Executive summary

Swisscom is the leading provider of communication, entertainment, and IT in Switzerland. They partnered with Khoros in 2009, and since then, the Khoros platform has enabled them to handle volume spikes and technical incidents while maintaining response times SLAs and providing industry-leading customer service. In fact, with the help of Khoros, Swisscom has managed to turn 42% of customer conversations that started out as negative into positive interactions.

The Swisscom team is small, but what it lacks in size it makes up for in innovation. The social media team is always challenging themselves to think of better ways to anticipate customer needs in a rapidly changing market. The best way to do that, they’ve found, is to make it easier for customers to engage with the brand. That’s why Swisscom once again partnered with Khoros to integrate Google’s Business Messages.

Before onboarding Business Messages, Swisscom offered a variety of digital-first service channels, including social media, to help deflect call volume. But one of their main goals in onboarding Business Messages was to simplify and streamline the customer journey, as they knew most customer journeys began with Google searches.

Now, when customers Google the Swisscom support number, Business Messages automatically offers them an easy way to chat instead. This streamlined journey makes it easier for customers to get fast, accurate answers to their questions. The Swisscom team leverages flexible, customizable chatbot flows to send automated welcome messages and to let customers know about important activities — all within the Business Messages channel. The team also uses Khoros analytics to detect abnormalities on social media and respond to them quickly.

Results have been impressive: Customers simply don’t need to call as often when they can get the information they need through a more convenient channel. 30% of Swisscom’s Business Messages inquiries are sales-related, which opens up the opportunity to drive revenue.

Customer satisfaction has also benefited since implementation: in surveys and qualitative feedback, Swisscom customers praise the newfound ease of communication. And even though inquiry volumes increased as contacting the brand became easier, Swisscom did not have to add agents to manage the surge.

In the future, Swisscom plans to continue developing their service channels to make it even easier for customers to get the info and help they need as quickly as possible and at the highest standards.

“Not only do Khoros and Google’s Business Messages help us meet our customers in their channel of choice, they help us meet them at the perfect time, providing the chance to deliver innovative digital customer experiences.”

— Joel Viotti
Social Media Manager at Swisscom