SEATTLE — Many consumers don’t like making phone calls. Whether you’re trying to contact a family member or friend, a preferred method of communication is a quick tap of your fingers to the screen of a smartphone.
Dan Westra, senior business development executive of
Zipwhip, wants operators to know the company’s ability to enable standard area code and toll free phone numbers for conversational two-way texting is how chauffeured transportation companies can keep up to date with consumers’ preferred way to connect.
Texting = Luxury?“We know seven out of 10 Americans would rather hit their thumb with a hammer than make a phone call,” Westra jokes. Apps aren’t the answer to your client’s prayers either. They are expensive, need updating, and if you can get more than 10% of your customers to download and use it, that’s incredible. The more affluent you are, the less likely you are to download and use an app, he says.
If your brand is luxury and the phone number you use is only good for receiving voice calls, you’re behind the times. “For clients, it’s a simple matter of convenience. They are busy and don’t want to have to make a call. If they are in a noisy airport and want to know where their driver is, they shouldn’t have to be put on hold to ask that simple question. They should be able to just text dispatch. Is that luxury? It is because it allows people to communicate the way they want to,” Westra says.
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