Customer communication software helps you efficiently manage customer interactions across various channels, including SMS, email, social media, live chat, instant messaging, video and phone calls and push notifications. It enables you to create and deliver personalised promotional and transactional messages to provide excellent customer service, increase brand loyalty and drive long-term business growth.
What is a customer communication tool?
Businesses of all sizes can use customer communication management software to organise and streamline incoming and outgoing customer communications. Some customer communications tools will allow you to integrate many channels into one platform, giving you a holistic view of your company's communication strategy. All team members with access to the software can view conversation history for individual customers, making future communications more contextual and personalised. In turn, this helps improve the customer journey and increase customer satisfaction.
What types of communications can software handle?
Customer communication tools are often used to send one-way promotional content, such as special offers, flash sales and new product information, as well as critical business messages, such as 2FA PIN codes, order confirmations, shipping updates and appointment reminders. They can also handle the following:
Onboarding material – welcome messages, step-by-step tutorials or product demonstrations for new customers or subscribers.
General announcements – company news, blog updates and AGM notes for shareholders.
Such software can also help you initiate or respond effectively to two-way communications like:
Support tickets – for delivering technical support and resolving customer issues.
Customer enquiries – as mentioned above, some platforms will combine different channels so you can view all incoming messages in a single inbox.
Feedback requests – product reviews or feedback on TrustPilot and Google My Business..
Surveys – for understanding current customer perception.
Community engagement – such as group chats on instant messaging apps like WhatsApp and Viber.
Top 13 customer communications management software
There are several customer communications management (CCM) software options on the market today, which cater to different channels, features and pricing structures. Here are thirteen solutions you should check out.
1. Messente
Messente is a comprehensive and versatile messaging solution that enables all types of businesses to reach new and existing customers globally, primarily via SMS (text messaging), although it can also be used for Viber Business Messages. Text messages have a very high open rate of 98% and a response rate of 45% – this, along with Messente's high deliverability rate, means your SMS campaigns are extremely unlikely to go ignored.
Messente's key features include:
Text blast services for businesses that need to communicate mass marketing campaigns or urgent messages to hundreds or thousands of customers simultaneously.
Support for different types of mobile messages, including promotional messages (e.g., flash sale notifications and new product launches), transactional messages (e.g., appointment reminders and order confirmations) and two-way messages.
Scheduling and automated messaging.
Text templates and message preview functionality.
Easy contact list management.
Useful analytics for gleaning insights into SMS campaign performance.
The ability to share URLs – great for customer engagement strategies such as feedback collection and text-to-win competitions.
Being fully compliant with regional and global SMS messaging rules.
Pricing:
Messente offers a clear and straightforward pricing structure: you simply pay for the text messages you send. Prices are competitive and affordable; for example, it costs just €20 per month to send 500 texts to the UK (€0.040 per SMS). You can upgrade or downgrade your plan should your message volumes change and custom pricing is also available for enterprises. It's free to create an account to try the platform out.
2. SendGrid
Twilio SendGrid is purely focused on email. Email is still an essential communication channel, although email open rates are lower than SMS. SendGrid provides businesses with a scalable and reliable email infrastructure and focuses on deliverability, particularly for business-critical transactional emails. It's trusted by leading brands like Spotify, Uber and Booking.com.
SendGrid's key features:
Email API – this provides an SMTP service, email infrastructure, dynamic templates, email validation and deliverability insights.
Email marketing suite – includes email design tools, templates, automated workflows, subscriber signup forms, testing capabilities and statistics.
Pricing:
SendGrid's Email API plan starts at $19.95 per month with the 'Essentials' package. If you want to use SendGrid for email marketing, the starter 'Basic' plan costs $15 monthly. Both options have a free package, so you can try SendGrid out before you invest in a paid plan.
3. Sunshine Conversations
Sunshine Conversations is a customisable messaging API from Zendesk (a customer service platform). It lets you build messaging into any business application and integrates with all communication channels to help you provide an advanced conversational experience.
Sunshine Conversations' key features:
Omnichannel messaging solution covering email, chat, social media, voice and more to help you provide support on every channel.
Ability to create rich conversational experiences, like custom messages and product carousels.
A unified record of all customer conversations.
Ticketing system.
In-app messaging.
Integrates with over 1,000 apps.
Pricing:
Sunshine Conversations is a native solution within the Zendesk platform. The cheapest plan is 'Suite Team', which costs £2,700 per year for up to five support agents. A free trial is also available.
4. Intercom
Intercom is a CCM software solution that combines an AI helpdesk, AI bot and proactive support to help you deliver an enhanced customer experience. It brings together conversations from live chat, Messenger, SMS, email, phone and more.
Intercom's key features:
Omnichannel inbox.
'Fin' – an AI bot that taps into your knowledge base to answer 50% of customer questions immediately.
AI helpdesk – questions that can't be answered via the bot are routed to an omnichannel helpdesk where agents can turn them into flexible tickets and keep customers updated automatically.
Ability to save responses so agents don't have to type in the same answers in the future.
Real-time monitoring.
Workload management tools and permission settings for your customer service team.
Campaign builder tools.
Pricing:
Pricing details aren't available on the Intercom website. You'll need to contact the provider directly to get a quote. There is a 14-day free trial available.
5. Kommo
Kommo is a conversational CRM platform that focuses on converting leads into customers. It connects all your social media messaging channels, phone calls, live chat, email and SMS to give you complete visibility over your sales pipeline and help you stay on top of enquiries.
Kommo's key features:
Automatically creates lead profiles.
Customisable pipeline dashboard, helping you identify where customers are in their journey with your business.
Team performance metrics and insights.
AI salesbot to answer FAQs – no coding required.
Integrates with popular third-party tools like Mailchimp, WhatsApp, QuickBooks and Zapier.
Plugs into chat apps (and you can connect multiple WhatsApp numbers).
Automated workflows for lead assignment, data entry and task setting.
Pricing:
Kommo's 'Base' plan costs $15 per user per month and is ideal for small businesses. There's also an 'Advanced' plan with more features ($25 per user per month) and an 'Enterprise' plan for large companies with lots of leads ($45 per user per month). You can take advantage of a free 14-day trial.
6. SleekFlow
SleekFlow is an omnichannel communication platform that makes it easier to manage conversations across multiple platforms. It gives you a universal inbox for WhatsApp, Instagram, Messenger, WeChat, Viber, and live chat. You can use the software to sell and promote to customers, provide support and collaborate with colleagues.
SleekFlow's key features:
Omnichannel inbox.
Integrates with e-commerce platforms like Shopify and CRM tools like Salesforce.
Automations for marketing flows and for assigning conversations to team members.
No-code chatbot solution.
Customer relationship management.
Ability to create and share in-chat payment links to help you get paid instantly.
Pricing:
SleekFlow offers a free 'Startup' plan with essential features such as up to 100 customer contacts and the integration of three messaging channels. Paid plans range from $99 to $349 per month. There's also a custom plan available for large enterprises that want a fully customisable solution with maximum features.
7. LiveAgent
LiveAgent is an omnichannel help desk software that helps you increase workflow productivity, customer satisfaction and sales. It can handle many support channels in one platform, including email, live chat, social messaging, phone calls, video calls, forum messaging and contact forms.
LiveAgent's key features include:
One centralised inbox to capture conversations from multiple channels.
Chats overview and chats history.
Ticket management system that converts requests into tickets that can be distributed to team members.
Native live chat widget to install on your website.
Website monitoring to help you see how visitors are browsing your site.
Built-in call centre software.
Real-time typing indicators.
Knowledge base for customers who prefer self-service.
Pricing:
LiveAgent starts with a 'Small Business' plan at $9 per agent per month (billed annually). There are three more pricing plans, the most expensive being the 'Enterprise' plan at $69 per agent per month (billed annually). You can experience LiveAgent for free on a 7-day or 30-day trial.
8. Grasshopper
Grasshopper is a virtual phone system for small businesses. It gives you a virtual phone number and all the features of a business phone system but without any additional hardware or cables. You can just run your business number from your existing mobile phone using VoIP, and your business calls will be separated from your personal calls. Grasshopper gives your small business a professional presence, helping to build customer trust.
Grasshopper's key features include:
Business calling and texting.
Choice of vanity, toll-free or local phone numbers.
Custom greetings to welcome callers.
Simultaneous call handling – can route calls to another phone number or support team member so customers never hear a busy signal.
Extensions for individual employees or departments.
Works on desktop and mobile.
Instant response texts to new callers if you can't answer their call.
Virtual fax.
Incoming call control to screen callers.
Pricing:
Grasshopper is only available in the USA and Canada. Pricing plans start at $28 per month (billed annually). A free 7-day trial is also available.
9. Viber
Viber is a cross-platform VoIP and instant messaging platform used by more than one billion people worldwide. Viber offers a business package so you can engage customers with one-to-one conversations or promote your product or service through the platform's advertising solutions.
Viber's key features include:
Voice and video calls to anywhere in the world.
Group chats with video and voice call functionality.
Bulk messaging – through Broadcast Lists, Viber Groups, Communities and Channels.
Stickers and GIFs to add creativity and personalisation to business messaging.
Advertising solutions with different placements within the Viber app.
Audience segmentation.
Chatbots for automated messaging.
Works on desktop and mobile with chats synced.
Pricing:
Transactional and promotional messages on Viber are charged per message delivered. Conversational messages are charged per 'session', a 24-hour window that starts whenever someone messages your business. The exact prices depend on the country code of your Viber subscribers.
10. Aircall
Aircall is a high-quality cloud-based call centre and phone system solution designed for sales and support teams. It enables your business to connect with customers using voice calls. Aircall has seven data centres worldwide and works with multiple carriers to provide consistent call quality.
Aircall's key features include:
Phone system – toll-free, local and international phone numbers, call conference feature that hosts five people in one call, voicemail, call routing, interactive voice response, extensions and SMS business texting.
Call centre – call queuing, parallel calls, unlimited concurrent calls, call recording, pause-resume recording and a conversation centre to access call logs, recordings, voicemails, etc.
Real-time analytics – call centre metrics and team activity.
Call whispering – where you can secretly speak to teammates while on a live call to provide advice.
Pricing:
Aircall starts at £25 per user license per month for the 'Essentials' package. This gives you a flexible voice solution with easy setup and integration. The 'Professional' package is £40 per user license per month, giving you a more advanced solution. There's also a 'Custom' plan for businesses with complex requirements, plus the option to try for free.
11. 11Sight
11Sight is an inbound video call and customer engagement platform for revenue teams. It lets prospective customers start a video call in one click from any channel, thus reducing friction from the buying process. Driven by simplicity and customer experience, 11Sight is built on the belief that all it should take to do business is one click.
11Sight's key features include:
Organisation management – one location to manage team members and company data, customisable 'e-line' address (the URL prospects click on to start a video call), feature-rich user dashboard and team performance analytics.
Calls and history – browser-based or mobile video calls, unlimited call time, end-to-end encryption, call recording, detailed call history and text message mail.
Call orchestration – call routing, one-click 3-way calling and one-click call transfer.
Campaign management – lead forms, QR codes, call notes and pre-call CRM intelligence.
Pricing:
Pricing starts at $24 per month for one user through to $40 per month for one user – a free 14-day trial is available on both these plans. Custom pricing is also available for enterprises.
12. Demio
Demio is a cloud-based webinar platform for businesses and marketers that want to host engaging live, automated or recorded virtual events to build customer relationships. The software has features to help you boost attendee engagement, gain valuable insights, identify intent and increase your webinar ROI.
Demio's key features include:
Audience participation tools such as polls and handouts.
Automated, branded email notifications.
Real-time chat feature for Q&A sessions.
Attendee tracking metrics that enable you to see which participants were engaged.
The ability to integrate Demio's webinar data into your CRM to drive engaged attendees through your sales funnel.
Custom registration fields on lead data capture forms.
Branded and customisable webinar registration page.
Pricing:
Demio's pricing plans start at $59 per month. That's for a single host and up to 50 attendees in a room. You can have up to 1,000 attendees on the 'Growth' plan ($399 per host per month). There are other packages for more complex needs, and you can benefit from a free 14-day trial.
13. Zoom
Zoom is primarily used for video-conferencing – many businesses use it to conduct virtual meetings with colleagues and customers. You can also use the software to host impactful online and hybrid events at scale or engage customers with Zoom's cloud-based contact centre (which covers web chat, SMS and voice and video calls).
Zoom's key features include:
Virtual meetings to connect with customers globally.
VoIP phone system.
Conversation analytics to improve sales.
Email and calendar messages and meeting invitations.
Conference room systems and connected rooms.
Online webinars and community events.
Virtual Agent - conversational AI tool.
Workforce engagement management to optimise agent performance.
Pricing:
For 'Zoom One' (the virtual meetings package), you can choose the free 'Basic' plan, which lets you hold 40-minute meetings for up to 100 attendees. Paid plans start at £119.90 to £185 per user per year. You'll need to contact Zoom directly for its Contact Centre solution pricing.
Could customer communication management software benefit your business?
Good communication is essential for boosting customer satisfaction and brand loyalty. But it can be a juggling act to manage inbound and outbound customer interactions across all the communication channels we have today – even if you have a small business and a local customer base.
Omnichannel customer communications management software can streamline customer interactions to bring them together in one place, making it easier for service teams to answer questions and resolve customer concerns. Some solutions are geared up for sales and converting leads, while others, like Messente and Aircall, focus on enhancing conversations on one or two channels.
Consider all the ways customers communicate with your business and explore the tools above to see which software best suits your needs.
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