As telephone conversations are deemed all but taboo by millennials, conversational commerce is making its way to the top. A term coined in Silicon Valley, ‘conversational commerce’ refers to companies that interact with shoppers on chat platforms like text messaging and social media direct messaging. Here’s how sliding into your DMs is helping brands.
It goes down in the DM
Although initial contact was clunky and awkward, over the years brands have started using a mix of automated and interpersonal tools to steer conversations. When WhatsApp released WhatsApp Business, small businesses rejoiced as they were now able to put up a virtual storefront that gave them the platform they needed. Brands looking towards conversational commerce are hoping to get their message across in private chats rather than on marketing-saturated public feeds. Last year, Facebook, which bought WhatsApp in 2014, said 60 billion messages are sent on the app daily, so it’s no surprise that even the bigger brands are transitioning over to more intimate means of communication.
Mobile banking – have it your way
Over 60% of millennials say they’d like to communicate with brands via text messaging. Consequently, Emirates NBD has rolled out a chat banking solution that enables users to make financial transactions on WhatsApp. The bank says it has seen a rapid increase in digital transactions with over half of its customers actively using mobile and online banking regularly, and with 24/7 availability, we see why.
Do these shoes match this dress?
With text messaging adding a level of intimacy that is often missing from digital commerce, it’s no surprise that your favourite brand can be your future BFF. When luxury footwear brand Tamara Mellon started texting with shoppers last year via Apple Business Chat, customers found out that they could send product requests via text message. They could even send photos of themselves and ask for shoes that match their outfits! Chat now makes up 11% of the brand’s $30 million sales.
Dripping in digital diamonds
Imagine strolling through the mall when a shiny new Rolex catches your eye in the store window. Unless you have the kind of disposable income we can only wish for, chances are that you’re going to think twice about making that purchase. Conversational commerce may not let you slip on the watch and try it on, but the intimacy it provides does ease customer concerns like fit or style.
Threads Shopping, for example, which sells luxury goods to shoppers via text message and WhatsApp, takes advantage of the convenience provided by conversational commerce. By swiping up, its shoppers are dropped into a private chat with one of the company’s 50 personal shoppers; the company says they are growing by 75% every year. However, the company warns marketers that practice these kind of personalized chat services against being spammy or pushy; losing that trust with your audience can cost you dearly.
A tricky line to walk on, conversational commerce can help your brand out in extraordinary ways. However, it all comes down to the kind of team you build and the sort of subtle communication you put across. If your messages aren’t carefully curated, you could end up being put on mute, or worse, blocked.
