Capitalising on new forms of customer engagement with virtual mobile numbers
Extending customer engagement to classical voice and messaging brings many benefits, but these forms of communication have been overlooked by many online retailers and service providers. However, there’s growing understanding that they are a key channel for customer communication. Virtual mobile numbers create a way for CPaaS and mobile operators to enable businesses to reach their customers via voice and messaging, enhancing engagement and improving service.
Online businesses and service providers need to ensure consistent engagement with their customers. They have to provide notifications, confirm bookings and may need to provide one-to-one service with agents or other staff. While much of this activity takes place through digital channels, such as email, or through closed chat groups in applications, providers increasingly need to extend their reach by adding traditional forms of communication to the mix.
It may seem strange, given the widespread adoption of applications and online platforms, but traditional communication tools such as voice and SMS offer a number of key benefits that help retailers and service providers engage with their customers. For example, due to the ubiquity of mobile phones, any customer can be reached through their mobile number, so providers can call them to discuss issues or they can be sent messages providing relevant information. That matters, because most digital engagement depends on a data connection, which may not always be available.
In addition, customers may need to call their provider or send them a message to confirm receipt or to schedule a delivery. To do this, they need a number to which send the message or to dial if they want to speak to someone.
So, voice and classical SMS solves several problems and extends the ways in which providers can interact with their customers. In the rush to embrace digital interaction, the benefits of voice and messaging have been overlooked – but they play a fundamental role and online businesses and service providers are looking for ways in which they can integrate them with their omni-channel platforms, so that they can enable bi-directional interaction with their customers through their mobile devices.
One way to achieve this is to capitalise on virtual mobile numbers – numbers that exist in the mobile domain, but which are not associated with a specific user or device. Such numbers provide an identity that can be used to send messages or place calls and to which, in turn, customers can send messages or call. To enable virtual numbers, what’s needed is a clever piece of kit known as a virtual VLR.
Partitionware offers a complete, managed virtual VLR solution that enables virtual mobile numbers to be used as a tool for customer interaction and engagement. It allows CPaaS providers and MNOs to offer such services to businesses that are eager to integrate voice and messaging with their engagement channels.
If you would like to be able to offer such services to business customers, then why not get in touch, so we can show you how we can help. It’s a secure, scalable and differentiated approach which provides the benefits of classical connectivity while complementing online and digital channels.
