< PreviousK eeping communication open with customers is an important part of any business process, and we’ve seen a lot of change in how we do it. UK businesses are growing fast, and so are the ways they react to customer service enquiries. With virtual customer demand heightened even more during the Covid-19 pandemic, live chats and chatbots have become something businesses value for their communication. Chatbots especially have had an emphasis placed on their value, being considered forward- thinking. Communication is necessary to effective and efficient progression between business and customers. The quality of your product and service will only be enhanced by quality interaction with those putting trust in your company. The Covid Effect Research from Hubspot suggests that 93% of customer service teams say customers have higher expectations than they did pre-pandemic. They know brands have the tools to automate and personalise many aspects of customer service, and now expect it to happen. Once Covid had forced us all indoors, we had to find new ways to conduct our business processes and keep channels of communication open. Not being able to interact face to face saw the use of live chats skyrocket, with a number of industries, including automotive and estate agents seeing huge increases as time wore on. While calling it a benefit of the pandemic might be generous, lockdowns meant that customers and businesses were all in similar positions. Working from home meant that everyone was within touching distance of a laptop, tablet or CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT Janine Hunt, Client Partnership Director at Kura explores the ways businesses can use evolving communication methods and how they should adjust their strategies to continue delivering outstanding customer service. JANINE HUNT CLIENT PARTNERSHIP DIRECTOR KURA 30KIOSK AND DIGITAL SIGNAGE MAGAZINE WEBCHATS: WILL GROWTH CONTINUE IN A POST- PANDEMIC WORLD?CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT 31 KIOSK AND DIGITAL SIGNAGE MAGAZINEphone. Customers now expect prompt responses to their inquiries with the same quality and speed they got during the pandemic. This can be directly linked to the rise in popularity of chatbots. Not all companies have the resources to dedicate an entire team to customer service, and look to AI to automate the process but keep communication open. How Should Businesses React? While chatbots might seem like an effective method of covering interaction with customers, it’s not a fix-all solution. Thanks to research from Usabilla, we can see that 36% of customers prefer to talk to a chatbot for ‘simple’ enquiries such as requests or issues, but a wider number still want human interaction. Chatbots carry the issue of being quite restrictive. You can program them to respond to particular keywords or sentences, but this doesn’t account for the more complicated issues that occasionally arise. Research from the Publicis Group shows that if a customer had a bad experience using a chatbot, 73% of them wouldn’t use it again. While we’re not suggesting you get rid of your chatbots entirely, integrating them into a wider customer service support where humans are the next port of call for more CUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT 32KIOSK AND DIGITAL SIGNAGE MAGAZINECUSTOMER ENGAGEMENT 36% of customers prefer to talk to a chatbot for ‘simple’ enquiries such as requests or issues. 33 KIOSK AND DIGITAL SIGNAGE MAGAZINE complicated problems could help improve satisfaction. This can be done by programming in an option whereby if, after a certain amount of time spent talking to the chatbot, it hasn’t produced an adequate solution, you can be transferred to a live chat operator to take your problem further. This way, the time spent developing your chatbot and pre-determined responses isn’t wasted, but it’s evident that you also value the customers and their need to fix their issues effectively. Onboarding and training individuals for live chats in-house can take time, but customer service outsourcing can eliminate these issues and allow you to focus on the further development of your product or services for your market. The growth of webchats throughout the pandemic was born out of the necessity to keep communication open. But coming out of the worst of lockdowns and isolations means that customers’ expectations have increased around how fast their queries are dealt with. Further growth must happen to accommodate these needs, and we’re likely to see it continue, as the data gathered around chatbots show they’re not a permanent solution. Investing in customer service can only help grow your business with the ever-evolving customer satisfaction trends.MOVERS AND SHAKERS 34KIOSK AND DIGITAL SIGNAGE MAGAZINE MOVERS AND SHAKERS A round up of promotions, structural changes and new recruits across the kiosk and digital signage industry IF YOU WOULD LIKE YOUR MOVER OR SHAKER PUBLISHED HERE, CONTACT EDITOR@KDSEUROPE.COM ADMINISTRATORS ACHIEVE SALE OF CONCEPT SIGN AND DISPLAY LIMITED Chris Pole and Howard Smith from Interpath Advisory were appointed to Concept Sign and Display Limited on 18 August 2022. Based in Birmingham, the company is a large-format LED display and bespoke signage specialist. Recent projects include the design and installation of the Iconic Media Eye LED screens at Birmingham New Street station, as well as large format LED projects on behalf of high profile sports venues and other landmark LED and bespoke signage projects across the UK. Historically profitable, the company was negatively impacted by the Covid-19 lockdowns. This, coupled with the impact of ongoing legal costs relating to a contractual dispute, placed significant cashflow pressure on the business. After reviewing their options, the Directors took the difficult decision to file for the appointment of the joint administrators. Immediately following their appointment, the joint administrators concluded a sale of the business and its assets to UK private equity fund, Elaghmore. All of the company’s 17 employees have transferred to the purchaser as part of the sale. Chris Pole, Managing Director at Interpath Advisory and joint administrator, said: “Concept Sign and Display have a fantastic track-record of providing creative and innovative signage solutions at high-profile locations around the country. We’re delighted to have completed this transaction which secures the future of the business, as well as safeguarding the jobs of 17 employees.” ABSEN EUROPE APPOINTS DARREN BANKS APPOINTED AS CORPORATE AV INDUSTRY DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR Absen Europe has announced the appointment of visual solutions expert Darren Banks as Industry Development Director, Corporate AV. Banks, who reports directly to Ruben Rengel, Absen’s Senior VP of global business development, brings more than 20 years of industry experience working with display brands including NEC, Sanyo, Christie, LG and, most recently, Unilumin. At Absen, he will be responsible for the coordination, management and leadership of the company’s corporate AV vertical in Europe, working with local sales teams to support and execute their corporate market strategies, supporting the pro-AV consultant community, and establishing deeper relationships with corporate and enterprise end-user clients. A self-described “AV lifer”, Banks says he first encountered Absen in the UK around ten years ago and was immediately impressed by its reputation for quality, reliability and support, as well as its solid international partner network and strong presence in Europe. Drawing on his expertise in fine- pitch LED and video walls, as well as his previous experience working for other Asia-based manufacturers, Banks says he aims to build on Absen’s “strong vision for the future” of its corporate-AV business. “Absen is a pioneer in LED display technology and I’m both excited and honoured to have been chosen to continue and build upon that legacy as European industry development director for corporate AV,” commented Banks. “In my new position, I look forward to helping to develop and grow Absen’s existing European business, as well as leading the company into new and emerging corporate markets for its fine-pitch LED solutions.” “We are thrilled to welcome Darren to Absen after a long and successful career in the LED display sector,” adds Rengel. “With the corporate-AV sector poised for strong growth, he will play an instrumental role in the growth of Absen’s European business in the years to come.” Banks joins an experienced team within Absen Europe’s Global Cooperation Department (GCD) which includes Christian Czimny, Ben Phelps and Ross Burling, Industry Development Directors for product, retail, and OOH and sports, respectively.MOVERS AND SHAKERS 35 KIOSK AND DIGITAL SIGNAGE MAGAZINE TALON OUTDOOR CONTINUES EXPANSION Talon Outdoor has promoted Josko Grljevic to the role of Group Chief Operations Officer (COO), as part of the company’s ambitious and ongoing growth plans. Joining the company as UK Chief Transformation Officer in 2018, Grljevic has been fundamental in leading Talon’s comprehensive technology transformation, overseeing the launch of its three data-fuelled technology platforms – Ada, Atlas and Plato – harnessing the capabilities for audience targeting, programmatic buying and measurement across the OOH customer journey. These tech advancements have brought game-changing opportunities for advertisers and are best-in-class examples of intelligent service-based architectures which process billions of data points, execute very complex mathematical models and provide real-time insights - reducing the time taken to plan and execute an OOH campaign by up to 95%. Following the successful launch and integration of the platforms in the UK, Grljevic exported Ada, Atlas and Plato to the US market and is leading the rollout across MENA and APAC. As part of his new role as Group COO, Grljevic, who was recognised in the CIO 100 list in 2020 and recently shortlisted for Campaign’s Tech Pioneer of the Year award, will continue to grow the remit of technology and data across the business to drive data-driven organisation and measurement on a global scale reporting directly to Group CEO, Barry Cupples. Owning the day-to-day running of the business, he’ll execute on the company’s strategic business objectives, continue to advance Talon’s adtech while helping to further develop a culture where belonging and sustainability runs through each pillar of the organisation. A raft of further senior promotions has been made. These include Anant East to the position of Group CTO, Sophie Pemberton to Group Chief Strategy Officer and Amy Horton to Group Transformation Director. This new structure will support Talon’s next phase of transformation and growth across multiple markets. Cupples said, “During one of the most challenging times in our business when the OOH industry was facing severe setbacks, Josko has been instrumental in driving Talon forward, developing the best proprietary tech the sector now offers and driving real change into how the media is delivered. He’s been central to Talon’s transformation and I look forward to seeing him continue this success globally as we drive forward the renaissance of Out of Home.” Grljevic said, “Over the last four years, I’ve been committed to developing tech that has enabled both our company and the wider OOH industry to bounce back from the challenges of the pandemic with incredible strength. As part of my new role I will be ensuring our business strategy focuses on further transformation with a leading global market presence powered by our adtech suite, whilst ensuring the culture at Talon continues to evolve so we retain and attract the very best talent in the industry.” BRIGHTSIGN ADDS DEPTH TO EXECUTIVE TEAM BrightSign has expanded its executive team with key hires to fuel the company’s aggressive growth trajectory in the months ahead. Greg Herlein joins BrightSign from Amazon Web Services, while Matthew (Matt) Neutra comes to BrightSign by way of Bose Corporation. Collectively, they bring to the company more than four decades of experience developing and deploying digital signage for some of the world’s most notable and respected brands. “To land either Greg or Matt individually would be a huge win for our company, but for them to join simultaneously speaks volumes about the opportunities that lie ahead for BrightSign,” said Jeff Hastings, CEO of BrightSign. “We’ve set some aggressive growth targets for the next few years and filling out our senior ranks with top performers from across the industry is precisely what we’ll need to deliver on those commitments.” Herlein joins BrightSign as Head of Software Engineering following a long tenure at Cisco and, most recently, at Amazon Web Services (AWS). Herlein served previously at BrightSign, during which time he built the Sonos retail display. Neutra recently left Bose Corporation to become BrightSign’s Senior Product Manager and Lead Experience Engineer. He’s been at the bleeding edge of immersive media, experience design and digital signage for more than two decades. Neutra will be instrumental in helping the company cement its position in established markets and forging new paths into emerging segments. ITL WELCOMES TECHNICAL SUPPORT SPECIALIST Innovative Technology Americas have welcomed Mel Jones, Technical Support Specialist. Jones has been appointed to provide customer technical support to the organisation’s new and existing customers at a time of significant expansion for their US operations. Welcoming Jones to the US arm of ITL, James Beswick, Support Manager (RKB) said, “I am delighted to welcome Mel on board; she is an excellent addition to our team! Working alongside other technical support personnel in the region, she will be responsible for supporting our customers across many vertical sectors in this key US market. With our continued growth, we are expanding our team to ensure we keep delivering the industry leading level of service our customers have come to expect. She will deliver both remote and field-based technical support across our network of customers. Mel has already completed training at our UK head office, which gave her a great opportunity to meet with, and gain knowledge from her UK counterparts.” LOREM IPSUM DOLOR SIT AMET KDS Magazine is the leading technical journal for manufacturers, integrators and deployers of self service terminals and digital signage. Published on a bi-monthly basis, KDS features news, articles and features from industry leading bodies, and the very latest information on the innovative technology used in our exciting industry. Past issues can be found on our website: www.kdseurope.com, along with news, features and information on events throughout the year. 2022’s media pack can also be accessed on our website HERE www.kdseurope.com | sales@kdseurope.com | editor@kdseurope.comNext >