According to research by Zendesk, over 70% of customers are willing to buy more from brands that offer excellent customer service across different channels like live chat and social media.
Moreover, they expect businesses to offer a seamless experience regardless of the channel they choose.
But trying to cover all customer grounds can be a daunting task. So, a better course of action is to identify the most popular channels and implement them for your business.
This begs the question — what are the best customer contact channels for your company?
Let’s find out.
Elevate your customer service with the right channels
Most popular customer service channels
A customer service channel is a way or a method through which a consumer tries to reach out to a business to solve an issue or make an inquiry. The channels you choose for your business depend on a few factors like the type of product you offer, the scale of your business, and the demographics of your audience.
Studies show that customers have a clear preference for the following channels:
- Email (77%)
- Live chat (63%)
- Phone/VoIP (63%)
- Social media (29%)
Other important channels used less frequently include:
- Knowledge bases and help centers
- In-app messaging
- SMS
With that in mind, let’s explore the best customer service channels you should consider for your business.
1. Phone
Phone calls are a popular way for customers to communicate with your brand, especially for complex customer issues that need human intervention. Most customers prefer this service channel since it allows them to connect with support agents in person and have their challenges resolved in real time. Research by Salesforce shows close to 60% of consumers prefer to use voice calls when contacting call center agents.
Voice calls enable you to deliver a superior customer experience due to their more personalized nature. Service agents can accurately assess a customer’s emotional state and tailor a response to their request. Furthermore, phone support can provide amazing insights into what works for your company and what doesn’t.
2. Email
Despite being considered a traditional way of communication, email remains a popular customer support channel. Email support is suitable for customers who want written proof of their conversations with your brand, and don’t mind waiting for their issue to be resolved.
This consumer channel allows service agents to track individual conversations and curate their responses accordingly. To standardize the email reply process, you can utilize customizable templates to write professional customer service emails.
Read more: Discover how to effectively grow email lists for your ecommerce marketing campaigns.
3. SMS
Mobile messaging or SMS is a convenient way to reach your audience when you are on the go. Most consumers, particularly Millennials and Gen-Z, prefer to contact support agents via text whenever they have a query or challenge. This is hardly surprising especially when you consider that more than 65% of buyers will use mobile messaging to contact customer service teams.
Unlike other messaging apps that require you to install a mobile app, the SMS feature is built in. This makes it convenient for consumers who can send text messages to customer contact centers without an Internet connection. Service teams can also reduce the response time to consumer requests and provide proactive messaging in the form of reminders or alerts.
Read more: Learn about proactive customer service and how it can benefit your business.
4. Live chat
Live chat is an instant communication tool that enables website visitors to interact directly with a service rep via a text-based platform. It’s one of the most popular customer service channels because it combines both speed and personalization. Customers using live chat appreciate getting an instant reply and agents can enhance customer engagement by tailoring the language and its tone to the customer.
Live chat support also allows your agents and customers to keep track of conversation history and refer back to it when the need arises. Since it is a written form of communication, both parties have access to the information.
Tidio’s live chat is a strong option for businesses wanting quick, engaging support. It combines instant messaging with visitor tracking, so agents can assist users at the right moment. The chat widget is customizable to match your brand, and it integrates with platforms like Facebook Messenger and Instagram, centralizing all customer interactions for easier management.
Read more: Learn about the best live chat software on the market.
Boost customer satisfaction with Tidio’s multichannel support
5. Chatbots
Chatbots are useful for businesses that are plagued with high operation costs and lack round-the-clock consumer support. What makes bots particularly great is their capability to provide quick responses to routine inquiries, reducing waiting times and streamlining service operations. The effectiveness of chatbot automation enables human agents to focus on solving more complex issues for their customer base.
According to a report by Uberall, over 80% of consumers have enjoyed a positive chatbot experience. These high customer satisfaction rates are proof that chatbots are suitable for customer service and boosting real-time sales.
Tidio’s AI chatbot, Lyro, can boost productivity by handling real-time user requests on your site, social media, and mobile apps. It’s simple to set up, using data from your website to automatically create a Q&A format for common questions. Lyro also supports multiple languages, translating queries and responses automatically, making it easy to connect with a global audience.
Read more: Find out the main chatbot best practices to improve your bot performance.
6. Self-service
For your company to be effective at customer support, it’s important to provide users with customer self-service options. This enables your audience to independently find solutions to their queries and challenges without contacting your service agents. In fact, a study by Higher Logic has revealed that 77% of consumers view brands more favorably if they offer self-service tools.
This approach will require your business to provide customer resources, such as an FAQ page, knowledge base articles, a customer portal, and AI-powered knowledge base chatbots. Self-service is beneficial to users as it allows them to resolve issues quickly and independently, resulting in an overall better user experience. In addition, this channel helps websites save money on hiring extra support reps, helping them alleviate their workflows and focus on creating self-service content instead.
Read more: Discover what web self-service is and compare the reviews about the best tools in this category.
7. Web forms
A web form is a specific field on a website that collects customer feedback from a user. This customer channel allows you to manage user inquiries by organizing information into different sections, with each having its own purpose. Customers can fill out the sections with information about their issues.
If you are using an automated ticketing system like Tidio, these web forms are usually converted into tickets and routed to the relevant agents. The routing of these forms can be used to sign up website visitors to an email list or give them access to unique content. The forms can also be used to complete a shopping cart checkout process among other actions.
8. Social media
Gone are the days of only using social media for ads. Now, the stakes are high, and social media can act as a channel for both sales and customer support. Many customers are using social media to connect with their favorite brands, especially considering most businesses respond very quickly to consumer complaints posted on these support channels. A report by SproutSocial shows that 70% of customers expect companies to respond to support requests on social media in less than a day.
Social media’s popularity comes from its direct connection to customers. Platforms like X.com, Facebook, and Instagram allow users to find solutions by sharing experiences, while community forums on Reddit, Telegram, and WhatsApp offer additional help. Chatbots like Tidio make this process even easier by connecting businesses with users on social networks, enabling real-time support and a more interactive experience where audiences already engage.
Read more: Find out the best social media chatbots you can use to improve your business performance. Also, be sure to check out all about WhatsApp chatbots and Instagram bots while you’re at it.
9. Video calls
The use of video calls for customer engagement largely depends on the nature of your industry. For instance, if you are an enterprise sales rep, your client might expect a demonstration of your product over a Zoom or Microsoft Teams call. Video chats provide a personal touch as they allow face-to-face customer interaction.
Video calls give your support team the advantage of visually diagnosing issues alongside customers, making problem-solving more collaborative. They’re also a great way to showcase product features and demonstrate how things work in real time. One of the underrated perks of video is the ability to pick up on subtle cues and expressions—something you’d miss in text-based messaging—creating a more personal and effective support experience.
Read more: Compare the reviews about the best customer engagement software in the market.
Customer service channels: key takeaway
Choosing the right customer support channels is crucial if you want to provide customers with a holistic experience. You can go about this by assessing customer needs and understanding which channels they prefer. Find out which channels are mostly used in your industry and factor them into your customer service strategy. Finally, ensure your support team is capable of handling customer interactions on the preferred channels.
If you opt for an omnichannel service experience for your support needs, we recommend Tidio. The help desk software is known for its AI-driven chatbots and live chat features that help to process orders and handle customer inquiries. The software consolidates all communication into a single channel for agents to collaborate in resolving issues, including social media, web, and email.
Install Tidio on your website and try out its features for free!
Boost customer satisfaction with Tidio’s multichannel support
