Communication as we know has evolved a lot. From sending letters which would take days or even months to reach via post to instant messaging, we have come a long way. And brands are noticing this shift and adapting to it. Enterprises have been using SMS marketing to increase their brand reach and acquire new customers. But now consumers have plenty of choices in front of them for various products and services. Therefore, it becomes important for enterprises to take the technological leaps and provide engaging ways to interact with them.
Person-to-Application (P2A) messaging is one way wherein end users can start engaging & seamless conversations with brands. Brands can then leverage these conversations to potentially gain a new consumer by meeting their requirements. This will help to generate highly qualified leads for brands.
Before we deep dive into the state of P2A messaging in 2020, let us understand what exactly is P2A messaging.
What is P2A Messaging?
P2A or Person-to-Application messaging refers to a form of messaging where the user starts a conversation or initiates an interaction with a given brand or enterprise. Consumer can get in touch with the enterprise directly using various touch points such as:
- Sending a message to a brand’s social media page (Facebook Messenger,Instagram DM etc.)
- Using WhatsApp, RCS or web chatbot to resolve their queries.
- Opting in by sending SMS to vote or join a competition.
Above listed are some of the many ways an end user can initiate conversations and start interaction with enterprises.
P2A Messaging Statistics 2020
Mobile Ecosystem Forum (MEF) had launched a report earlier this year called P2A Business Messaging 2020, which surveyed nearly 6,500 users in 10 different countries to know if users are ready to accept P2A messaging or not.
The survey found out that:
- 55% of smartphone users are ready to have a conversation with automated solutions (chatbots or P2A).
- 81% of the users can see themselves using P2A messaging for specific use cases such as placing an order, tracking shipment, checking balance and so on.
- 31% of users prefer calling, but many are open to mixing both depending on the situation (28%), 21% would prefer the new P2A messaging chats channel.
These statistics clearly indicate that users are ready for the shift and are willing to accept P2A Business Messaging channels for specific purposes.
Enterprise Case Studies
P2A Business Messaging is an important method for enterprises to keep their users engaged and gain new customers. MEF has launched another report called MEF Future of Messaging Guide 2020, which sheds light on how various brands are using P2A messaging to increase brand awareness and grow their business using different messaging channels. Let’s take a look at some of the ways brands are leveraging P2A messaging in 2020:
Ask Mercedes
Mercedes-Benz has built a chatbot which can solve simple frequently asked questions by their customers using the chatbot, Ask Mercedes.The bot covers almost 100 of the most commonly-asked questions about how to use a Mercedes-Benz vehicle.
Ask Mercedes is a conversational tool. Questions like ‘How can I drive more economically?’ can be asked to the bot as well. The bot will also ask follow up questions to better understand what the customer is asking. With multimedia content such as graphics and drawings, Ask Mercedes can communicate in a more interactive way with the customer.
This virtual assistant also has the functionality to use the Augmented Reality technology. Customers can simply scan the object in their car using their smartphone and the explanation of that object will pop up. This is a new way of interacting with customers and keeping them engaged with the product.
UN75
The United Nations (UN) is celebrating its 75th anniversary this year. On its 75th anniversary, the UN wants to ask one simple question to the world: What kind of future do you want?
The UN launched a one minute survey which can be taken on its web portal. To spread awareness about the survey, UN partnered with Vodafone to launch UN75, an RCS bot which gives users all the information about the survey and why their voice matters.
Using interactive media like rich cards and carousels images along with suggested replies, It is expected to gain a higher user engagement rate which could lead to more people taking the survey. According to Liz McCord, principal product manager for RCS services at Vodafone, 6% users have responded to the RCS push. That’s many times higher than SMS.
Abi Global
Although telemedicine has seen growth over the years and especially in the COVID-19 era, users prefer not to download apps, but rather, use existing messaging channels like WhatsApp, SMS or Facebook messenger to get health advice from a trusted consultant.
And Abi Global exactly does that. Using WhatsApp, SMS and other Over The Top (OTT) messaging channels, users can send their questions directly to physicians and they can advise on what next steps should be taken. Abi uses natural language processing to mediate the initial query. The AI analyzes the text and then sends it to the most appropriate doctor (based on location, language, medical expertise and ratings).
Till date, Abi is available to 3 million people in 14 markets, and has registered around 600 physicians. The company is aiming to launch the service in 100 markets by the end of 2021.
These case studies indicate that brands have understood where their customers are, how to keep them engaged and what are the technological tools they can further implement within the existing platforms.
***
Along with P2A messaging, discovering and accessing chatbots is equally important. Enterprises and network operators are heavily investing in creating chatbots but how can end users search and get access to them?
DotGo Bot Store is one such chatbot directory where users can search & get access to chatbots built by various brands and operators. It’s the largest RCS & WhatsApp chatbot directory in the world.
It will be interesting to see how enterprises can create meaningful partnerships with network operators and mobile messaging solution providers to capture a greater market share in coming years using P2A messaging & directories.