Consumers love to communicate with each other over text channels and, according to recent studies, they are eager to use this mode of communication to interact with businesses. There are three main forms of text-based communication battling for the future: Messaging, chat, and texting.
As a result, the world of messaging remains very fragmented (especially when viewed globally). No one channel is dominant enough to make the other channels irrelevant. This has profound implications for the world of customer service as companies are increasingly focused on providing omni-channel support. Continue reading
It’s going to be a big year in the world of contact center and in customer service technology. Will Avaya soar upwards, freshly unburdened from its decade of debt? Will this be the year that messaging platforms from Facebook, Apple and others reach critical mass as a channel for customer service? Will the AI / chatbot hype start to live up to its promise? We’re going to tackle all of those topics in the months ahead on this blog, but first we’re reading everything we can so we can bring you the most accurate analysis. Below are some of the reports that we have found most interesting.
According to Dimension Data’s 
Having an omni-channel contact center is becoming increasingly important as channel options are diversifying and consumers are using more touch-points to interact with companies. Consequently, 
What we know: The voice channel is here to stay (Whether or not it declines in popularity is still up for debate). But we can’t hide from the facts: ![[Whitepaper] The New Customer Service Lexicon](https://fonolo.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/Whitepaper-The-New-Customer-Service-Lexicon.png "[Whitepaper] The New Customer Service Lexicon")
![[Video] 4 Takeaways from Our Google Hangout on the Voice Channel](https://fonolo.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/08/Video-4-Takeaways-from-Our-Google-Hangout-on-the-Voice-Channel-1.jpg "[Video] 4 Takeaways from Our Google Hangout on the Voice Channel")
Last week, Fonolo hosted yet another insightful Google Hangout discussing the voice channel as a relevant medium for contact centers. This fabulous panel of contact centers experts was determined to uncover the truth behind the future of the voice channel. To save you some time, we’ve extracted video snippets showcasing highlights from the discussion.![[Readers Choice] The Best 5 Customer Service Blogs This Year](https://fonolo.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/Readers-Choice-The-Best-5-Customer-Service-Blogs-This-Year-.jpg "[Readers Choice] The Best 5 Customer Service Blogs This Year")
Now that the end of the year has neared, we’ve evaluated what blogs you thought were the most captivating and helpful for advancing customer service. These blogs were chosen by you as the most popular Fonolo posts of the year! We’re so thrilled you enjoyed reading all of our educational content, and hopefully reading about our super cool call-back technology was fun as well.
If you’re not entirely sure what “omni-channel” means, you’re not alone. Omni-channel effectively extends the concept of communicating with customers over multiple channels into the physical world (the storefront). Think of it as multi-channel retailing.
