VONAGE GLOBAL CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT REPORT 2025

Where AI Meets CX:

Your Practical Roadmap
YOU ARE HERE:
Welcome to the intersection of customers and
communications. This is where your communications strategy matches
customer preferences for the ultimate engagement and experience.
Getting here isn’t easy … which is why we asked over 7,000 customers
across 17 global markets for their insights, pain points, and must-know
preferences. Their feedback fueled our data-driven roadmap.
And we’ve charted this easy report to direct the way. Join us as we
guide you through an exciting AI and CX ride.

TRAFFIC
AHEAD
MAP YOUR COURSE
ONLINE
Points of Interest

Executive Summary Appendix

Customer Experience: The Three-Way Intersection Current Communications by Country
Utopian Road The Channels: Messaging/Texting
Reality Road
The Channels: Voice Calls
AI Road
The Channels: Video
Facts About Today and Tomorrow
Satisfaction with communications methods The Channels: Social Media
AI-powered support tools Regional- and Country-Specific Insights
AI Usage Continues To Rise Snapshot: APAC
Current vs. future communications Australia Spotlight
Emerging methods that customers love China Spotlight
Multichannel communications India – North Spotlight
India – South Spotlight
Customer Frustrations and How AI Can Help
Indonesia Spotlight
Voicebots and IVRs
Japan Spotlight
CRM Integration
Singapore Spotlight
AI Virtual Assistant and Live Agent Assist
South Korea Spotlight
Conversational Marketing and Commerce
24/7 and Staff Coverage Snapshot: EMEA
France Spotlight
Bottom Line Impact
Germany Spotlight
Customer reactions to negative + positive CX
Italy Spotlight
Customer Service/Support Spain Spotlight
How Vonage Can Help Sweden Spotlight
Methodology Snapshot: LATAM
RCS Solutions Story Brazil Spotlight
Mexico Spotlight
Healthcare Solutions Story
Snapshot: UK
AI: Two-Way CX Traffic
Customers are comfortable with AI Snapshot: U.S.
AI attitudes and experiences
AI-powered support tools and data security
AI channel preferences
Future AI-powered support tools
Best uses for AI-powered support tools
Verification
AI interest and AI concerns
Comfort with authentication methods
Verification methods usage CLICK TO EASILY
Impact of authentication
Authentication/security tolerance MOVE THROUGHOUT
Protecting personal information
Data breach: Personal information NOT exposed
THIS DOCUMENT.
Data breach: Personal information IS exposed

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Executive Summary

Welcome to the Vonage Global Customer Engagement Report 2025. This 13th annual report
summarizes key communication trends to help you reach and engage customers. You’ll find insights
from over 7,000 consumers participating across 17 global markets, such as:

The embarrassing truth (still) AI is a trusted friend

Customers love when businesses answer and Customers follow their schedule, not yours. And
engage them right away. Unfortunately, they they will contact a business by phone, email, text
also note long wait times to speak to an agent — you name it — to find the fast fix. AI satisfies
or contacting customer service multiple times this want for convenience and speed. The spike
to resolve issues as chronic frustrations. More in push notifications, for example, is an ongoing
technology-driven solutions are available than example of customers embracing AI for 24/7
ever … and yet, these decades-old pain points service.
remain unsolved.
AI makes every channel an optimal channel
CX matters (a lot) Sure, customers can call businesses in the
It may be easy to gloss over repeated morning and chat in the evening. That’s not by
frustrations and growing stats as business as choice. Ideally, their issues should be corrected
usual. But failure to fix leads to lost business with the first contact — and AI can bring the
as usual. Pay attention: smarts to make the initial channel the optimal
channel. So it’s important to dive into the report
After a bad customer experience: details to discover what channels customers
like and how they prefer to communicate. Then
• 75% of customers are likely to take their you can further dial the AI-specific benefits
business elsewhere. to transform your customer communications,
• 48% of customers only need one or two bad customer journey, and overall customer
experiences before they leave. experience strategies.
But after a great customer experience: The dawning of the intelligent agent era
• 57% of customers will give positive Early chatbots were procedural, where customers
feedback on a survey. went from point A to point B in a potential loop.
• 53% of customers will tell friends and family. Chatbots have now evolved into fully AI-powered
• 52% of customers will become more loyal intelligent agents — that leverage natural
to company or provider. language understanding (NLU) and large language
models (LLMs) — to better engage with customers
• 35% of customers WILL PURCHASE and help them complete a variety of tasks.
ADDITIONAL PRODUCTS. These new intelligent agents have the ability to
transform CX for both businesses and consumers.
Also, the rise in data breaches has a huge
influence on brand loyalty and consumer Where AI Meets CX: Your Practical Roadmap
behavior:
Grab hold of the wheel and follow our in-
• Over 75% of consumers are less likely
depth road of customer frustrations, channel
to stay with providers that experience an
preferences, and AI-enhanced solutions to help
online data breach, even if their personal
reach your CX destination
information is not exposed.
• Nearly 90% of consumers are less likely
to stay with providers that experience an
online data breach in which their personal
information is exposed.

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Customer Experience:
A Three-Way Intersection
Customer experience follows three roads: Utopian, Reality, and AI.

CLEAR AHEAD

Utopian Road
Every stop in the journey is a model of effective customer
communications and positive CX. For example, customers
contact you across numerous channels — often, with multiple or
non-related questions. Customers never have to repeat themselves
and agents are updated every time. That’s utopia, not reality.

CLOSED TO CX TRAFFIC

Reality Road CAUTION:

Every stop is a customer nightmare: CX FRUSTRATIONS IN
Pitstop 1: MIRROR ARE CLOSER
Customers send an initial text and never get a response. THAN THEY APPEAR
Pitstop 2:
They follow up by phone and dangle from a phone tree.

Pitstop 3:
They start a chat and get ghosted, again.

Pitstop 4:
They finally reach a live agent … only to be routed to a second
agent, where they must repeat the authentication and issue.

Each frustrating moment is a data point that leads to lost business. In fact, 75% will stop buying
after a bad experience — and 48% only need one or two bad experiences before they bounce.

ALTERNATE ROUTE

AI Road
Communications APIs and contact center TEST DRIVE THE
solutions can proactively service customers.
This optimizes every channel, so your customers ROADS ONLINE
must only reach you once. And more time
engaging with you — rather than chasing you
— means more time doing business with you.

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Facts About Today and Tomorrow
Satisfaction with communications methods
Only 42% of consumers are “very satisfied” when communicating with businesses.
This stat remains flat from last year, indicating that there’s always room for improvement …
especially when it comes to fraud protection.

Channel usage by region

Messaging/Texting Voice Calls
• 91% of consumers use at least one • 93% of consumers use at least one
messaging/texting platform, as voice channel, as usage of voice/phone
global usage of these methods remains very strong.
continues to increase (up from 87%). • Mobile phone calls continue to
• WhatsApp and SMS are the most be the most widely used voice
widely used platforms. communications method, followed
• The U.S. shows strong SMS usage. by WhatsApp.

• APAC (India, Indonesia, and China) • Voice call usage is very high in most
and LATAM (Brazil and Mexico) lead markets, particularly India, Indonesia,
in overall messaging app usage. and China.
• Mobile phone usage is strong across
Video most markets, including the U.S.
• 77% of consumers use video chat/ • Strong WhatsApp preference in Brazil
call platforms, as global usage of this and Indonesia.
method continues to strengthen
(up from 74%). Social Media
• Zoom has solid usage in most markets. • 80% of consumers use social media
• Strong WhatsApp usage in Brazil, platforms, as global usage of this
Germany, Spain, and Singapore. method continues to strengthen
(up from 78%).
• India, Indonesia, China, and Brazil
lead in video usage. • WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger,
Instagram, and YouTube have solid
usage across markets — except for
China and Japan.
• Facebook Messenger leads all other
Q: How satisfied are you with the available methods platforms in the U.S., Sweden, and
for communicating with businesses and service Australia.
providers (e.g., by voice, text, video, etc.)?

See Appendix
Current Communications by Country
and Regional- and Country-Specific Insights.

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AI-powered support tools

Would use AI-powered support tools for faster response

Very unlikely
Somewhat unlikely

27% 39% 22% 7% 5% Neutral

Somewhat likely

Very likely
Concern about personal data security
when using AI-powered support tools
Fall 2024

Not at all concerned

Not very concerned

30% 46% 20% 4% Somewhat concerned

Very concerned

Comfort with AI-powered support tools

handling complex/sensitive issues
Not at all comfortable

Not very comfortable

22% 48% 24% 7%
Somewhat comfortable

Very comfortable

Key takeaways
• Most consumers are likely to try AI-powered support tools in
return for faster response — think shorter wait times. These include
over 25% who are very likely to seek AI-assisted help.
• Messaging apps and website chat are the most widely preferred
AI-powered support channels.
• Nearly 75% are concerned about the security of their personal
data and fewer than 25% are “very comfortable” with these AI
support tools handling complex or sensitive issues.

25%
Q: For faster response (shorter wait times), how likely would
you be to try using AI-powered support tools instead of live
human support representatives the next time you need help?

Q: How concerned are you about the security of your personal

data when interacting with AI-powered customer service
tools? VERY LIKELY
Q: How comfortable are you with AI-powered support tools such TO SEEK
as virtual assistants and chatbots handling more complex
and sensitive customer service issues?
AI-ASSISTED
HELP

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AI Usage Continues To Rise
You’ll find detailed analysis, including regional- and channel-specific consumer insights, in the
Appendix. The following are the top highlights we see for 2025. These methods continue to emerge
and benefit from AI.

Current vs. future communications

Businesses/service providers

• Chatbot: 9% currently use daily | 32% will increase in next 6-12 months
• Video chat: 11% currently use daily | 28% will increase in next 6-12 months

• Automated phone support: 11% currently use daily | 25% will increase in next 6-12 months
• Webpage/in-app calling: 13% currently use daily | 25% will increase in next 6-12 months
• Voice personal assistants: 14% currently use daily | 26% will increase in next 6-12 months

Key takeaways
• Personalization is preferred. Whether by chat, automated phone support, calling, or voice personal
assistants — customers want personalized attention. Should an escalation occur, make sure you can
route to a live agent with context.
• Webpage/in-app calling captures the moment. Just imagine if customers are already engaged
through your site or app. Now a single tap brings them in direct contact with you.
• In-app usage is up. AI integration helps you to further service customers by answering quick
questions, routing to a live agent, or even closing a sale.
• Attendance not required. Automated phone support and voice personal assistants are great ways to
immediately engage customers. Continually review frequently asked questions and interactions — and
integrate those into your automations.
• Video chat is more than a 1:1 connection. This is a great chance to use AI capabilities and machine
learning to anticipate a customer call and prompt responses for help service agents. For example, AI
can conduct real-time sentiment analysis to escalate a call as needed. When agents join the video call,
they can reference AI-generated insights to quickly resolve a customer concern.

Q: How often do you connect with any business or service provider using each of the following?
Q: In the next 6-12 months, how will your methods of communicating with businesses or service providers change?

Want more next steps?

See Customer Frustrations and How
AI Can Help and AI: Two-Way CX Traffic.

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 Emerging methods that customers love
Generally, communications with businesses fall into two clusters
based on shared usage patterns:
• Established methods with mostly wider adoption

MERGE
• Emerging methods with lower usage levels that tend to occur among
the same consumers
Note:
OMNICHANNEL • Live chat/messaging within apps are unrelated to the other channels.
AHEAD • Younger consumers are generally more active communicators, with
higher usage of every communications method with businesses.

Established methods Emerging methods Usage independent

of other methods
Mobile phone call Chatbot
Messaging via non-SMS apps Automated phone support Live chat/messaging
within app
Phone call via messaging apps Voice personal assistant
SMS text messaging Voice call from webpage
Email or within app

Commenting on social posts Video chat

Push notifications

Q: How often do you connect with any business

or service provider using each of the following?

For example, consumers using chatbots are also more likely to use automated
phone support, voice personal assistants, in-app calling, and video chat.
These speak to important trends:

Customers love choices

If you offer a channel, customers will use it. That’s right, omnichannel is still an important strategy.

New favorite channels all have an AI element

Remember, customers follow their schedule and AI solutions give them flexibility and immediacy
beyond store hours — like to answer simple questions.
And future iterations will have access to large language models (LLMs) and entire company and
third-party databases, understand natural language questions, and have the right flows built in
to suggest next best actions. In some cases, this could result in a transfer to a live agent.

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Multichannel communications

Number of multichannel communications in past year

0 1 2 3 4 5 or more
Fall 2024

28% 15% 23% 14% 4% 16%

73% at least once

57% multiple times

Key takeaways
Q: In the past year, how many times have you
• Customers actively choose to engage with AI started communicating with a business using
— and this is likely going to continue. Use this one method and then switched to another
to your advantage. method to continue discussing the same topic
(e.g., starting via email and then switching
• Nearly 75% of consumers have had multi- to SMS/text, starting on social media then
channel communications with businesses in switching to voice call, etc.)?
the past year (starting with one method then
switching to another to continue discussing
the same topic).
• Over 59% have done this multiple times,
including over 10% who experienced it 5+
times.
• Rather than going with off-the-shelf options,
enjoy the control and integration by using
communications APIs or contact center
solutions — with AI insights that tie to your
CRM and back office — to build your solution.

75%
MULTICHANNEL
COMMUNICATIONS

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Customer Frustrations and How AI Can Help
It’s never been easier to fix the frustrations that have plagued businesses. Thank you, AI.

Voicebots and IVRs

Reality Road
Long wait times to speak to agent | 65%
(Frustration)

AI powers virtual assistants and intelligent agents that eliminate long hold times
AI Road for common requests, plus smart IVR and chatbots for initial call triage.
(Solution) FAQ bot uses customer input to identify the most asked transactional questions
and automate responses. Customers can still request a live agent if needed.

Reality Road
Phone menu voice commands can’t understand you | 56%
(Frustration)

Voicebots and IVRs help guide customers, while speech-to-text — enhanced

AI Road
with natural language understanding and accurate transcription — quickly
(Solution)
solves common customer problems and provides CX insights.

Reality Road
Phone menu too long to navigate, missing needed options | 57%
(Frustration)

Voicebots and IVRs help guide customers, while speech-to-text — enhanced

AI Road
with natural language understanding and accurate transcription — quickly
(Solution)
solves common customer problems and provides CX insights

Reality Road
Difficult to understand agent due to intonation/accent | 53%
(Frustration)

AI Road
Voicebots quickly solve common customer problems and provide CX insights.
(Solution)

Reality Road
Phone menu has very old or dated navigation | 48%
(Frustration)

Voicebots and IVRs help guide customers, while speech-to-text — enhanced

AI Road
with natural language understanding and accurate transcription — quickly
(Solution)
solves common customer problems and provides CX insights.

65% EXPECT DELAYS

Q: How frustrating is experiencing each of the
following types of communications issues
with businesses or service providers?
LONG WAIT TIMES

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 CRM Integration

Reality Road
No way to speak to customer service via voice/phone | 60%
(Frustration)

AI-powered intelligent agents use enhanced natural language understanding,

AI Road plus sentiment analysis, to route customers to live agents as needed.
(Solution) AI extracts data from CRM to ensure verification and quickly provide customer
history, so agents have the full context before starting the call.

Reality Road
Providing personal information multiple times within one call/session | 55%
(Frustration)

AI Road AI extracts data from CRM to ensure verification and quickly

(Solution) provide customer history.

Reality Road
Don’t know your history or background of recurring issue | 53%
(Frustration)

AI Road AI extracts data from CRM to ensure verification and quickly

(Solution) provide customer history.

Reality Road
Conversation from one channel not captured in different channel | 52%
(Frustration)

AI Road
AI extracts customer data from CRM to provide context to staff.
(Solution)

Q: How frustrating is experiencing each of the following types of

communications issues with businesses or service providers?

DETOUR
REPEAT
INFORMATION

55%

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 AI Virtual Assistant and Live Agent Assist

Reality Road
Contacting customer service multiple times to resolve issue | 65%
(Frustration)

AI virtual assistant delivers enhanced self-service, initiates initial triage to

AI Road
route customers to the appropriate person, and ensures high volumes of inbound
(Solution)
calls are addressed during peak business hours or busy seasonal periods.

Reality Road
Describing issue to multiple agents, being transferred multiple times | 63%
(Frustration)

AI Road Skills-based routing connects customers with an agent best suited to

(Solution) handle the call.

Reality Road
Customer service is not available in preferred language | 55%
(Frustration)

AI Road
An AI virtual assistant engages callers in natural language
(Solution)

Reality Road
Difficult to hear agent clearly due to background noise | 57%
(Frustration)

AI Road An AI virtual assistant engages callers in natural language. Also, AI can filter
(Solution) out background noise for a clear call experience

Q: How frustrating is experiencing each of the

following types of communications issues
with businesses or service providers?

ALTERNATE ROUTE
CONTACT CUSTOMER
SERVICE MULTIPLE TIMES
65%
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 Conversational Marketing and Commerce

Reality Road
Unable to answer your question, right person isn’t available | 62%
(Frustration)

A conversational marketing workflow:

• Adds information, automation, and self-service to conversations: e.g.,
AI Road provide front-end FAQs, authenticate users, and authorize payments
(Solution) • Offers another option for customers to engage, share insights, or
request follow up
• Uses a message campaign builder to enable one-to-one messaging at scale

Reality Road
No way to respond to text message or email notification | 56%
(Frustration)

Conversational marketing using conversational AI enables two-way messaging

AI Road to engage customers in the moment in the channel of their choice.
(Solution)
A message campaign builder enables one-to-one messaging at scale.

Reality Road
Want quick information via chat/messaging but phone is only option | 42%
(Frustration)

AI-powered intelligent agents (chatbots) can quickly engage customers

and answer questions or route to a live agent.
AI Road
(Solution) Conversational marketing workflow adds information, automation, and
self-service to conversations: e.g., provide front-end FAQs, authenticate
users, and authorize payments.

Q: How frustrating is experiencing each of the

following types of communications issues
with businesses or service providers?

62%
ALTERNATE ROUTE
UNABLE TO
ANSWER QUESTION

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 24/7 and Staff Coverage

Reality Road
Customer service is not available 24/7 | 49%
(Frustration)

AI operates 24/7 through virtual assistants and conversational marketing and

AI Road
commerce — with a focus on information, automation, and self-service — to engage
(Solution)
customers with minimal human involvement.

Reality Road
Self-service support is not available | 47%
(Frustration)

AI operates 24/7 through virtual assistants and conversational marketing and

AI Road
commerce — with a focus on information, automation, and self-service — to engage
(Solution)
customers with minimal human involvement.

Q: How frustrating is experiencing each of the

following types of communications issues
with businesses or service providers?

HEAVY
TRAFFIC
SELF-SERVICE
SUPPORT NOT
AVAILABLE

47%

Want to learn more?

See AI: Two-Way CX Traffic.

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Bottom-Line Impact
Customer reactions to negative and positive CX
Key takeaways
• 75% of consumers will stop buying products/services as a result of repeated communications issues
with businesses/service providers.
• The impact is strong across markets and most pronounced in LATAM.
• Older consumers (ages 40+) and males are more likely to react to communications problems.
• 46% of customers are likely to take their business elsewhere after a negative experience.
• 48% of customers ONLY NEED ONE OR TWO BAD EXPERIENCES BEFORE THEY LEAVE.

Frustrating CX Great CX

Give negative feedback on survey | 39% 57% | Give positive feedback on a survey

Tell friends/family | 42% 53% | Tell friends and family

Switch to other companies/providers | 46% 52% | Become more loyal to company/provider

Report business/provider to consumer protection agency | 18% 35% | Purchase additional products

Post to social media/online review | 21% 30% | Post to social media/online reviews

Complain to company/provider | 44% 24% | Contact business to provide compliments

Refuse to pay | 10% 23% | Become willing to pay a little more

Lose temper/get angry/yell | 17%

Q: Overall, how likely would you be to STOP BUYING from

a business or stop using their services as a result of
repeatedly experiencing these types of communications
DETOUR
issues?
STOP BUYING
Q: How many bad experiences does it take for you to
seriously consider leaving or switching to another DUE TO POOR CX

75%
business?

Q: When you are FRUSTRATED in your communications with

a business or service provider, what do you typically do?

Q: On the other hand, when you have a GREAT customer

experience with a business or service provider, what do
you typically do?

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 Customer Service/Support
Overview
• About 40% of consumers continue to feel customer service and support has improved.
• Most consumers in India, Indonesia, China, Brazil, and Mexico feel customer service/support has
improved. In other markets, most consumers claim it has remained the same in the past year.
• Over 50% who feel support has improved cite faster problem resolution, easier contact, and improved
information through messaging as reasons for improvement.
• Consumers mentioned an increase in better automated phone/chat support.
• Reasons why service and support have improved vary by country. Among those claiming
improved service, about 50% of U.S., Brazil, and India consumers mentioned more knowledgeable
representatives.

Next steps
• If every company was a model of effective customer communications and positive CX — then reports
and guides on the topics wouldn’t exist. The embarrassing customer frustrations must stop. It’s time to
change your direction and hit the AI Road.
• Carefully review the report to identify popular channels and add them accordingly. Lean into AI for the
quick wins like information, automation, and self-service.

In Past Year, Customer Service/Support Has …

Fall 2024

Gotten worse

40% 53% 7% Remained the same

Gotten better

How Customer Service/Support Has Improved

Faster problem resolution 57%

Easier to contact support 55%

Better info available through messaging 51%

Q: In the past year, has the overall service

and support companies offer to their
customers...?
SCENIC
Q: How has service and support from
companies gotten better?
ROUTE

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How Vonage Can Help
Vonage is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Ericsson, an industry leader in 5G networks.
The Vonage Communications Platform brings a unique combination of communications
APIs, contact center, conversational marketing, AI, and more.

Vonage Communications APIs help you quickly

build best-in-class communications solutions at
Get Started
scale with programmable messaging — including
RCS, SMS, WhatsApp etc. — plus voice, video, Vonage Communications APIs
Learn more | Contact us
and more.
Vonage Contact Center (VCC) enables your Vonage Contact Center
customer service agents to deliver a secure Learn more | Contact us
conversational CX through a configurable,
Vonage Business Communications
straightforward, telephony-agnostic platform. Learn more | Contact us
Vonage AI delivers AI capabilities across
the portfolio, including intelligent assistants, Vonage Fusion
Learn more | Contact us
easy transcription, and analysis. It also
features Vonage AI Studio, a low-code Vonage Conversational
conversation designer that empowers
Marketing and Commerce
developers and non-developers to create Learn more | Contact us
and deploy AI intelligent agents that operate
in natural language on any channel — to deliver
great customer engagement experiences.
Vonage Protection Suite is a comprehensive
set of tools that simplify end-to-end
communications and account fraud protection.
Mix and match tools to meet your needs and Methodology
guard your business against fraud.
The findings reported were sourced
Vonage Business Communications (VBC), our from August to September 2024 from
unified communications solution, integrates with in-market research panels — across
VCC so your agents can collaborate with experts 17 global markets — comprising 7,077
across your entire organization. customers, ages 18–74. The survey was
VBC and VCC integrate with Salesforce to conducted in each market’s leading
enable features such as advanced routing to the language or languages, and the average
best available associate or agent, customized completion time was 15 minutes. To
dashboards, and more. ensure spreads in age, gender, and
household income, quotas were set in
Vonage Fusion, our CC + UC + AI combined each market, with the reported data
solution, enables engaging customer and weighted to represent actual age/
employee experiences and helps increase gender proportions among the target
collaboration across teams. populations. Panel members who self-
Vonage Conversational Marketing and identified as being the last among
Commerce enables businesses to create AI- their friends and family to adopt new
powered omnichannel experiences to deeply technology — approximately 5 percent —
engage prospects and customers with automated were omitted. Vonage was not identified
and live agent personalized conversations. as the survey’s sponsor.

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RCS Solutions Story

CX Carpool With RCS + AI

Because messaging/texting is a static, one-way affair — it takes time to cultivate a customer
relationship. The business must actively participate in the exchange, wait for a response, and then
possibly direct the customer to call, tap, or click for next steps. Rich Communication Services (RCS)
can turn an app or mobile device into an enhanced interactive experience with:
• Personalized, branded, and conversational messages
• Rich media support for images, videos, and GIFs
• In-the-moment participation with interactive buttons and suggested replies
• Automated AI-generated bots
• Real-time data

Customers love the interactive power, with:

• 72% more likely to purchase online if they can ask questions in real-time
• 74% more likely to engage with a brand through RCS
• 35x more likely to read RCS messages than emails
Source: Google for Developers newsletter

RCS helps with automation and customer engagement, which can further enhance retargeting efforts.
And it’s easier to update customers or request feedback.

Step on the gas and step up your CX strategy with RCS.

RC

NG
S
SI
OS
CX
CR

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Healthcare Solutions Story

Patient Experience
Every patient interaction impacts the overall care experience. But often, patients can’t have an
experience because they’ve never made an appointment. Communications APIs that embed voice,
SMS, and video collaboration are a bonus for patients and staff. For example, APIs can help healthcare
providers:
• Complement and extend in-office care with personalized virtual appointments, as well as remote
condition monitoring and quick responses to urgent health needs.
• Deliver a secure, timely, personalized patient experience across whatever channel patients prefer.
• Authenticate patients, consult virtually, message medical staff and patients to keep them informed and
on time, offer secure live video sessions, and more.
• Get a more holistic view of a patient’s health status with AI-enabled programmable communications.

In addition, contact center solutions that integrate with CRMs can deliver experiences tailored to
patient preferences. Now healthcare providers, payers, and pharma and device manufacturers can:
• Route patients to the best-skilled doctors or nurses to address their needs.
• Transform the patient experience through self-service and chatbots, which resolves cases with automated
workflows and task filtering.
• Leverage AI insights to:
• Review prescribing habits and medication adherence.
• Understand complex interactions between a provider, patient, and payer.
• Monitor the effectiveness of patient, sales, and marketing programs.

Take the patient journey to the open road with AI-enhanced communications APIs
and contact center solutions.

REST
AREA

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 RECOMMENDED STOP

AI: Two-Way CX Traffic

Customers continually rely on AI to fix issues and create a better experience — which can directly
lead to more positive reactions. Pull over and see the use cases where AI is growing in popularity:
• Provide 24/7 service • Book dining and event reservations
• Resolve login issues (popular in the financial • Process returns and exchanges
services sector) • Provide order confirmation and tracking
• Reset passwords • Send customer feedback surveys
• Guide customers through product • Route requests to support teams
recommendations and sale
• Identify cross-sell or upsell opportunities

Importance for winning/keeping satisfied customers

3% 5% 5% 6%
17% Not important

33% Nice to have

43% 46% 46% Must have
49%

64% 52% 49% 48%

34%

Live customer Customer service Multiple 24/7 customer Virtual agents

service call-back platforms service

Customers are comfortable with AI

Key takeaways
• Live customer support is traditional and familiar, and nearly 65% feel “easy access” to this support
method is important. AI-enabled tools need to create the same “easy access” to gain customer
acceptance, despite these not being live methods.
• The ability to receive callbacks, a wide variety of communications options, and 24/7 customer
service are “must haves.”
• There is a strong desire for virtual agents.
Q: To win your business and/or keep you as a
satisfied customer, how important is it for
a business or service provider to offer…?

[Link] - 20
 83% USE AI-ASSISTED TOOLS

AI attitudes and experiences

Consider these methods your AI front-line
to meet and engage customers:
AI-powered
chatbots

AI-powered chatbots are rules-

based software solutions designed
to replicate conversations, either
through text or speech.

AI-powered virtual assistants or Both use AI smarts to

agents, as the name implies, help engage customers in natural
customers with various tasks. These language, use sentiment
employ conversational AI to start analysis to escalate issues,
the customer conversation, evaluate collect metrics, and more.
the need, and then initiate the
appropriate action.

Q: What is your overall opinion about companies AI-powered virtual

using more artificial intelligence (AI) tools to assistants or agents
improve the customer experience?
Q: Which of the following have you experienced
or used in the past few months?

Key takeaways
• Most consumers have positive feelings about companies using AI tools to improve
the customer experience.
• 83% of consumers report recent use of some AI-assisted tools, with a sharp increase
in AI-powered search engines and AI chat programs.
• Positive sentiment about companies using AI tools to improve the customer experience
is at least moderately strong across markets.
• Sweden has a differing view, where 51% believe that AI will have both a positive and negative effect.*
• Australia also has a lower expectation, perhaps due to only 25% of companies viewing their
current AI adoption as advanced.**
• Experience with AI-assisted tools mostly reflects the level of positive sentiment in each market.
• U.S. trails in experience with AI-assisted messaging support.

*Source: Boston Consulting Group, “Accelerating Australia’s AI Adoption”

**Source: IT Brief Australia, “Zendesk report: AI to revolutionise Australian CX by 2027”
[Link] - 21
 AI-powered support tools and data security
Key takeaways
• 75% of consumers are concerned about the security of their personal data when using AI-powered
support tools, including 30% who are “very concerned.”
• Most are comfortable with AI support tools handling more complex and sensitive customer service
issues, but fewer than 25% are “very comfortable” with this idea.
• Consumers in Singapore, India, Spain, and Mexico are the most concerned about the security of
personal data when interacting with AI-powered customer service tools. The concern is lowest in Italy
while Germany, Sweden, and Brazil are also below average.
• Comfort with these tools handling complex and sensitive customer service issues is strongest in India,
Indonesia, China, and Mexico. Japan and Germany consumers are the least comfortable.

AI-powered support tools handling complex/sensitive issues (%)

Not at all comfortable

Fall 2024

Not very comfortable

22% 48% 24% 7%
Somewhat comfortable
Very comfortable

Comfort with AI-powered support tools and data security (country)

NAM LATAM UK EMEA APAC

TOTAL
India India South
US Brazil Mexico UK France Germany Italy Spain Sweden Australia China Indonesia Japan Singapore
(N) (S) Korea

Comfortable (Net) 69 62 74 81 61 63 59 70 61 48 61 81 84 90 86 55 74 72

Very comfortable 22 21 24 35 15 15 14 14 21 8 10 28 49 44 34 5 17 13

Somewhat comfortable 48 40 50 46 45 48 45 56 41 40 51 53 34 46 52 50 57 59

Indicates higher/lower than other countries, with 90% confidence that these populations are truly different on these measures.

Q: How concerned are you about the security of

your personal data when interacting with AI-
powered customer service tools?
Q: How comfortable are you with AI-powered
support tools such as virtual assistants
and chatbots handling more complex and
sensitive customer service issues?

[Link] - 22
AI channel preferences
Overview
• Most consumers are likely to try AI-powered support tools in return for faster responses — for example,
shorter wait times — including over 25% who are “very likely” to opt for AI-assisted help.
• Most others simply feel “neutral” — with 12% “unlikely” to try this alternative.
• Willingness to use AI-powered support tools for faster response is strongest in India, China, Mexico,
Indonesia, and Brazil. Sweden consumers are the least interested. And Japan and the UK are also
below average.
• Messaging apps and website chat are the most widely preferred AI-powered support channels.
• Preferences for specific channels are generally higher in markets with higher willingness to use AI
support tools. Interest in using messaging apps is highest in markets with strong existing usage for
general communications with businesses.

Next steps
• When it comes to augmenting your customer support with AI, first define and prioritize the customer
support challenges for your business. Start small, test, and evaluate the results before moving on to
the next digital engagement use case.
• As you determine these priorities, consider partnering with trusted CX experts — such as conversation
designers — to help deliver elevated digital engagement.

Preferred Channels for AI-Powered Support Tools

Messaging apps 44% Q: What channels do you prefer for

interacting with AI-powered support
tools such as virtual assistants and
Website chat 39% chatbots?
• Messaging apps, 44%
• Website chat, 39%
Email 30% • Email, 30%

Q: For faster response (shorter wait times),

Company’s mobile app 28% how likely would you be to try using
AI-powered support tools instead of
live human support representatives
SMS/text 26% the next time you need help?
• Likely (net), 66%
• Very likely, 27%
Voice call 26% • Somewhat likely, 39%

OVER 25%
OPT FOR AI-ASSISTED HELP

[Link] - 23
 Future AI-powered support tools
Overview
• Proactive issue resolution and more personalized experiences are the most-preferred applications
for future AI-powered customer support tools.
• More seamless performance across communications methods and real-time voice recognition/
response are also widely requested — and multi-language support and product recommendations trail.
• The lack of strong preferences for any specific application or enhancement likely indicates consumers
are still unclear about the potential benefits of AI-powered support.
• Preferences for specific features in future AI-powered customer support tools are strongest in most
APAC countries (except Australia and Japan) and LATAM markets (Mexico and Brazil).
• Japan and Sweden trail overall in interest and preference for most of the specific features.
• Country-level interest largely reflects overall tech orientation in communications with businesses.

Next steps
• AI is evolving at a rapid rate, so it’s important for businesses to stay updated on market and technology
developments — those are table stakes to remain competitive.
• For example, chatbots, voicebots, intelligent agents, knowledge/agent assist, generative AI, and large
language models (LLMs) are just a few advances that are completely changing the contact center and
customer service landscape.

Additional Features for Future AI-Powered Support Tools

Proactive issue resolution 47%

More personalized experience 45%

Works smarter across communications methods 42%

Real-time voice recognition and response 39%

Multi-language support 31%

Recommends other products/services to meet your needs 30%

Q: What additional features would you like to see in

AI-powered customer support tools in the future?
• Proactive issue resolution, 47%
• More personalized CX, 45%
• Smarter across communications methods, 42%
• Real-time voice recognition and response, 39%

[Link] - 24
 Best uses for AI-powered support tools
Overview
• At least 50% of consumers feel AI-powered support tools are best suited for resolving simple issues
and answering FAQs. Nearly 40% view these tools as useful for generating reports/summaries.
• Interest in being helped with advanced inquiries, getting product recommendations, or creating more
personalized experiences trails.
• These results suggest consumers are not effectively envisioning AI usage beyond the limited
experiences they may have already had. That is, consumers have difficulty understanding AI benefits
until they see it in action.
• Consumers in India, China, Indonesia, Singapore, Brazil, and Mexico are the most enthusiastic about
using AI-powered support tools across most situations. Interest is lowest in Japan and Sweden.
• U.S. consumers are more skeptical than most about using these tools to handle advanced support
inquiries.
• Country-level interest largely reflects overall tech orientation in communications with businesses.

Next steps
• AI is evolving at a rapid rate, so it’s important for businesses to stay updated on market and technology
developments — those are table stakes to remain competitive.
• For example, chatbots, voicebots, knowledge or agent assist, generative AI, and large language models
(LLMs) are just a few advances that will completely change the contact center and customer service
landscape.

Preferred Channels for AI-Powered Support Tools

Resolving simple issues 54%

Answering frequently asking questions 50%

Generating reports or summaries 39%

Handling advanced inquiries 31%

Providing product recommendations 31%

Providing personalized customer experiences 30%

Q: How do you feel AI-powered support tools

AT LEAST 50%
such as virtual assistants and chatbots
are MOST useful in customer service?
• Simple issues, 54%
•
•
Answering FAQs, 50%
Reports/summaries, 39% FEEL AI CAN HELP WITH
• Advanced inquiries, 31%
SIMPLE ISSUES & FAQS

[Link] - 25
Verification
AI and verification: Gently apply brakes
Customers crave comfort. This is true of customer verification, where over 71% of consumers feel
more confident when shopping on sites that use online authentication. They are comfortable using
codes sent by SMS/text, email, and phone call, not to mention authentication apps. The key is ease of
use and scalability.
AI-enhanced communications APIs can help with automation — such as confirming the legitimacy of
a phone number or SIM card, monitoring global two-factor authentication steps and sending real-time
alerts, assessing SMS and voice traffic, and more. These all work in the background, with minimal
customer interaction … so they spend more time on your site to shop and do business.

AI interest and AI concerns

Key takeaways
• Even consumers with the most positive attitudes toward using AI to improve CX have significant
concerns about data security. They are nearly as concerned as “very negative” consumers.
• General AI positivity is very closely correlated with comfort in using AI-powered support tools to handle
sensitive issues. That is, “very positive” customers are mostly “very comfortable” — and vice versa.

Concern about personal data security Comfort with AI-powered support tools
when using AI-powered support tools handling complex/sensitive issues

2% 4% 2% 5% 1% 1%
10% 5% 8%
21% 17% 9% 18% 22%
21%
18% 33%
18% 41% 68%
27% 46%
54% 67% 52%
55%
68% 61% 48% 22%
45% 35% 24%
23% 20% 7%
14% 4% 3% 5%
Very Somewhat Neutral Somewhat Very Very Somewhat Neutral Somewhat Very
positive positive negative negative positive positive negative negative

Not at all concerned / Not at all comfortable Not very concerned / Not very comfortable

Somewhat concerned / Somewhat comfortable Very concerned / Very comfortable

OVER 71%
Q: What is your overall opinion about companies using
more artificial intelligence (AI) tools to improve the
customer experience?
Q: How concerned are you about the security of your
personal data when interacting with AI-powered
customer service tools? MORE CONFIDENT WITH
Q: How comfortable are you with AI-powered support SITES THAT USE ONLINE
tools such as virtual assistants and chatbots handling
more complex and sensitive customer service issues? AUTHENTICATION

[Link] - 26
 Comfort with authentication methods
Key takeaways
• Most consumers are “very comfortable” with verification codes sent by SMS and nearly 50% are
“very comfortable” with verification codes sent by email.
• Usage of the authentication methods is nearly universal.
• Usage and comfort are lower for verification through social messaging apps, authenticator apps, phone
calls, and AI-enhanced channels — with about 30% “very comfortable” with each of these methods.

Comfort with each authentication method

2% 2%
6% 9% 11% 14% 8% 12%
18% 16% 22%
21%
40%
43%
39% 41% 42% 39%

52% 47%
32% 30% 29% 28%

Verification code Verification code Verification Authenticator Verification code AI-enhanced

via SMS/text via email code via social app confirmation via phone call authentication
messaging app channels

Have not used Not comfortable Somewhat comfortable Very comfortable

Q: How comfortable are you using each of these

authentication methods when making online purchases?

CUSTOMERS DON’T
WANT TO IDENTIFY
CARS, STAIRS, OR
TRAFFIC LIGHTS

[Link] - 27
 Verification methods usage
Overview
• Nearly all consumers have experienced verification with businesses/service providers.
• Codes delivered via SMS or email are the dominant verification methods despite
decreasing this wave.
• Codes via phone calls, codes via messaging apps, authenticator apps, and AI-enhanced
channels all have similar usage at about 25% of consumers each.
• SMS and email continue to dominate consumer verification experiences while growth
of other methods is likely to be slow but steady.

Next steps
• Because consumers prefer to have an authentication method, companies need to at least offer a two-
factor authentication (2FA) solution. Also focus on a strong customer experience, as most consumers
don’t want more than one step to verify — such as SMS. As more seamless verification methods — that
automatically validate users through their mobile network — grow in popularity, consumers will find
that steps involving texts or emails to be cumbersome.
• Consumers are worried about identity theft. They need to know that their information is protected,
so companies must actively promote their ongoing security efforts.

Verification Methods Used with Businesses/Service Providers

Verification code via SMS/text 69%

Verification code via email 59%

Verification code via phone call 28%

Verification code via social messaging app 27%

Authenticator app confirmation 25%

AI-enhanced authentication channels 23%

Q: Which of the following VERIFICATION methods do you

use with businesses or service providers (e.g., to prove
your identity, confirm a device is yours, etc.)?
• Verification code via SMS/text to mobile phone, 69%
• Verification code via email, 59%
• Verification code via phone call, 28%

[Link] - 28
Impact of authentication
Overview
• About 70% of consumers claim authentication boosts their confidence in online purchasing,
with 30% feeling “much more confident.”
• Nearly all have used online authentication and very few have negative attitudes about it.
• Confidence softens slightly — “much more confident” slips from 33% to 29% — perhaps because data
breaches and other security problems continue despite consumers continuing to authenticate.
• Confidence boost from online authentication is strongest in India, Indonesia, Brazil, and Mexico. Impact
is weakest in Japan, Sweden, Germany, and South Korea.
• Confidence in authentication largely reflects overall tech orientation in communications with
businesses.
• Comfort with receiving codes via text/SMS and email is generally very high across markets. Comfort
with other methods, including AI-enhanced authentication, varies widely.
• Consumer comfort with verification methods mirrors actual experience using SMS and email but not
other methods. The relative lack of comfort with messaging, app, and AI methods could be interpreted
simply as lack of exposure and not active resistance.

Impact of authentication “Very comfortable” with each

on online purchasing authentication method

3% Verification code via SMS/text

2%
6% 52%
Verification code via email
20% 47%
Verification code via phone call
32%
Verification code via social messaging app
41% 30%
Authenticator app confirmation
29%
AI-enhanced authentication channels
29% 28%

Q: When online sites require authentication, how does that

N/A impact your confidence in purchasing through that site?
Much less confident • More confident (net), 70%
• Much more confident, 29%
Somewhat less confident • Somewhat more confident, 41%
No impact
Q: How comfortable are you using each of these authentication
Somewhat more confident methods when making online purchases? (“very comfortable”)
Much more confident • Verification code via SMS/text to mobile phone, 52%
• Verification code via email, 47%
• Verification code via social messaging app, 32%
• Authenticator app confirmation, 30%

[Link] - 29
Authentication/security tolerance
Overview
• Few customers are willing to complete more than two authentication/security steps during an online
transaction; about 40% will complete only a single step.
• Nearly 50% will abandon their purchase/transaction when frustrated with authentication/security and
about 33% will switch to other companies or providers.
• Authentication is crucial, but few customers are willing to complete more than two security steps (such
as two-factor authentication with SMS codes). They may sometimes tolerate an additional step, but
nothing more.
• India and Indonesia customers are the most tolerant of completing multiple authentication steps, as
about 25% draw the line at one step. Japan, UK, and China customers are the least tolerant.
• Even the most tolerant consumers mostly still draw the line at two steps.
• Willingness to switch providers is highest in India, China, and Indonesia. In contrast, consumers in Italy,
Sweden, Australia, and the UK are the least likely to take any actions when frustrated.

Number of authentication/ Actions taken when frustrated with

security steps willing authentication/security
to complete
Abandon the purchase
5% 4+ 48%
3
8% Switch to other companies/providers
2
32%
1
Complain to company/provider
0
31%
45% Tell family/friends
28%
Post to social media/online reviews
18%

39%

Q: How many authentication/security steps (e.g., codes via SMS,

2% verification apps, etc.) are you willing to complete when making
an online transaction?
• 2 or less (net), 87%
• 1, 39%
• 2, 45%

Q: When you are frustrated with the authentication/security

experience during an online transaction, what do you typically do?
• Abandon the purchase, 48%
• Switch providers, 32%
• Complain to provider, 31%

[Link] - 30
 Protecting personal information
Overview
• Protection of personal information for online transactions is universally important to consumers,
including nearly 70% who feel it is “very important.”
• Over 75% would likely switch brands or providers if data protection measures are not in place,
including more than 40% who are “very likely” to leave.
• Protection of personal information for online transactions is very important across all markets.
Japan trails other countries, but importance is still high in that market, at 90%.
• China consumers are the most likely to consider switching brands or providers if data protection
measures are not in place. More than 50% in India, Indonesia, U.S., and Mexico are “very likely” to leave.
• Protecting personal information is a basic, entry-level requirement — not a competitive advantage. As a
result, no or weak protection is a business-killer around the world.

Will take business elsewhere if measures NOT in place (%)

NAM LATAM UK EMEA APAC

TOTAL
India India South
US Brazil Mexico UK France Germany Italy Spain Sweden Australia China Indonesia Japan Singapore
(N) (S) Korea

Likely to Leave (Net) 78 82 57 80 80 69 77 82 72 69 79 92 87 81 86 69 79 80

Very likely 43 55 36 52 43 26 38 42 38 36 43 44 59 54 57 38 42 33

Somewhat likely 34 27 21 28 37 43 39 39 35 33 36 48 28 28 29 31 37 47

Indicates higher/lower than other countries, with 90% confidence that these populations are truly different on these measures.

Importance of having data-protection measures in place

Not at all important

Not very important
69% 27% 3% 1%
Somewhat important
Very important

75%
Q: When performing online transactions, how important is it that businesses
have measures in place to protect your data and personal information?
• Important (net), 96%
• Very important, 69%
• Somewhat important, 27%
WOULD SWITCH
Q: How likely are you to take your business elsewhere if a business does NOT
have measures in place to protect your data and personal information?
IF DATA
• Likely to leave (net), 78% PROTECTION
•
•
Very likely, 43%
Somewhat likely, 34%
MEASURES
ARE MISSING

[Link] - 31
Data breach: Personal information NOT exposed
Overview
• Over 75% of consumers are less likely to stay with providers that experience an online data breach,
even if customer personal information is not exposed.
• Switching providers is the most likely outcome, along with telling friends and family plus complaining to
the company or provider.
• The negative impact of online data breaches — even if personal information is not exposed — is high
across markets and strongest in Indonesia and Brazil. U.S. and South Korea consumers are slightly
more forgiving, but most are less likely to stay with those providers.
• Consumers in LATAM and several EMEA markets are the most likely to take post-breach action.
• Any data breach is a business-threatening event, even if personal information is not widely exposed.

Actions taken after data breach - Continue working with

personal info NOT exposed business after data breach -
personal info NOT exposed
Switch to other companies/providers
40%
Tell family/friends 23%
34%
Complain to company/provider
34%
Give negative feedback on survey
47%
27%
Report business/provider to consumer protection agency
24%
Post to social media/online reviews
18% Just as likely
30%
Refuse to pay Somewhat less likely
Much less likely
14%
Get upset/yell
11%

Q: If a business you transact with online has a general data breach

(but your personal information is not exposed), how more or less
likely are you to continue working with that business in the future?
• Less likely to stay (net), 77%
• Much less likely, 30%
• Somewhat less likely, 47%

Q: If a business you transact with online has a general data breach

(but your personal information is not exposed), what actions are
you likely to take?
• Switch providers, 40%
• Tell family/friends, 34%
• Complain to provider, 34%

[Link] - 32
Data breach: Personal information IS exposed
Overview
• Nearly 90% of consumers are less likely to stay with providers that experience an online data breach in
which their personal information is exposed.
• Switching providers is the most likely outcome along with complaining to the company/provider. About
40% claim they would report the business to a consumer protection agency.
• The negative impact of online data breaches — with personal information exposed — is very high,
especially in Brazil and Mexico. Across most markets, at least 50% are “much less likely” to stay with
those providers.
• Across countries, nearly all consumers are likely to take post-breach action. Japan trails but 80%
are still likely to act.
• Around the world, data breach with personal information exposure puts a severe strain on
customer relationships.

Actions taken after data breach - Continue working with

personal info IS exposed business after data breach -
personal info IS exposed
Switch to other companies/providers
53%
12%
Complain to company/provider
49%
Report business/provider to consumer protection agency 31%
40%
Tell family/friends
39%
Give negative feedback on survey
37%
58%
Post to social media/online reviews
26% Just as likely

Refuse to pay Somewhat less likely

Much less likely
23%
Get upset/yell
15%

Q: If your personal information IS exposed, how more or less likely

are you to continue working with that business in the future?
• Less likely to stay (net), 88%
• Much less likely, 58%
• Somewhat less likely, 31%

Q: If your personal information IS exposed, what actions are you

likely to take?
• Switch providers, 53%
• Complain to provider, 49%
• Report to agency, 40%

[Link] - 33
Appendix

Current Communications by Country

Key takeaways
• APAC
• APAC is the most heterogeneous region. India (North and South) and Indonesia consumers are
among the most active communicators in the world, with very high usage of mobile, non-SMS
messaging apps, and phone-call apps with businesses. In contrast, Japan consumers are among
the least enthusiastic globally, with low usage of nearly all communications methods. Australia,
China, and South Korea have relatively low usage of messaging and phone-call apps but are mostly
average in other ways. Singapore stands as the only globally average APAC market.
• EMEA
• EMEA is somewhat diverse (though not as much as APAC). Generally, these countries reflect global
averages, but with minor exceptions. For example, France is relatively strong in SMS and Sweden is
below average in phone-call apps.
• LATAM
• Brazil consumers are above-average users of messaging apps, phone-call apps, and social media
with businesses. Mexico consumers reflect global averages with communications methods.
• UK
• UK consumers are relatively low users of voice communications — mobile phone and phone-call
apps — with businesses, but reflect global averages in most other areas.
• U.S.
• U.S. consumers mostly reflect global patterns of communications methods usage with businesses,
except for above-average reliance on SMS.

Please see the following pages for regional breakdowns of messaging/texting, voice calls, video,
and social media usage.

Use daily with business/service providers (%)

NAM LATAM UK EMEA APAC
TOTAL India India South
US Brazil Mexico UK France Germany Italy Spain Sweden Australia China Indonesia Japan Singapore
(N) (S) Korea
Mobile phone call 35 37 43 37 21 34 30 34 33 29 26 32 60 59 40 8 24 42
Messaging/non-SMS apps 30 26 45 34 24 29 27 35 26 21 17 10 51 49 68 4 34 12
Email 27 31 32 22 25 27 32 29 25 26 24 7 39 39 36 15 35 22
Phone call via apps 27 20 41 31 17 21 23 26 23 14 16 29 47 44 62 3 30 9
Social posts 24 23 37 30 20 17 18 20 19 20 14 33 42 34 47 4 17 16
Live chat/in-app messages 21 19 29 25 12 21 13 15 17 13 11 22 35 34 54 8 17 23
SMS text message 20 33 14 11 21 34 12 9 8 27 23 11 35 33 19 8 15 29
Push notification 19 23 31 19 19 11 15 11 11 13 12 15 34 36 27 11 19 18
Voice personal assistant 14 15 22 16 11 12 14 12 13 9 10 12 29 26 16 2 7 8
Call from webpage/app 13 14 18 14 11 12 9 6 10 8 9 11 32 27 16 4 9 7
Video chat 11 11 17 9 8 8 9 8 6 8 9 16 27 21 24 1 7 5
Automated phone support 11 11 17 12 9 8 9 8 7 6 7 10 26 21 16 1 6 6
Chatbot 9 8 12 8 9 9 10 6 7 8 5 7 26 20 13 1 5 6

Indicates higher/lower than other countries, with 90% confidence that these populations are truly different on these measures.

Q: How often do you connect with any business or service provider using each of the following?

[Link] - 34
The Channels: Messaging/Texting
Use at least one (net) 91%

WhatsApp 57%

SMS text message 55%

Facebook Messenger 36%

Q. Which of the following do you use
Instagram 32% for MESSAGING/TEXTING with
businesses or service providers?
Telegram 21%

APAC EMEA LATAM

SMS text message — 61% WhatsApp — 59% WhatsApp — 93%

WhatsApp — 53% SMS text message — 46% Facebook Messenger — 50%
Facebook Messenger — 36% Facebook Messenger — 28% Instagram — 44%

UK U.S.

SMS text message — 56% SMS text message — 76%

WhatsApp — 54% Facebook Messenger — 40%
Facebook Messenger — 37% iMessage — 21%

Overview Next steps

• 91% of consumers use at least one • Messaging APIs link SMS, MMS, Rich
messaging/texting platform, as global usage Communication Services (RCS), and popular
of these methods continues to increase (up social chat apps within a single build. No matter
from 87%). what channels your customers use, you have
• WhatsApp and SMS are the most widely used the context to cultivate a top-notch customer
platforms. experience.

• APAC (India, Indonesia, and China) and LATAM

(Brazil and Mexico) lead in overall messaging
app usage.
• Japan and Germany trail in overall usage.
• WhatsApp dominates other messaging/
texting methods in Singapore and Italy. Want more
• In contrast, the U.S., Australia, and South next steps?
Korea rely mainly on SMS.
See Customer Frustrations
and How AI Can Help and
AI: Two-Way CX Traffic.

[Link] - 35
The Channels: Voice Calls
Use at least one (net) 93%

Mobile phone call 73%

WhatsApp 45%

Facebook Messenger 19%

Q. Which of the following do you use
Microsoft 14% for VOICE CALLS with businesses
or service providers?
Telegram 13%

APAC EMEA LATAM

Mobile phone call — 74% Mobile phone call — 69% WhatsApp — 74%
WhatsApp — 47% WhatsApp — 42% Mobile phone call — 70%
Facebook Messenger — 21% Facebook Messenger — 14% Facebook Messenger — 24%

UK U.S.

Mobile phone call — 76% Mobile phone call — 80%

WhatsApp — 35% Facebook Messenger — 24%
Facebook Messenger — 18% FaceTime — 21%

Overview Next steps

• 93% of consumers use at least one voice • Consumers like a phone call, but not spam.
channel, as usage of voice/phone remains Branded calling allows businesses to promote
very strong. transparency and trust by displaying their
• Voice call usage is very high in most markets, business name, logo, and call reason directly
particularly India, Indonesia, and China. on the customer’s lock screen.

• Mobile phone calls continue to be the most • When customers call, they don’t necessarily
widely used voice communications method, have to reach a human agent. A conversational
followed by WhatsApp. AI solution — such as a voice API with natural
language understanding and generative AI
• Mobile phone usage is strong across most capabilities — provides near-human conversations
markets, including the U.S., however, Brazil that complements the live agent experience and
and Indonesia prefer WhatsApp over mobile elevates your CX efforts.
phones for voice calls.
• WeChat is the dominant phone app in China.
• LINE is the most-used phone app in Japan.
• The U.S. is the strongest FaceTime market.

[Link] - 36
The Channels: Video
Use at least one (net) 77%

WhatsApp 43%

Zoom 28%

Google 20%
Q. Which of the following do you
Facebook Messenger 19% use for VIDEO CHAT/CALLS with
businesses or service providers?
Microsoft 18%

APAC EMEA LATAM

WhatsApp — 44% WhatsApp — 40% WhatsApp — 71%

Zoom — 34% Zoom — 18% Zoom — 31%
Google — 26% FaceTime — 13% Google — 25%

UK U.S.

WhatsApp — 40% Facebook Messenger — 49%

Facebook Messenger — 36% Instagram — 24%
Instagram — 26% Youtube — 22%

Overview Next steps

• 77% of consumers use video chat/call • A video API provides face-to-face accessibility
platforms, as global usage of this method across your app, website, and other channels.
continues to strengthen (up from 74%). It’s a great way to engage customers in the
• Overall video chat/call usage is highest in moment.
India, Indonesia, China, and Brazil and trails • AI capabilities and machine learning can
in Japan, Sweden, UK, France, and Australia. anticipate a customer call and prompt responses
• WhatsApp usage far exceeds other platforms to help service agents. These tools can conduct
in Brazil, Germany, Spain, and Singapore. real-time sentiment analysis to escalate a call as
needed. Agents can then join the call and quickly
• WeChat is by far the preferred choice in China. reference AI-generated insights to resolve a
• Zoom has solid usage in most markets. customer concern.
• The U.S. market prefers Zoom, FaceTime, • AI offers noise cancellation, background blur and
and Facebook Messenger. privacy features, AI-enhanced branding, and more
— all to elevate your customer engagement.

[Link] - 37
The Channels: Social Media
Use at least one (net) 80%

WhatsApp 45%

Facebook Messenger 39%

Instagram 37%

YouTube 25%

Telegram 18%
Q. Which of the following do you
TikTok 18% use for VIDEO CHAT/CALLS with
businesses or service providers?
X (Twitter) 18%

APAC EMEA LATAM

WhatsApp — 45% WhatsApp — 42% WhatsApp — 74%

Instagram — 40% Facebook Messenger — 33% Facebook Messenger — 52%
Facebook Messenger — 38% Instagram — 32% Instagram — 52%

UK U.S.

WhatsApp — 74% Facebook Messenger — 49%

Facebook Messenger — 52% Instagram — 48%
Instagram — 52% YouTube — 22%

Overview Next steps

• 80% of consumers use social media platforms, • Customers like the spontaneous outreach over
as global usage of this method continues to social channels. Thankfully for you, this doesn’t
strengthen (up from 78%). require multiple systems to monitor multiple
• WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and platforms. Instead, turn to communications APIs
Instagram remain the dominant platforms for a custom dashboard for full social integration.
for social media communications. • Personalized gifts and offers are great ways to
• WhatsApp, Facebook, Instagram, and build customer loyalty. AI-powered virtual agents
YouTube have solid usage across markets can instantly respond to customers and thank
— except for China and Japan. them with personalized special offers.

• Facebook Messenger leads all other • Conversational marketing workflows can

platforms in the U.S., Sweden, and Australia. encourage two-way conversations and even
complete in-channel transactions.
• Japan is less likely to use social media
to connect with businesses. • AI-automated responses can engage customers
throughout their journey — including awareness,
• The U.S. and Sweden are below the consideration, conversion, or reengagement
global average.

[Link] - 38
Regional- and Country-Specific Insights

Snapshot: APAC
The region loves mobile phone calls and app-based phone calls and messages. And WhatsApp
is a favorite for calls, messages, and video chats among these increasingly active communicators.

How AI can help

• In-app usage is up. Be sure to integrate AI into your apps to further service customers by answering
quick questions, routing to a live agent, or closing a sale. In addition, embedding voice into apps
significantly boosts call answer rates by fostering trust and transparency.
• Exponential improvements in AI, such as generative AI and large language models, can resolve more
complex issues — often without any human interaction.
• Increase in video chat is a great chance to use AI capabilities and machine learning to anticipate
a customer call and prompt responses for service agents. For example, AI can conduct real-time
sentiment analysis to escalate a call as needed. When agents join the video call, they can reference
AI-generated insights to quickly resolve a customer concern.

Current communication usage trends

Mobile phone call
36%
Messaging via non-SMS apps
31%
Phone call via messaging apps
30%
Email
27%
Commenting on social posts
26%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
25%
SMS text message
22%
Push notification
21%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
14%
Video chat
14%
Voice personal assistant
14%

Top channels APAC customers will use more in the next 6-12 months
Messaging via non-SMS apps
41%
Mobile phone call
41%
Phone call via messaging app
41%
Live chat or sending message inside mobile app
40%
Chatbot
38%

[Link] - 39
Australia Spotlight
This market prefers established communications channels, such as SMS text messages and mobile
phone calls and have been slow to adopt messaging/phone apps. They are below-average online
shoppers and cautious about using AI in CX (but are not rejecting it). There is no indication that
these preferences will change quickly — most likely because Australia needs more convincing about
the benefits of emerging communications technology.

Current communication usage trends

Mobile phone call
26%
Email
24%
SMS text message
23%
Messaging via non-SMS apps
17%
Phone call via messaging apps
16%
Commenting on social posts
14%
Push notification
12%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
11%
Voice personal assistant
10%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
9%
Video chat
9%

Top channels Australia customers will use more in the next 6-12 months
Email
25%
Mobile phone call
24%
SMS text message
22%
Messaging via non-SMS app
22%
Chatbot
21%

In addition to messaging apps and chatbot ... ,

These AI-enabled channels will soon get a boost, too

Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app

20%
Video chat
20%
Phone call via messaging apps
17%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
16%
Automated phone support
16%

[Link] - 40
China Spotlight
Consumers rely mainly on mobile and app-based calls and social posts. WeChat dominates
messaging, voice and video calls, and social media — particularly as consumers move away from
traditional methods such as SMS text messages and email and begin to embrace multichannel
communications and AI in CX. They are sensitive to frustrations in communicating with companies
and willing to leave if personal data is compromised.

Current communication usage trends

Commenting on social posts
33%
Mobile phone call
32%
Phone call via messaging apps
29%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
22%
Video chat
16%
Push notification
15%
Voice personal assistant
12%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
11%
Automated phone support
10%
Messaging via non-SMS app
10%

Top channels China customers will use more in the next 6-12 months
Commenting on social posts
42%
Video chat
36%
Live chat or sending message inside mobile app
35%
Mobile phone call
34%
Phone call via messaging app
34%

In addition to video chat and phone apps ... ,

These AI-enabled channels will soon get a boost, too

Automated phone support

33%
Chatbot
32%
Voice personal assistant
31%
Messaging via non-SMS apps
31%
Push notification
29%

[Link] - 41
India – North Spotlight
This market loves mobile phone calls and app-based calls and messages, especially WhatsApp.
Commenting on social posts is also popular among these active and optimistic communicators, who
are receptive to increasingly using AI to improve CX but also wary about resulting threats to data
security.

Current communication usage trends

Mobile phone call
60%
Messaging via non-SMS apps
51%
Phone call via messaging apps
47%
Commenting on social posts
42%
Email
39%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
35%
SMS text message
35%
Push notification
34%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
32%
Voice personal assistant
29%

Top channels India – North customers will use more in the next 6-12 months
Mobile phone call
68%
Messaging via non-SMS apps
67%
Phone call via messaging app
64%
Chatbot
62%
Live chat or sending message inside mobile app
59%

In addition to video chat and phone apps ...,

These AI-enabled channels will soon get a boost, too

Video chat
57%
Voice personal assistant
55%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
54%
Push notification
50%
Automated phone support
47%

[Link] - 42
India – South Spotlight
Like their counterparts to the north, India-South consumers love mobile phone calls and app-based
calls and messages, especially WhatsApp. Commenting on social posts is also popular among these
active and optimistic communicators, who are receptive to increasingly using AI to improve CX but
also wary about resulting threats to data security.

Current communication usage trends

Mobile phone call
59%
Messaging via non-SMS apps
49%
Phone call via messaging apps
44%
Email
39%
Push notification
36%
Commenting on social posts
34%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
34%
SMS text message
33%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
27%
Voice personal assistant
26%

Top channels India – South customers will use more in the next 6-12 months
Mobile phone call
69%
Phone call via messaging app
67%
Messaging via non-SMS apps
64%
Chatbot
57%
Email
56%

In addition to phone/messaging apps and chatbots ...,

These AI-enabled channels will soon get a boost, too

Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app

55%
Voice personal assistant
54%
Video chat
51%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
50%
Push notification
46%

[Link] - 43
Indonesia Spotlight
This market has largely turned to mobile apps for communication (the most app-centric market in
this study). WhatsApp is the dominant platform for messaging plus voice and video calls — and it’s
also an important social media platform along with Facebook and Instagram. These tech-forward
consumers are active online shoppers receptive to using AI to enhance their CX, especially if they
can participate and authenticate through their favorite communications app.

Current communication usage trends

Messaging via non-SMS apps
68%
Phone call via messaging apps
62%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
54%
Commenting on social posts
47%
Email
36%
Push notification
27%
Video chat
24%
SMS text message
19%
Automated phone support
16%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
16%
Voice personal assistant
16%

Top channels Indonesia customers will use more in the next 6-12 months
Messaging via non-SMS apps
72%
Phone call via messaging app
72%
Live chat or sending message inside mobile app
58%
Commenting on social posts
55%
Email
55%

In addition to phone/messaging apps ...,

These AI-enabled channels will soon get a boost, too

Video chat
49%
Voice personal assistant
39%
Push notification
38%
Automated phone support
38%
Chatbot
36%

[Link] - 44
Japan Spotlight
Traditional email is the most popular channel among these communicators. LINE is a popular
platform, especially for messaging, while many still use mobile phone calls and SMS texting with
businesses. Despite being relatively tolerant of communications problems, they are not willing to
put up with data breaches. These consumers are moderately interested in AI for improving CX if
2FA steps are kept to a minimum.

Current communication usage trends

Email
15%
Push notification
11%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
8%
Mobile phone call
8%
SMS text message
8%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
4%
Commenting on social posts
4%
Messaging via non-SMS apps
4%
Phone call via messaging apps
3%
Voice personal assistant
2%

Top channels Japan customers will use more in the next 6-12 months
Chatbot
26%
Live chat or sending message inside mobile app
20%
Video chat
19%
Voice personal assistant
18%
Automated phone support
16%
Phone call via messaging app
16%

In addition to chatbot, video chat, and voice personal assistant ...,

These AI-enabled channels will soon get a boost, too

Push notification
14%
Messaging via non-SMS apps
14%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
12%

[Link] - 45
Singapore Spotlight
This diverse group of communicators is active with both messaging and voice apps (especially
WhatsApp) and established channels (email, mobile phone calls, Facebook), but unwilling to tolerate
communications frustrations with businesses. They are moderately interested in using AI to improve
CX, however, they need reassurances about potential data security issues.

Current communication usage trends

Email
35%
Messaging via non-SMS apps
34%
Phone call via messaging apps
30%
Mobile phone call
24%
Push notification
19%
Commenting on social posts
17%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
17%
SMS text message
15%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
9%
Video chat
7%
Voice personal assistant
7%

Top channels Singapore customers will use more in the next 6-12 months
Messaging via non-SMS apps
42%
Phone call via messaging app
39%
Email
34%
Live chat or sending message inside mobile app
32%
Mobile phone call
30%

In addition to phone/messaging apps ...,

These AI-enabled channels will soon get a boost, too

Chatbot
28%
Push notification
26%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
25%
Video chat
24%
Automated phone support
17%

[Link] - 46
South Korea Spotlight
These consumers continue to rely mainly on traditional channels such as mobile phone calls and
SMS text messages … even landline phones. Phone and messaging apps are not widely adopted,
but YouTube and Instagram are popular. These resilient consumers are relatively unlikely to act due
to communications frustrations or data security issues/breaches. Plans to move toward AI-enabled
channels are moderate.

Current communication usage trends

Mobile phone call
42%
SMS text message
29%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
23%
Email
22%
Push notification
18%
Commenting on social posts
16%
Messaging via non-SMS apps
12%
Phone call via messaging apps
9%
Voice personal assistant
8%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
7%

Top channels South Korea customerss will use more in the next 6-12 months
Chatbot
39%
Mobile phone call
38%
Live chat or sending message inside mobile app
37%
SMS text message
33%
Email
30%

In addition to chatbot ...,

These AI-enabled channels will soon get a boost, too

Push notification
30%
Automated phone support
21%
Voice personal assistant
20%
Messaging via non-SMS apps
19%
Phone call via messaging apps
17%

[Link] - 47
Regional- and Country-Specific Insights

Snapshot: EMEA
Preferences for traditional methods like mobile phone calls and email remain strong in most
markets, but apps are widely used in Italy and Spain. There is moderate interest in moving more
toward AI-enabled channels for voice, messaging, and video. Acceptance of AI-powered support will
likely take some time as these consumers are slow to engage with and trust emerging technology.

How AI can help

• AI suite of communications APIs can uniquely link the different channels — such as voice, email, and
messaging.
• Interactive voice response (IVR) can bring automation to your voice efforts and put your CX on a 24/7
schedule.
• Similarly, AI can help with common questions or nurtures over the phone or messaging platforms.

Current communication usage trends

Mobile phone call
32%
Email
28%
Messaging via non-SMS apps
28%
Phone call via messaging apps
22%
Commenting on social posts
19%
SMS text message
18%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
16%
Voice personal assistant
12%
Push notification
12%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
9%

Top channels EMEA customers will use more in the next 6-12 months
Email
28%
Mobile phone call
28%
Messaging via non-SMS apps
26%
Phone call via messaging apps
26%
Chatbot
24%

[Link] - 48
France Spotlight
Traditional mobile phone calls and SMS text messages are still strong channels, supplemented by
some non-SMS apps for messaging. Several platforms continue to have moderate usage — including
Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp — but adoption of video continues to lag. Despite relatively
weak satisfaction with available methods for communicating with businesses and low tolerance for
communications frustrations, these consumers are not strongly motivated to change.

Current communication usage trends

Mobile phone call
34%
SMS text message
34%
Messaging via non-SMS apps
29%
Email
27%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
21%
Phone call via messaging apps
21%
Commenting on social posts
17%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
12%
Voice personal assistant
12%
Push notification
11%

Top channels France customers will use more in the next 6-12 months
Email
28%
Mobile phone call
28%
Messaging via non-SMS apps
24%
SMS text message
24%
Phone call via messaging app
23%

In addition to phone/messaging apps ...,

These AI-enabled channels will soon get a boost, too

Automated phone support

22%
Chatbot
21%
Video chat
21%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
20%

[Link] - 49
Germany Spotlight
Traditional methods such as mobile phone calls and email are popular. However, non-SMS apps
(especially WhatsApp) have largely supplanted SMS text messages and Facebook. These cautious
consumers are relatively skeptical about the effectiveness of 2FA and less comfortable with AI
handling sensitive information. As a result, near-term migration toward AI-enabled channels will
likely be moderate.

Current communication usage trends

Email
32%
Mobile phone call
30%
Messaging via non-SMS apps
27%
Phone call via messaging apps
23%
Commenting on social posts
18%
Push notification
15%
Voice personal assistant
14%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
13%
SMS text message
12%
Automated phone support
9%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
9%
Video chat
9%

Top channels Germany customers will use more in the next 6-12 months
Email
32%
Phone call via messaging apps
30%
Mobile phone call
29%
Messaging via non-SMS apps
27%
Chatbot
26%

In addition to phone/messaging apps and chatbot ...,

These AI-enabled channels will soon get a boost, too

Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app

23%
Video chat
20%
Automated phone support
20%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
19%
Push notification
19%

[Link] - 50
Italy Spotlight
Mobile phone calls are still widely used, but WhatsApp is the leading messaging, video, and social
media platform and continues to make notable inroads for voice calls. These consumers will
increasingly rely on app-based communications but are slow to engage with AI-enabled channels.
Although they are reluctant to turn to AI-powered support, they are not concerned about resulting
data security issues.

Current communication usage trends

Messaging via non-SMS apps
35%
Mobile phone call
34%
Email
29%
Phone call via messaging apps
26%
Commenting on social posts
20%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
15%
Voice personal assistant
12%
Push notification
11%
SMS text message
9%
Automated phone support
8%
Video chat
8%

Top channels Italy customers will use more in the next 6-12 months
Messaging via non-SMS apps
35%
Phone call via messaging apps
32%
Mobile phone call
28%
Email
27%
Video chat
22%

In addition to phone/messaging apps and video chat ...,

These AI-enabled channels will soon get a boost, too

Chatbot
22%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
20%
Voice personal assistant
20%
Automated phone support
18%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
15%

[Link] - 51
Spain Spotlight
Mobile phone calls and email are widely used, but WhatsApp dominates in messaging and video and
is the most popular social media platform. And though there is AI usage, 86% are concerned about
personal data with AI-enabled channels.

Current communication usage trends

Mobile phone call
33%
Messaging via non-SMS apps
26%
Email
25%
Phone call via messaging apps
23%
Commenting on social posts
19%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
17%
Voice personal assistant
13%
Push notification
11%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
10%
SMS text message
8%

Top channels Spain customers will use more in the next 6-12 months
Mobile phone call
33%
Email
30%
Messaging via non-SMS apps
28%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
28%
Chatbot
27%

In addition to phone/messaging apps and chatbot ...,

These AI-enabled channels will soon get a boost, too

Phone call via messaging app

26%
Voice personal assistant
24%
Video chat
23%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
22%
Push notification
20%

[Link] - 52
Sweden Spotlight
The market continues to rely on traditional methods such as mobile phone calls, SMS text
messages, email, and Facebook and Instagram. App usage is relatively low and plans to migrate
toward AI-enabled channels are moderate among these risk-averse consumers who are not
planning to change their habits.

Current communication usage trends

Mobile phone call
29%
SMS text message
27%
Email
26%
Messaging via non-SMS apps
21%
Commenting on social posts
20%
Phone call via messaging apps
14%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
13%
Push notification
13%
Voice personal assistant
9%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
8%
Video chat
8%

Top channels Sweden customers will use more in the next 6-12 months
Email
23%
Chatbot
23%
Mobile phone call
22%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
20%
Video chat
19%

In addition to chatbot, messaging apps, and video chat ...,

These AI-enabled channels will soon get a boost, too

Messaging via non-SMS apps

18%
Phone call via messaging apps
18%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
16%
Automated phone support
16%
Push notification
16%

[Link] - 53
Regional- and Country-Specific Insights

Snapshot: LATAM
The region shows high usage across most communications methods, with WhatsApp the dominant
choice for voice calls, messages, social media, and video chats. However, Mexico consumers are not
quite as messaging- and WhatsApp-centric as their Brazil counterparts. Future plans indicate that
even more engagement with AI-enabled channels is likely if data security concerns are addressed.

How AI can help

• A WhatsApp-specific API, along with a conversational marketing and commerce platform, can bring
automation and personalization to your CX efforts. Now you can operate around the clock to answer
quick questions, route to a live agent as needed, and even close a sale.

Current communication usage trends

Mobile phone call
40%
Messaging via non-SMS apps
39%
Phone call via messaging apps
36%
Commenting on social posts
33%
Email
27%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
27%
Push notification
25%
Voice personal assistant
19%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
16%
Automated phone support
15%

Top channels LATAM customers will use more in the next 6-12 months
Messaging via non-SMS apps
49%
Phone call via messaging apps
45%
Commenting on social posts
43%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
42%
Mobile phone call
38%

[Link] - 54
Brazil Spotlight
App-based messages and calls continue to be widely used. WhatsApp is the dominant choice
for voice calls, messaging, social media, and video chats (many use Instagram for messaging
and social media, too). These consumers have high expectations — with the lowest tolerance for
communications frustrations globally — and want to do even more through messaging, such as AI-
powered support and authentication.

Current communication usage trends

Messaging via non-SMS apps
45%
Mobile phone call
43%
Phone call via messaging apps
41%
Commenting on social posts
37%
Email
32%
Push notification
31%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
29%
Voice personal assistant
22%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
18%
Automated phone support
17%
Video chat
17%

Top channels Brazil customers will use more in the next 6-12 months
Messaging via non-SMS apps
51%
Phone call via messaging app
46%
Commenting on social posts
42%
Mobile phone call
39%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
36%

In addition to phone/messaging apps ...,

These AI-enabled channels will soon get a boost, too

Push notification
36%
Chatbot
35%
Video chat
32%
Voice personal assistant
32%
Automated phone support
31%

[Link] - 55
Mexico Spotlight
Mobile phone calls are widely used, but most messaging relies on non-SMS apps. WhatsApp is
the most used platform for messaging and video chats (many use Zoom, too) and shares the top
spot for social media with Facebook Messenger. WhatsApp also rivals mobile phones for voice
calls. These consumers are comfortable with increasing AI capabilities but also concerned about
potential data security issues.

Current communication usage trends

Mobile phone call
37%
Messaging via non-SMS apps
34%
Phone call via messaging apps
31%
Commenting on social posts
30%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
25%
Email
22%
Push notification
19%
Voice personal assistant
16%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
14%
Automated phone support
12%

Top channels Mexico customers will use more in the next 6-12 months
Messaging via non-SMS apps
47%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
47%
Phone call via messaging app
44%
Commenting on social posts
44%
Chatbot
40%

In addition to phone/messaging apps and chatbot ...,

These AI-enabled channels will soon get a boost, too

Push notification
36%
Voice personal assistant
35%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
32%
Video chat
32%
Automated phone support
30%

[Link] - 56
Regional- and Country-Specific Insights

Snapshot: UK
These consumers balance traditional methods such as email, mobile phone calls, and SMS text
messages with app-based messaging (WhatsApp), video chats (WhatsApp and Zoom), and social
media (WhatsApp and Facebook). UK consumers appear likely to make only moderate changes and
have not yet embraced expanding the role of AI in the customer experience.

How AI can help

• A suite of communications APIs can uniquely link different channels, such as voice, email, and
messaging. AI brings automation, personalization, and 24/7 efficiencies to better service customers.

Current communication usage trends Top channels UK customers will

Email
use more in the next 6-12 months
25% Email
Messaging via non-SMS apps 29%
24% Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
Mobile phone call 29%
21% Chatbot
SMS text message 29%
21% Mobile phone call
Commenting on social posts 27%
20% Messaging via non-SMS apps
Push notification 27%
19%
Phone call via messaging apps
17%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
11%
Voice personal assistant
11%
Chatbot
9%

In addition to phone/messaging apps and chatbots ...,

These AI-enabled channels will soon get a boost, too

Video chat
23%
Phone call via messaging apps
22%
Push notification
22%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
22%

[Link] - 57
Regional- and Country-Specific Insights

Snapshot: U.S.
U.S. consumers remain focused on SMS text messages, mobile phone calls, and email and plan to
continue using these methods (especially SMS) — but also show moderate interest in moving toward
more AI-enabled channels. Usage of built-in apps such as FaceTime continues to outpace those
more popular globally (such as WhatsApp) and Facebook remains the leading social media platform.
These consumers continue to view knowledgeable representatives as the core of effective customer
support.

How AI can help

• In-app usage is up. Be sure to integrate AI into your apps to further service customers by answering
quick questions, routing to a live agent, or closing a sale. In addition, embedding voice into apps
significantly boosts call answer rates by fostering trust and transparency.
• Exponential improvements in AI, such as generative AI and large language models, can resolve more
complex issues — often without any human interaction.
• Increase in video chat is a great chance to use AI capabilities and machine learning to anticipate
a customer call and prompt responses for service agents. For example, AI can conduct real-time
sentiment analysis to escalate a call as needed. When agents join the video call, they can reference
AI-generated insights to quickly resolve a customer concern.

Current communication usage trends Top channels U.S. customers will

Mobile phone call
use more in the next 6-12 months
37% Mobile phone call
SMS text message 32%
33% SMS text message
Email 32%
31% Email
Messaging via non-SMS apps 29%
26% Chatbot
Commenting on social posts 25%
23% Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
Push notification
23% 24%
Phone call via messaging apps
20%
Live chat or sending messages inside a mobile app
In addition to chatbot and phone apps ...,
19% These AI-enabled channels
Voice personal assistant
15% will soon get a boost, too
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
14% Push notification
23%
Video chat
22%
Voice personal assistant
22%
Call directly from a webpage or mobile app
21%

[Link] - 58