discount in SMS. This often is the push they need to follow through on the purchase. When you simplify the process by offering them two click checkout inside SMS, they are far more likely to follow through that purchase journey.

You can also notify customers when their orders ship, confirm orders, and more with this tool. They will see the notification on their mobile devices, rather than having to search for an email. The convenience alone helps to build brand loyalty because you are showing customers that you value their time by simplifying the process. 

Final Words

Conversational commerce is the future of communication with customers, and it helps you acquire and retain customers. As you collect more data about an individual customer, you can enhance the personalized offers and provide them with a more relevant experience. Conversational commerce is an excellent tool for customer retention, but it also helps you gather data to acquire new customers. Either way, it simplifies the online shopping experience and gives customers the personalized attention they have come to expect.