Consumers Love Messaging for Customer Service But Hate its Experience Silo

YouGov survey of US and UK consumers reveals that lack of consistent omnichannel experience is the biggest hurdle to faster adoption of messaging for customer service

SUNNYVALE, Calif. and NEWBURY, United Kingdom, March 20, 2019 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- eGain (NASDAQ: EGAN), the leading provider of digital-first, omnichannel customer engagement hubs, today announced the findings based on a consumer survey of the use of messaging for customer service. The survey revealed that consumers love the convenience of messaging but struggle mightily with its experience silo.

Conducted by YouGov on behalf of eGain, the survey was based on responses from 1777 consumers who messaged a business for customer service in the last 12 months. When asked about their struggles¹ when messaging businesses for customer service:

• 43% hated repeating information across agents or when escalating to other channels;
• 28% struggled with the speed of response; and
• 23% were stumped by the relevance of response.

Another interesting and somewhat expected finding was the higher adoption of messaging for customer service among younger consumers. The survey found:

• 39% adoption for the 18-34 age group;
• 32% for the 35-54 age group; and
• 20% for the 55+ age group.

Finally, younger consumers had a more positive view of messaging as a customer service channel compared to other contact channels like web chat, email or phone.

• 37% in the 18-34 age group were more satisfied with messaging than other contact channels; versus
• 23% in the 35-54 age group; and only
• 18% in the 55+ age group.

"We believe our customer engagement hub enhances the value of our rich, messaging solution with our omnichannel platform powered by AI and knowledge” said Ashu Roy, eGain CEO. "Our clients in the US are rapidly activating our messaging capabilities to deliver a connected customer experience on the eGain platform. Especially exciting is the high level of interest in using our AI-based virtual assistant via messaging.”

More Information

An infographic containing key survey findings:
http://hd.egain.com/wp-content/surveys/egain_messaging_survey_2019.pdf.
eGain Messaging: http://www.egain.com/customer-service-messaging/
eGain Solve™ Suite: http://hd.egain.com/wp-content/overviews/egain_overview.pdf

About YouGov
YouGov is a global data, analytics, and market research firm founded in 2000. Its highly profiled and engaged panel of 2 million US consumers and 6 million consumers worldwide enables a continuous conversation about our panelists’ opinions, their behaviors, and the brands which touch their lives at local, national, and global levels.

All figures, unless otherwise stated, are from YouGov Plc.  Total sample size was 5,950 adults, of whom 1,777 had used messaging to get customer service in the past 12 months. Fieldwork was undertaken online between February 8th and February 18th, 2019.  The figures have been weighted and are representative of all US/UK adults (aged 18+).

About eGain

eGain customer engagement solutions deliver digital transformation for leading brands – powered by virtual assistance, AI, knowledge, and analytics. Our comprehensive suite of applications help clients deliver memorable, digital-first customer experiences in an omnichannel world. To find out more about eGain, visit http://www.egain.com.

eGain, the eGain logo, and all other eGain product names and slogans are trademarks or registered trademarks of eGain Corp. in the United States and/or other countries. All other company names and products mentioned in this release may be trademarks or registered trademarks of the respective companies.

¹ Respondents could select multiple options