Contact centers need to get ready to get digital.

According to the 2015 Global Contact Centre Benchmarking Report by Dimension Data, digital interaction will outpace voice interaction within the next two years. Digital interactions currently comprise 35% of customer interactions: this includes IVR, text messaging, mobile applications, social media, websites, and more. This is in line with customers’ demand for a seamless omnichannel experience, one that’s more contextualized and personalized on every channel.

The report also found that nearly 75% of organizations believe the contact center is a competitive differentiator, and one of the best ways to stay competitive is to provide the best customer experience. With voice traffic predicted to decrease 42% in the next two years, offering great service on alternative channels will be more important than ever. Luckily, 35% of agents are now skilled in managing multiple channels, and that number will only increase over the next few years.

Also of note: 38% of contact centers currently offer SMS, and 23% have plans to add it in the next 12 months. That means 61% of contact centers will offer SMS support in 2016.

View the summary report from Dimension Data’s website, and don’t forget to download our free Harris report about America’s preference for texting.

Image from Wikimedia.