Vonage Research Discovers Significant Rise in Digital Engagement

Cloud communications leader Vonage recently released the results of the 10th Global Customer Engagement Report, which aims to analyze and understand how consumers are utilizing digital communications channels to engage with businesses.

As one might expect in the post-pandemic economy, digital communication is jumping in popularity across the board. The shift toward remote and hybrid environments over the last two years have forced a significant portion of global citizens to work and socialize through the internet, which has resulted in a new acceptance, and preference, toward digital communications.

According to the results of the report,Vonage (News - Alert) researchers found 47% of more than 5,000 global survey participants have reportedly increased their use of digital channels to communicate with businesses and service providers over the past 12-18 months. While that statistic may be unsurprising, researchers also found that 87%  of participants anticipate maintaining or increasing their digital channel usage over the next 6-12 months.

One other notable insight from the report is how social media messaging is becoming a preferred option for business communications. While phone and email have reigned supreme in the past, the pandemic has made applications like WhatsApp and Facebook (News - Alert) Messenger a convenient resource for business contact across the globe. Vonage’s report found that 52% of participating consumers in Europe, the Middle East, and Africa, have used WhatsApp to contact a business.

"COVID-19 has fundamentally changed how businesses operate and how consumers interact with those organisations," said Joy Corso, Chief Marketing Officer for Vonage. "Our research shows that digital channels have rapidly emerged alongside traditional methods of communication, with sharp and sustained growth in video, chatbots, app-based messaging and calling, while email and traditional voice calls remain relatively status quo. This underscores the need to connect with and engage with customers in multiple ways, in their preferred modality. We are in an age where customers expect ultra-fast, seamless and dynamic communications and engagement.”

Edited by Maurice Nagle