Is Your Business Ready for the Customer Engagement Revolution?
We surveyed 5,000 consumers from 14 countries for our 10th annual Global Customer Engagement Report. The key finding? Consumers expect higher levels of digital engagement than ever before and won’t stay with brands that don’t provide it seamlessly.
About the research
In partnership with Boston Research Services, Vonage interviewed 5,000 consumers across four continents and 14 countries to further understand the lasting impact of COVID-19 on how consumers engage with businesses and with each other. The study, The Global Customer Engagement Report, included a statistically representative distribution of respondents across age (18-55+), region, and country to understand response differences among gender, generational, and geographical segments. The survey was conducted in July 2021.
About the research
Missed our previous global customer engagement research?
Click to download:
Customer Engagement Beyond Borders
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(Global Customer Engagement Report, May 2020)
COVID-19 Reshapes the Global Customer Engagement Landscape
(Global Customer Engagement Report, October 2020)
Amid Global Video Usage Surge, Regions Differ in Organizational and Consumer Readiness
(Vonage Video Usage Trends & Benchmarks, Second Edition)
Looking back at the previous nine editions of our report, here are the customer trends and inflection points that have led us to this new era of digital immediacy.
Dig into a transformational decade for digital engagement
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2021
2020
2019
2018
2017
2016
2015
Since the outbreak of Covid, 47% of consumers increased their digital engagement with businesses—and 86% will either maintain or increase it in the next 6-12 months.
Digital engagement here to stay
43% of Americans video chat with businesses regularly.
Pandemic drives digital adoption
Mobile phone calls are the most preferred way to connect with businesses and service providers (33%)—but two-thirds of people prefer a different method.
Channel fragmentation among global customers
Nearly 1 in 3 Americans are using video chat to engage with a business, brand or service provider.
The rise of consumer-to-business video chat
1/4 of consumers video chat on social apps such as Houseparty and Facebook Live.
Emergence of social video chat apps
Mobile overtakes laptop and desktop as the most popular device for video chat.
Mobile takes over
63% of U.S. enterprises are adopting or planning to adopt video chat.
Early days of video chat
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Future Engagement
Pandemic Transformation
Aug. 2020
Jul. 2021
Jan. 2022 - Jul. 2022
Increased engagement since Covid outbreak
Will maintain OR increase engagement
32%
41%
88%
28%
33%
83%
30%
37%
87%
47%
67%
88%
41%
50%
89%
35%
47%
87%
United Kingdom
North America
EMEA
LATAM
APAC
Global
The spikes in digital engagement we saw during COVID-19 were not a circumstantial blip. Consumers who embraced new and emerging digital channels of communication will not revert to old ways.
It’s the point of no return for customer engagement
2012
2013
2014
of consumers expect to maintain or increase levels of digital engagement in the next 6-12 months
86%
consumers now use live chat or in-app chat daily
1 in 5
growth in popularity of WhatsApp over SMS
160%
consumers video chat with a business or service provider more now than they were 18 months ago
3 in 5
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increase in consumer preference for messaging apps since the outbreak of COVID-19
100%
growth in the proportion of respondents who chose video chat as the number 1 channel for talking to companies
300%
Here's how people around the world are using communications channels today. See what's changed.
What does this new world of digital customer behaviors and expectations look like?
90
80
70
60
50
40
30
Increased engagement since Covid outbreak
Will maintain OR increase engagement
Increased engagement since Covid outbreak
Will maintain OR increase engagement
Increased engagement since Covid outbreak
Will maintain OR increase engagement
Increased engagement since Covid outbreak
Will maintain OR increase engagement
Increased engagement since Covid outbreak
Will maintain OR increase engagement
Download the report
Jan. 2020
Aug. 2020
Jun. 2021
60%
40%
20%
0%
12%
16%
19%
8%
11%
11%
11%
14%
15%
13%
14%
16%
47%
58%
64%
Occasionally
Regularly
Daily
Almost all the time
All
Frequency of video chat with businesses and service providers
Video chat is the rising star of emerging digital channels. Not only are more people video chatting, but they are doing it more often as well.
The Incredible (and Ongoing) Rise of Video Chat
Joy Corso, Chief Marketing Officer for Vonage
"Our research shows that digital channels have rapidly emerged alongside traditional methods of communication, with sharp and sustained growth in video, chatbots, app-based messaging and calling, while email and traditional voice calls remain relatively status quo. This underscores the need to connect with and engage with customers in multiple ways, in their preferred modality."
No changing lanes
Stuck in a waiting loop
Hello, human?
Overall frustration
AI roundabouts
One way messaging street
Sent in the wrong direction
Stranded in self-help
Communication dead ends
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to stop buying from a business or using its services
very likely
26%
“When I can’t switch between communication channels”
No changing lanes
to stop buying from a business or using its services
very likely
31%
“When I receive a message but I can’t reply directly”
One way messaging street
to stop buying from a business or using its services
very likely
38%
“When I have to repeat myself to an operator after I already explained my problem to a chatbot, AI, or another operator”
AI roundabouts
to stop buying from a business or using its services
very likely
38%
“When I call in, select a number from the pre-recorded list of options, only to be connected to the wrong person”
Sent in the wrong direction
to stop buying from a business or using its services
very likely
44%
“When I call in and the wait time is very long but there are no options for getting a call back”
Stuck in a waiting loop
to stop buying from a business or using its services
very likely
46%
“When I use a self help chatbot that doesn’t solve my problem but there is no option to connect to an operator”
Stranded in self-help
to stop buying from a business or using its services
very likely
46%
“When I want to speak to a human but there is no other option to connect to an operator”
Hello, human?
to stop buying from a business or using its services
very likely
46%
“When I call in and no one is available, but there are no other channels available to get help”
Communication dead ends
to stop buying from a business or using its services
very likely
52%
“A frustrating experience that happens repeatedly when communicating with a business or service provider”
overall frustration
The zones no business wants to enter—where repeatedly subjecting your customers to one of these customer engagement frustrations could make up to half of them stop buying from you or using your services.
Avoid these customer engagement danger zones
“A frustrating experience that happens repeatedly when communicating with a business or service provider”
“When I call in and no one is available, but there are no other channels available to get help”
“When I want to speak to a human but there is no other option to connect to an operator”
Hello, human?
2012-2015
2016
2017
2018
2019
2020
2021
will likely leave
will likely leave
will likely leave