Does Your Communication Strategy Fit the New Thai Market?
Purchasing power is on the rise in Thailand. With this comes new buying habits that divide the market into more segments, presenting marketers with the challenge of catering to them all.
McKinsey Global Institute predicts that Thailand’s consumption will nearly quadruple from US$120 to US$410 billion over the next decade.
This change stems from transformation within Thailand’s demographics, as well as recent social trends. For one, digital natives of Generation Z are coming of age, and they view branding and ethical consumption from perspectives that are vastly different from their predecessors.
In 2021, approximately 30% of Gen Z Thais are looking for brands that are honest and socially responsible.
To Gen Z Thais, the definition of what’s trendy isn’t limited to popularity, but it's also about brands that align with their values, such as environmentalism and individualism. That said, they do not invest extra effort in sourcing these goods despite their convictions. Businesses are therefore tasked with meeting Gen Zers where they’re at instead.
In 2000, only 35% of the Thai population could afford to spend beyond basic food and housing needs. Today, 70% of Thai people have their basic needs met, and that percentage is expected to climb up to 90% by 2030. This exponential increase in purchasing power, coupled with extended lockdowns, has increased demand for the “smart lifestyle.” As a result, digital service use has spiked by 30%, as even elderly members grow accustomed to online shopping and food delivery.
In 2000, only 35% of Thailand ’s population belonged to the “consuming class.” By 2030, 90% of Thais are expected to spend more than $30 a day.
Securing this burgeoning market will require brands to achieve a greater level of personalisation to connect with every segment of this increasingly heterogeneous customer base.
Thai consumer expectations of customer service
With money comes expensive taste, and competition for customer satisfaction in the land of smiles will be stiff. Rapid digitalisation has forced businesses to go above and beyond to reach customers beyond the screen, and so far, they seem to be getting it right.
Three in four consumers in Thailand are satisfied with brand interactions. Customer satisfaction rates go as high up as 90% for health insurance, streaming, and delivery services, trouncing the global customer satisfaction rate of 66%.
More tellingly, a 2021 Thailand Consumer Trend study by Qualtric Experience Management (XM) Institute showed customer service beating out price, social responsibility, and even product quality in influencing Thai consumers’ purchasing decisions.
Only 9% of Thai customers cited price as the top factor determining their purchases. Four times more Thai customers preferred buying from organisations with good customer service.
It’s not just how customer service is conducted, but also where. While 43% of Thai customers favour remote communications, such as video or phone calls, nearly as many customers prefer taking things into their own hands. This includes automated tools delivered through mobile communication channels that allow customers to make decisions within seconds.
Forty percent of Thai customers prefer resolving issues via self-service portals. A further 25% and 21% favour online and phone chats respectively. By contrast, only 15% request to meet in person.
Simplify and personalise customer communication with 8x8’s Communication APIs
APIs, or application program interfaces, link popular chat apps with internal CRMs to make customer segmentation and communication easy. APIs allow customer service agents to send messages directly to chat apps, such as Facebook Messenger, WhatsApp, WeChat, and more. These conversations can occur side-by-side in customer profiles, so that agents always deliver relevant and personalised messages and create a unique customer service experience.
8x8’s SMS APIs can nudge customers further along their purchasing journey by sending automated responses that can be scheduled or triggered after customers take specific actions. For example, SMS reminders of discount codes can be sent when customers scan menu QR codes or login to eCommerce websites. Further reminders can be sent out just before discounts expire to trigger a sense of urgency and encourage purchase. There’s even the option of integrating surveys, interactive forms, and QR codes to help make messages more concise, readable, and engaging. This can occur regardless of whether your agents are at their desk, across different time zones, and even when internet connectivity is disrupted. That’s how reliable SMS is.
Ninety percent of SMSes are read within three minutes, making it the fastest delivery channel.
You’ll be able to witness the effectiveness of SMS implementation through 8x8’s reporting and analytics dashboard, which will let customer service teams fine-tune their messaging for each demographic with data-based feedback.
At 57.1 million users, Thailand ranks 10th among the world’s RCS messaging markets, which are SMS channels with features commonly found on chat apps.
Round up your omnichannel communication with Facebook
No modern customer communication strategy can be complete with just one channel, especially when you’re dealing with a market as diverse as Thailand. But if you had to pick just one chat app, we’d definitely recommend Facebook for Thailand. Nine in 10 Thai people are regulars on Facebook’s main platform, and nearly 80% of them use Facebook Messenger as a communication tool.
Impressively, Facebook is also the top social media shopping platform in Thailand by a country mile, beating out runner-up LINE by a total of 22.7 percentage points. The platform only trails behind full-service eCommerce platforms, and regional giants, Shopee and Lazada. More than just a platform for text conversations, agents can provide information and facilitate transactions interactively with the support of rich content such as photos, videos, and files.
Stacking on chat apps to test the waters is easy with 8x8 APIs’ plug-and-play design. Conversations that take place on SMS, Facebook Messenger, or other chat apps are all unified on 8x8 Connect, which makes it easier for customer service agents to keep track of conversations across different platforms, even if customers switch from one chat app to another.
Video interaction is another option that can be integrated into 8x8 Connect or used as a standalone service. It offers a one-to-one, real-time channel where customers can resolve complex issues with live assistance from an agent. Beyond just putting a face to the agent assisting them, customers will be able to capture or share their screen and receive more accurate diagnostics for their problems.
Speak to any demographic with 8x8’s customisable APIs
Reaching out to customers in a personalised manner at scale has never been easier thanks to 8x8’s full suite of SMS services, including two-way SMS, SMS engage, 10DLC, and number lookup, as well as content-rich chat apps. If your business is trying to generate leads and boost sales (who isn’t?), 8x8's communication APIs can help by bringing your conversations to life. Thanks to our low-code design, APIs can be integrated into any legacy system, with minimal disruptions and downtime. Additionally, 8x8 is GDPR-compliant, which means it is compliant with Thailand’s PDPA. Users can be assured that the 8x8 platform is absolutely secure, private, and reliable.
Contact hello-cpaas@8x8.com today and to take your communication strategy to the next level.