While Instant Messaging (IM) for business is not a new concept for AAM (Always Active Mobile), the recent push by Facebook of its Messenger App for business shows just how important IM is becoming for brands seeking to effectively engage with consumers.
Facebook recently integrated chatbots into its Messenger App enabling a new way for consumers to communicate with businesses – without having to download multiple apps. Chatbots, powered by artificial intelligence, are designed to provide information through a natural conversational tone. With companies now able to build and put their own chatbots into Messenger they are better able to use IM services to interact with their customers. In essence this will provide consumers with a fast and easy way to engage with the brands that they already interact with in the real world.
“This is big news from Facebook because it shows how IM is becoming more exciting for brands, as it creates a space where brands can become an intuitive part of the messaging conversations of their customers, “ says Alan Haarhoff, General Manager – AAM.
BrandChat
“AAM launched BrandChat in 2015 as an efficient and effective way for brands to manage instore promotions and activations,” says Haarhoff. “With research showing just how much consumers love Instant Messaging, we knew that IM was the perfect platform for brand engagement services.”
Since then AAM has worked with promotional agencies with national footprints to better manage their staff by having them check-in and out of locations to prove their presence, as well as submitting pictures of their stands and reporting on sales figures.
“IM platforms such as WeChat and Facebook Messenger are seeing massive growth according to research from Effective Measure, so it made sense to integrate our BrandChat platform into the most popular IMs to take advantage of their reach and rich set of tools.”
WeChat, USSD and Facebook Messenger
BrandChat is integrated into WeChat, USSD and Facebook Messenger. “Our cross-IM integration ensures that we offer the most integrated platforms for brands to connect with their audience, this is ideal for brand promotions,” Haarhoff says. There are multiple advantages to building mobile business services within an IM, with one being the ability to develop two-way engagement with consumers.
“Our latest exciting development is that from June 2016 AAT will be offering Facebook Messenger Chatbots through our BrandChat platform,” says Haarhoff. “This will allow customers an even better experience when dealing with Brands via IM.”
About AAM
As a mobile-first company our fully scalable and secure mobile platforms allow for rich engagement across basic, feature and smart phones. We work with the FSP, FMCG and Retail sectors and offer a full range of mobile engagement channels.
Our core strength is helping brands and organisations engage with their audience across mobile channels.
Media enquiries:
Alan Haarhoff, AAM – General Manager
[email protected]
