Business'Text'Messaging'

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1 BusinessTextMessaging KeyTrendsinBusinessCommunications Research(Brief(!! Sponsored!by!HeyWire!Business!

2 2 Overview Thegoalofthisresearchintothebusinesscommunicationsmarketistogaininsightintotheuseoftext messagingintoday sbusinessworldandidentifyrelevanttrends.ofinterestwashowprofessionalsare currentlycommunicatingwithbothinternalcoaworkersandexternalclients,partnersandprospects. TheresearchwassponsoredbyHeyWireBusiness,providerofHeyWireBusinessMessenger aclouda basedbusinessamessagingplatform.overthecourseoffall2013,508respondentswerequeriedvia! SurveyMonkey,anonlinesurveyservicesprovider. KeyFindings Themostimportantresultsoftheresearchintohowtoday sbusinessprofessionalsarecommunicating withbothinternalcoaworkersandexternalbusinessaudiences(customers,partnersandprospects)are: 1. BusinessTextMessagingisHappeningNow o Thesurveyresultsindicatethat67%ofbusinessprofessionalsareusingtextmessaging forbusinessarelatedcommunications 2. ProfessionalsareTextingbothInternalandExternalBusinessAudiences o Businessprofessionalsaretexting andnotjustinternallywithcolleagues,but externallywithcustomers,prospectsandvendors o 59%usetheirpersonalmobilephonesfrequentlyforbusinessArelatedcommunications 3. ProfessionalsWanttoSeparateTheirBusinessandPersonalLives o 73%textmessagewithinternalcoAworkers,while51%usetexttocommunicatewith externalcontacts,includingcustomers,prospectsandpartners o 62%ofthosesurveyedwantedtoseparatetheirbusinesstextmessagesfromtheir personaltextmessages! o 70%ofrespondentsfeltthattheabilitytoconsolidateallbusinesscommunicationson onenumberwouldbeveryusefultothemintheirbusinesscommunications 4. Voic isDying o 31%,almostonethird,respondedthattheyareinfactrarelyusingvoic orare usingitlessthanayearago and37%saidthattheyrarelyorneverchecktheir voic anymore

3 Analysis Text!is!truly!becoming!the!new!medium!of!business! Theresearchillustrateshowtoday sbusinessprofessionalshavemovedpastthedaysofleaving voic sorplayingphonetagandaremigratingtothefast,directconnectionthatbusinessarelated textmessagingoffers. AlmostthreeAquartersofrespondentssaidtheyusedtextmessagingtocommunicatewithcoAworkers andtheimmediacyandresponsivenessofthatcommunicationchannelhasledtotheincreasingly widespreadadoptionoftextinganditsregularusewithexternalaudiencessuchascustomers,partners andprospects. Infact,accordingtotheMobileMarketingAssociation,97%oftextmessagesarereadwithinthefirst threeminutesofdelivery,makingitamuchmoreefficientwaytogetworkdone. Separating!professional!and!personal!numbers!is!important!for!work=life!balance! Theresearchalsofoundthattoday sprofessionals,mostusingtheirownpersonalmobilephonesaspart oftoday sbyodacentricworkplace,arelookingtobetterdefineworkalifeboundaries. 62%ofbusinessprofessionalsareseekingtoseparatetheirbusinessArelatedandpersonaltext messages.asbusinessarelatedtextmessagingbecomesthenorm,onecanexpectthatthisnumberwill grow,meaningthatbothemployeesandcompanyitdepartmentswillneedtofindwaystobetter managethisformofcommunication. Byseparatingpersonalandbusinesstextingidentities,professionalsnolongerneedtosharetheir personalmobileinformationwithprospectsandclients andcanbettermanagetheirprofessionaland personalresponses. 3

4 MakeupofRespondents 508individualsrespondedtothesurvey,conductedinOctober2013.Therespondentswereall employeesaged22a38thatworkatmidasizedandlargebusinesses. Infact,54%ofrespondentscamefrombusinesseswithmorethan500employees;18%camefrom organizationswith250a500employees;15%had100a250employees;7%had1a50employeesand6% had50a100employees. 31%heldan intermediate roleattheirorganization,while22%weremanagers,21%junior,6% director;2%vicepresidentand3%calevel.theother15%identifiedthemselvesas other. 13%ofrespondentsworkedinhealthcare;12%wereinanadministrativerole;11%workedincustomer service;9%inaneducationarelatedfield;9%insales;8%init;and6%infinance. 4

5 BusinessTextMessagingisReal Business!professionals!are!already!using!text!messaging!to!conduct!business.! 67%ofrespondentscurrentlyusetextmessagingforbusinesscommunications.Thiswidespread adoptionindicatesthattoday sprofessionalsaretakingadvantageoftheimmediacyanddirectnessthat textingoffers. Thedataalsohasagenerationalimplication:With52%oftheresearchrespondentsfromjunioror intermediateroles,itiseasytoanticipatethesenumberswillonlyincreaseastoday semployeesrise throughtheranksattheirorganizations. DoYouUseTextMessagingforBusinessURelated CommunicaWons? 33% 67% No Yes 5

6 BusinessTextMessagingisUsedBeyondtheWallsoftheOffice More!than!half!of!business!professionals!are!text!messaging!external!customers,!prospects!and! vendors.! Respondentswerealsoaskedwhomtheycontactedwhentheyusedtextmessagingforbusiness.While anoverwhelmingmajority(73%)ofthosethatusedtextingforbusinessusedittocommunicatewithcoa workers,51%ofrespondentsindicateditwasanexternalcontactthatwasbeingcommunicatedwith viatext,suchasacustomer,prospectorpartner. ThisechoesrecentresearchconductedbycloudbusinessphonesystemproviderRingCentral,where 32%ofthosethatusedtextingforbusinesscommunicationsrespondedthattheyhadclosedabusiness dealviatext. AsbusinessArelatedtextingincreasesinpopularity,onecanexpectthesenumberstorise. WhoDoYouContactViaTextMessagingforBusiness? Other 15% AlloftheAbove 15% Partners/Vendors 17% Prospects 12% 51% WhoDoYouContactViaText MessagingforBusiness? Customers 22% Coworkers 73% 0% 20% 40% 60% 80% 6

7 Respondentsthatrepliedtheydidn tusetextforbusinessarelatedcommunicationswereaskedwhythey didn tdoso.theresearchshowedthataformalrecordofcommunicationwasstillimportanttomany companies,as41%gavethisasareasonnottotextforwork.25%respondedthattheircoworkersdon t text,sotheydon t whichshowswillingnesstotext,butjusttherealizationthatitcurrentlywon tbe effectiveinsomeorganizations. Another22%respondedthatthereasontheydon ttextforbusinessisthatthemessagingplanisnot paidforbytheircompanies and6%saidthattextingwastooexpensive,showingthateveninthe BYODAcentricworkplaceoftoday,employeesdon talwaysgettousethetechnologytheyprefer. Inaddition,29%ofrespondentssaidtheydidn ttextbecausetheirexternalcontactsdidn ttext;16% saidcustomersweren ttexters;5%saidcustomersweren t;and8%saidpartnersdidn tcommunicate viatext. WhyDon tyouusemessagingforbusiness? 45% 40% 41% 35% 30% 25% 20% 15% 22% 25% 16% 19% WhyDon t YouUse Messaging for Business? 10% 5% 6% 5% 8% 0% 7

8 SeparationofPersonalandBusinessIdentities Business!professionals!overwhelmingly!want!business!and!personal!communications!to!be! separated. Intoday smobileacentric,byodaenabledworkplace,thereisagrowingmovementbyemployeesand companiesaliketotryandseparatebusinessandpersonalcommunicationsforavarietyofreasons, rangingfromconfusiontorecordkeepingandcontrol. Respondentstothissurveywereaskedwhethertheyusedtheirpersonalmobilephonesforbusiness andhowtheyusedthem.morethan59%saidthattheyusetheirpersonaldevicefrequentlyorevery dayforbusinesscommunications. HowO]enDoYouUseYourPersonalMobilePhone forbusinesscommunicawons? 14% 36% EveryDay Frequently 27% Rarely Never 23% Respondentsalsowereaskedwhatformofbusinesscommunicationtheywereusingtheirpersonal mobilephonesfor.voic isnotdeadyet butwhenlessthanhalfofrespondentsareusingmobile phonesfortheirmainfunction callsandvoic onecanbegintoseeexactlyhowtheworkforceof tomorrowwillcommunicatewithcoworkers,partners,customersandprospects. 8

9 9 Respondentswerenextaskedabouthowtheyusedtheirpersonalmobiledevicesinabusinesssetting. Didtheysharetheirpersonalmobilenumberswithbusinesscontacts?Didtheylikedoingso?Istherea betterwaytoenabletoday smobileworkforcetobeproductive,efficientandstillallowthemtowork thewaytheywantto? Firstoff,respondentswereaskedaboutwhethertheysharedtheirpersonalnumberwithbusiness contacts.amajority(43%)sharedtheirinformationwithcoworkers,butasignificantnumber,(29%)said theyshareditwithallbusinesscontacts.combiningthat29%withthe1%thatshareswithprospects andthe2%thatshareswithcustomers bringsthenumberofrespondentssharingexternallytoabout onethird,perhapsindicatingtheinternalaexternaldirectionofbusinesscommunication. 46% 22% 23% 9% 0% 5% 10% 15% 20% 25% 30% 35% 40% 45% 50% Calls/Voic TextMessaging Other HowDoYouUseYourPersonalMobilePhonefor BusinessCommunicaWons? HowDoYouUse YourPersonal MobilePhonefor Business Communicaions? 29% 43% 2% 1% 21% 4% DoYouGiveOutYourPersonalMobileNumberfor BusinessURelatedCommunicaWons? Yes,AllBusiness Contacts OnlytoCoworkers OnlytoCustomers OnlytoProspects No DifferentDevicesfor PersonalandBusiness

10 Thesurveyalsolookedathowcomfortableemployeeswereusingtheirpersonaldevicesforbusiness communications.overall,respondentswereevenlysplitaboutwhethertheywerecomfortableusing personaldevicesforbusiness.therewasverylittledifferencebetweenvoice,textand use meaningthatemployeesweren tapprehensiveabouttextingor ingbusinesscontacts itwasthat theywereapprehensiveaboutusingtheirpersonaldevicesforbusinessingeneral. DoYouFeelUncomfortableUsingYourPersonalPhone forbusinessurelatedcommunicawons? 100% 90% 9% 7% 10% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 46% 50% 47% 45% 43% 43% NoOpinion No Yes 0% Voice Text Takingthisastepfurther,thesurveylookedatwhetherrespondentswantedtoseparatetheirbusiness andpersonalcommunications askingthemifitwoulditbehelpfulifbusinessandpersonaltextswere separated. Anoverwhelmingmajorityofrespondents(62%)repliedthat,yes,they dlikepersonalandbusiness communicationstobeseparate. ThiswillcomeaswelcomenewstoITdepartmentsandcorporationsthathavebeenfearfulofthelossof control and potential confusion that can occur when personal and business communications are intertwined.nowisthetimefororganizationstogaincontrolofbusinesstexting andemployeesinthe youngerdemographicseemopentoendorsingaseparation. 10

11 DoYouWanttoSeparateBusinessandPersonal TextMessages? 14% 24% 62% Yes No NotSure Respondentswerethenaskedabouthowlikelytheywouldbetotextmessagecertaintypesofcontacts customers,prospects,partnersandbusinessassociates.onceagain,therewasverylittledifference betweenrespondents feelingsaboutcertaintypesofcontacts theresearchshowedthatall respondentsweregenerallywillingtotextalltypesofbusinesscontacts fromcustomers,toprospects, partnersandbusinessassociates(coworkers).therewerenooverlynegativeresponsestotheideaof textingthoseyouworkwith,betheyinternalorexternalcontacts. DoYouFeelUncomfortableUsingYourPersonalPhonefor BusinessURelatedCommunicaWons? 100% 90% 80% 70% 60% 50% 40% 30% 20% 10% 1% 1% 1% 11% 12% 9% 7% 5% 9% 7% 12% 22% 19% 20% 28% 23% 24% 29% 32% 32% 28% 32% 36% Unsure HighlyUnlikely Unlikely Neutral Likely HighlyLikely 0% Customers Prospects Partners Coworkers 11

12 12 Respondentswereaskedtorankfromonetoseven,withsevenbeingthemostuseful,whichcapabilities wouldbemostusefultothemintheirbusinesscommunications.respondentsechoedtheearlier research,showingthattherewasadesiretoseparatebusinessandpersonaltexting,asthehighest rankedwas theabilitytoseparateyourbusinesscommunicationsfromyourpersonal communications, followedby theabilitytoconsolidateallyourbusinesscommunicationsonone number and theabilitytotextbothcoworkers(internally)andcustomers/clients(externally)fromthe sameapp/service. Lookingatthedataevenfurther,70%ofrespondentsfeltthattheabilitytoconsolidateallbusiness communicationsononenumberwouldbeveryusefultothemintheirbusinesscommunications Send/ReceiveText fromacomputer Send/Receive Messageson MulWple Computersand Devices Send/ReceiveText fromatablet TextBoth Coworkers (Internally)and Customers/Clients (Externally)from SameApp/Service SharePhotosand Images ConsolidateAll Business CommunicaWons ononenumber SeparateBusiness CommunicaWons frompersonal CommunicaWons PleaseRankfrom1U7HowUsefultheFollowingWouldbeinYour BusinessCommunicaWons(7=MostUseful)

13 Therespondentswerealsoaskedifthey dbelikelytouseaservicethatallowedthemtousetheir businessphonenumber(notmobile)tosendandreceiveworkarelatedmessagesfromtheircomputer, tabletorsmartphone.64%ofrespondentssaidthatthey dbehighlylikelyorlikelytousesuchaservice, withonly15%notinterested. HowLikelyWouldYoubetoUseaServiceThatAllowsYouto UseYourBusinessPhoneNumber(NotMobile)toSendand ReceiveWorkURelatedMessagesfromYourComputer,Tabletor Smartphone? 7% 8% 30% VeryLikely Likely Neutral Unlikely 21% VeryUnlikely 34% 13

14 DoesVoic HaveaFuture,orWillitgotheWayoftheFaxMachine? Voic !is!being!checked!less!frequently!by!business!professionals!than!just!a!year!ago. OneofthemostcommonlyreferencedreasonscitedforthegrowthofbusinessArelatedtextmessaging isthedeclininguseofvoic byprofessionalsintheenterprise. Therespondentstothissurveywereaskedaboutvoic howoftentheycheckitandwhether they reusingitmoreorlessoften.31%respondedthattheyrarelyusevoic orareusingitless thanayearago and36%saidthattheyrarely(or(neverchecktheirvoic anymore. Theresponsesshowedthatvoic isn tdeadyet butthatnotevenhalfofbusinessprofessionals checkitmorethanonceaday andthatmostareusingitthesameastheydidayearago,whichisnot much. Comparethatwithindustryresearchthatsaysthatsome97%oftextmessagesarereadwithinthree minutesofdelivery andyoucanseewhyyoungerprofessionalsarechoosingtoemploydirecttexting insteadofleavingvoic s. Ifyou renotworriedaboutcheckingyourvoic oftenitcanindicatetwothings (1)thatyour coworkers,customers,prospectsandpartnersarenotusingittocommunicate;and/or(2)thatthisform ofcommunicationisoneyou dprefernottouse. Voic maynotbedeadyet,butitwon tbearoundfortoomuchlonger. HowO]enDoYouCheckYourVoic ? 12% 3% 38% MulipleTimesPerDay OncePerDay 21% AFewTimesEach Week TryToAvoidVoic s Never 26% 14

15 AreYouUsingVoic MoreorLessO]enThisYear ComparedtoaYearAgo? 13% 1% 22% 18% 46% UseMore AbouttheSame UseLessOmen RarelyUseVoic NotSure 15

16 AboutHeyWireBusiness ForefficiencyAorientedcompanies,HeyWireBusinessisthemessagingservicethatprovidesthemost secureandreliablewaytoproductivelyconnectwithcustomersandcoaworkers.itdoesthisbysending andreceivingmultimediamessagesacrosscomputers,tablets&smartphonestoanyonewithinand outsideofanorganization.throughpartnershipswithsomeoftheworld sleadingbusinesstechnology providers,heywirebusinessisactivelybeingsoldintoamarketofover20millionbusinesspeople. 16