by Richard Huff
Interactive personalized video (IPV) offers a new customer communication channel, which is well suited for inclusion with other print service provider (PSP) offerings. IPV utilizes corporate data, video clips, animation, and voice overs to be assembled based on a sophisticated set of rules.
Above: Precisely’s EngageOne Communicate solution enables clients to create and deliver personalized, interactive communications in the cloud.
Because PSPs already receive and process client customer data, they can leverage the same data to create new customer communications.
What is IPV?
IPV solutions enable organizations to build a video unique to each customer using the customer’s data and interests. The cloud-based platform responds when a customer chooses to follow a personalized URL provided by the organization, assembling a video to guide a customer through the next step on their journey. The video often includes a call to action.
Unlike paper-based communications, the video has the most up-to-date information and the call to action entices an immediate response. To view the video, the customer has authenticated their identity and any changes or requests are delivered back to the enterprise in real time.
The video offers a frictionless interaction because the customer can set the pace. Unlike a call center interaction, the customer can pause the video, jump back to review a segment in more detail, or skip forward to bypass information the customer already understands.
The Benefits of IPV
The COVID-19 pandemic had a major impact on the frequency, form, and channels enterprises use to communicate to their customers. Among other things, the pandemic changed customers’ expectations for online shopping, dining, and banking. The transition increased demand for secure, rapid customer communications that deliver a greater personalization.
IPV offers a new communications channel designed to improve customer experience. Videos have been shown to increase customer retention and response rates to a call to action. In addition, during the video, customers can make choices regarding the content viewed and marketers can use those metrics to make adjustments to an IPV campaign.
The growth in digital adoption is accompanied by increased expectation for smooth transaction processes and seamless customer service across channels. Service providers can integrate IPV with their existing infrastructure to meet this demand. Customers expect timely and relevant communications. The videos present customers with relevant content and allow immediate connectivity to upgrade or purchase new services that are presented to them using detailed market segmentation.
Madison Advisors’ research found that the technology is adopted for both marketing and transactional communications. Retail and entertainment marketers promote products and services leveraging a consumer’s purchase history and geolocation to promote online sales and direct consumers to brick-and-mortar locations where the products are sold. System analytics enable marketers to make changes to the campaign to produce better results.
In the transactional market, the technology is well suited for service providers delivering customer communications for defined contributions and healthcare industries where the customer has to select from multiple options. The personalized videos deliver a better experience than documentation, but the customer’s selections can trigger production of prospectuses or welcome kits to be fulfilled by the service provider.
The Opportunity for PSPs
The shift to digital first requires a modern customer communications management (CCM) platform that offers omni-channel design, delivery, and personalization capabilities to deliver the competitive customer experience organizations need. Unfortunately, many enterprises struggle to meet these demands due to antiquated, back-office systems and manual processes. For competitive reasons, many enterprises do not have the time to build a comprehensive solution in house.
PSPs have an opportunity to take advantage of this new channel as they are, in most cases, seasoned experts in customer communications and often have the resources to provide multi-channel delivery. Additionally, they already have access to the customer data.
A PSP can enable enterprises that lack the infrastructure necessary to support digital-first initiatives to get up and running sooner. Having invested in a robust CCM platform, a PSP is well-suited to deliver IPV services as one of many delivery channels. In addition, PSPs already understand their clients’ data systems and customer base, which provides the basis for building an IPV campaign.
By offering an IPV service, PSPs enable enterprise clients to start small. PSPs can leverage their CCM infrastructure to develop and support a one-off IPV initiative. The platform costs would be spread across multiple clients. In addition, the provider offers expertise gained from managing multiple campaigns and may provide market and demographic data for market segmentation.
To examine IPV solutions from the perspective of transactional customer communications, Madison Advisors conducted recent research, collecting data from participating vendors through detailed questionnaires and product demonstrations. The firm then created a comparison model for the IPV technology and ranked each solution in terms of functionality and the vendor’s strategic vision for IPV. Participants in the study were Blue Rush, Doxee, Idomoo, O’Neil Digital Solutions, and Precisely. Each vendor operates in a software-as-a-service environment and offers a differing vision of the IPV market and its fit within an organization to deliver an improved customer experience. All produce and distribute IPV to very large numbers of customers on criteria that include the advanced use of personalization, the interactive use of customer data, and the ability to easily integrate into corporate data systems.
A Win-Win for All
Madison Advisors views IPV solutions as the next stage in the evolution of customer communications. The growing use of email and mobile communications provides the opportunity to leverage electronic communications as a preferable and less expensive communications channel.
Visit madison-advisors.com to access the full report, Interactive Personalized Video Market Study (2022).
Richard Huff is senior analyst at Madison Advisors, an independent analyst and market research firm that addresses the needs of the electronic and print customer communications management marketplace. Visit madison-advisors.com for more information.
Oct2022, DPS Magazine
