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Why The Future of Business-to-Consumer Communication is Text-Based
How Business Owners Must Cater To ‘Generation Mute’
A nasty spider bit my friend Josh! Here in Bali, Indonesia, it happens more often than you’d think. Paradise has its price. But don’t worry! Josh sent a photo of the bite to his doctor over WhatsApp. Moments later, he learned the name of the right medicine. Another 30 minutes passed before the GoJek driver texted that he had left the creme at the doorstep: Josh 1, spider 0.
WhatsApp makes life easy in paradise. Want to rent a scooter? Just text and they’ll deliver. Enjoy Nasi Goreng? Reserve a table at your favorite restaurant by chat. Book a spot at yoga? Write. Extend your room? You get the point… Everything is done on chat. WhatsApp is the operating system of small business.
Messages with benefits
Imagine all the benefits of texting versus calling. Chat is so simple and fast. When was the last time you tried to change your rental car reservation over the phone, and how much did you enjoy the experience? Here, it literally takes five seconds (eight if you’re currently sitting on the vehicle).
Also, texting is asynchronous. You don’t disturb the scooter guy, and he doesn’t disturb you. How polite! On top, you’re not restricted to opening hours. Text in the middle of the night after three Bintang beers and expect the answer by morning.
Asynchronous communication unlocks the biggest organizational benefit of “going text”: handling peak load times. When three people call the dentist’s office with one receptionist simultaneously, two will have a bad experience (plus the receptionist, ringringring). In chat, the same person can easily handle ten parallel customers and keep the response time short.
On top of that, the information density in instant messaging is so much higher. For example, you can use the world's most widely understood language. It’s called Emoji! Over the phone, the front-desk clerk might not speak Oxford English, but if you text them “🚽💩🧻😫?” he will get what you need in your…
