On line social agents – a strategic tool for targeting young adult consumers
Young consumers, or “digital natives” as they’ve been labelled, share information on line as part of their daily routine, and their purchasing behaviours and preferences are guided by their involvement in social network dialogues within virtual communities and on blogs. On line social agents can have a dramatic positive impact on the online behaviour and attitudes of young consumers interacting with brands.
Most people experience similar feelings when they arrive at a function where they know few if any of the other guests, or they join a new group where they don’t know what’s expected of them or how to behave. For many people, it takes a bit of an effort to start up a conversation; to remember the names of the hosts and other guests for anything more than a few moments as conversation topics ebb and flow; and come to understand how things work in new situations. It was certainly always the case for me when I was fresh out of university and in my first “serious” full time job.
The whole process can be quite daunting, particularly if you’re not overly confident or an extrovert by nature. But it becomes so much easier when a host can greet you on arrival, share their experiences and introduce you to some of their other guests. Suddenly, you’re not the lone outsider who has to break the ice and make their own way – instead, you’ve become someone to be welcomed who will be given the information they need to fit in and understand what is on offer and what is expected.
That role of welcoming newcomers and helping them gain knowledge and learn the behavioural patterns of the host organisation is of tremendous value to any entity looking to increase its membership, but also to any business looking to target younger generations of consumers who might prefer to research and interact on line than deal with the organisation face to face.
That’s a very powerful place for any brand to put itself in.
These young consumers, or “digital natives” as they’ve been labelled, share information on line as part of their daily routine, and their purchasing behaviours and preferences are guided by their involvement in social network dialogues within virtual communities and on blogs.
The development of intelligent virtual agent technology has made it easier for online consumers to get the information they want, when they want it, without having to speak to someone on the phone or in store. This is of particular value to organisations targeting younger consumers, but even more so when there’s a need for those younger consumers to become familiar with complex services that require a significant degree of customer involvement and knowledge (navigating university enrolment systems, taking out insurance, registering with Inland Revenue or opening bank accounts for example).
In a recent study published in the Journal of Marketing (March 2011), researchers Köhler, Rohm, de Ruyter and Wetzels have investigated the impact of on line agents (aka virtual service employees) on what they call “newcomer adjustment” in the banking sector. The results suggest how organisations can best align interaction content and style in social agent-customer interactions, particularly those involving younger consumers, and so are certainly worthy of further discussion.
The on line agent’s ability to deliver functional content was shown to have a strong positive effect on newcomer adjustment and helped ensure customers were more likely to gain self-confidence in their dealings with, and feel more accepted by, the virtual agent’s firm.
Köhler et al found the on line agents in their study were more than just conveyors of information. They became “socialisation agents” that were able to influence customer attitudes and behaviours and satisfy the consumer’s demand for richer on line interactions by including social content in their interactions with customers, as long as social content did not dominate the interaction with the customer (as this had a negative effect on newcomer adjustment).
A sophisticated socialisation agent able to communicate functional and social content can be a significant driver of positive performance outcomes. This effect on newcomer adjustment can be further enhanced through the use of a proactive agent interaction style (ie not merely reacting to customers’ FAQs or requests but initiating and maintaining customer interactions), which requires the agents to have access to past interaction content so they can better respond to each customer’s needs.
Socialisation agents not only make it easier for “digital native” newcomers, they also make it easier for existing customers to learn more about service offerings they’ve not previously utilised or may not even have been aware of. Socialisation agents also increase the consistency of service delivery, as even the most highly trained real life customer service agents are subject to human error, their emotions and mood swings etc that might adversely impact the dynamics and quality of the customer-company interaction.
There may also be significant cost savings to be gained once the virtual agent is up and running (in terms of lower demand on call centre resources and in store staff time) as well as the chance to increase revenues through up-selling and cross-selling by virtual agents almost as a matter of course.
Another exciting implication for marketers that Köhler et al highlight is that socialisation agents are likely to have use and value beyond the confines of the company website, on SM sites like Facebook and Twitter, and even in communicating with multiple customers at the same time (facilitating social interactions between different customers perhaps). Now that really is an opportunity for delivering a bigger bang for bucks.
It is clear from the work done by Köhler, Rohm, de Ruyter and Wetzels that virtual agents have the potential to play a key role in a firm’s social marketing and communications strategy, simply because they’re not just providing newcomers with information, but are also perceived b y younger customers in particular, to be acting as a friend, mentor and advisor. And that’s a very powerful place for any brand to be able to put itself in.