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We have interviewed Justin Custer, Founder and CEO of ChatLingual, on the critical role language plays in customer experience (CX). ChatLingual empowers enterprises around the world to communicate with their customers in their native language across any digital channel. 

We have seen recent press reports announcing BPOs have partnered with ChatLingual to offer multilingual support for customers. Can you give us insight into how their clients are using your platform?

We are excited to partner with some of the most relevant and fastest-growing BPOs and consulting firms in the world. Together, we enable brands to deliver best-in-class multilingual customer service.

ChatLingual’s multilingual messaging technology, paired with our consulting approach, facilitates native-language conversations across any digital channel. Recruiting and retaining multilingual staff continues to prove challenging and expensive–our multilingual messaging platform offers BPOs and enterprises the ability to support their customer transactions in 100 languages in real time, without having to hire for language skills. 

Our technology enables our partners and end brands to be more strategic with their staffing strategies and hub locations which can provide tremendous cost savings. Partnering with ChatLingual allows for rapid scalability into new markets and provides a cost-effective way to provide multilingual support.

You regularly talk a lot about how native language support drives customer satisfaction and loyalty and can change their buying behaviours, can you tell us more about that?

Absolutely, customers want to engage with brands in the same way they engage with family and friends, through the messaging platforms they use on a daily basis in their native language. If we take a step back and think about the psychology of buying behaviour, we know that customers expect personalised experiences. And those personalised experiences keep customers coming back for more. Speaking to customers in their own native language is the very first step of personalisation.

Research verifies this buying behaviour, with 75% of consumers reporting that they are more likely to purchase from the same brand again if customer care is in their language. Therefore, it makes sense that brands who implement native language customer service see an increase in customer satisfaction scores, which can elevate customer lifetime value as well. 

Why would companies turn to technology instead of native speakers to solve the language problem?

Language technology has come a long way in the past few years and the companies that have embraced this technology know that there is no turning back to the old ways of hiring native or bilingual speakers. The tech is that good. 

Companies who use translation technology reap the rewards of trusting the technology versus the traditional means of providing language services. For example, by using technology, companies can consolidate their customer support operations into a single hub thus cutting spending on hosting hubs in expensive areas. 

By removing language skills as a job requirement, recruiters can broaden the hiring pool and focus on hiring for customer service skills rather than language. Hiring for language is not only costly but generally has a longer lead time due to limited candidate availability and prolonged speed to competency. And, the consequences of churn are higher.

Lastly, companies that leverage language technology are able to quickly diversify into new or existing markets, enabling them to extend their customer reach and grow revenue. It’s a win-win for companies and customers. 

Can you tell us about the brands that are using translation technology today?

CX isn’t tied to a specific brand or vertical. Every brand with a customer support department should add native language service to their operations, it’s an essential component of basic customer service.

We work with companies across all industries including eCommerce, consumer electronics, software, manufacturing, and many others. What do these brands have in common? A shared understanding of their customers’ preferences and an ambition to provide great multilingual CX. 

Any final thoughts you’d like to share?

Language matters to your customers. If you want to see a rise in customer retention and satisfaction, multilingual messaging solutions are the answer to a problem that has frustrated global CX strategy leaders for so long. Keep multilingual operations at the heart of your approach and deliver the personalised service your customers deserve.