Customer Self-Service Software Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

Customer Self-Service Software Market - Growth, Trends, COVID-19 Impact, and Forecasts (2022 - 2027)

The customer self-service software market was valued at USD 7.20 billion in 2020, and it is expected to register a CAGR of 20.94% during the forecast period from 2021 to 2026. An increasing number of organizations now understand the benefits of reliable and dedicated self-service portals for enhancing the company's overall brand image. Self-service portals provide customers with instant access to information, allow personalization, and save valuable time and organizational resources. It has become so crucial that, according to SuperOffice, 70% of customers now expect a company's website to include a self-service application. The customized knowledge-based self-service portal is playing a significant role in bringing in more website traffic. According to Salesforce, 39% of millennials check a company's FAQ first when they have a question, showing a strong preference for finding answers.

Key Highlights

• Some of the significant features of customer self-service software are: it provides information to users without human interaction, assists end-users in completing familiar tasks, and provides continuous support to end-users seeking assistance. Most of the companies' helpdesk are failing to deliver required expectations, either due to short-staffed or due to lack of knowledge to answer a question immediately. Hence companies are adopting these self-services, which help users find solutions themselves often through a knowledge base or automated task management platform.
• According to Oracle, web self-service can reduce costs by as much as USD 11 per call while handling support in multiple customer service channels. According to Dimension Data, although Web-based services account for a significant portion, 55% of customers find web-based self-service portals challenging to use. Many companies are mainly focusing on enhancing their knowledge base. According to SuperOffice, in the process of merging content, removing outdated material, and ranking content by most popular response, the company witnessed an increase in FAQ reads from 50,000 in 2017 to more than 300,000 in 2019. Therefore, many companies are adopting knowledge-based solutions that are consistent, user-friendly, simple to understand, and capable of utilizing a range of media while updating in real-time.
• The adoption of digital assistants is one of the significant trends emerging in the market. In the Retail and BFSI industry, chatbots have become a primary self-service feature. The companies are also utilizing digital virtual assistants to enhance the customer experience. To leverage competitive advantages, more companies are implementing AI- and ML-enabled chatbots, as well as other forms of virtual assistants, to enhance the customer experience. Further, chatbot technology is gaining a lot of interest, with several companies making significant investments in Customer Relationship Management (CRM).
• Companies, like Oracle, are claiming that the recent COVID-19 crises have further expanded the scope of digital assistant or chatbots among the organizations, not only for consumers but also for employees. Many of AI-enables solutions include conversational service via chatbots to answer questions 24/7 while reducing incoming chats and calls. The recent increase in the work-from-home model can also expand the use of digital assistant for both consumers and employees. In many industries, contact center managers are witnessing an increase in the volume of inbound customer service calls during the COVID-19 outbreak. In contrast, most contact centers could not operate at full capacity. Hence, AI-based digital assistants can play a significant role in this.

Key Market TrendsRetail is Expected to Hold Significant Share

• Retail is one of the major investors and adopters of the customer self-service solutions for many years; the trend is also expected to continue in the coming years. Retail companies are vying to deploy new technologies and are witnessing the growing adoption of self-service checkouts. Self-service has already made inroads in the product-scanning technology, which is being incorporated by retail majors.
• According to Jumper.ai, chatbot technology isn't just a customer service tool for retailers, as it also can collect unique first-party customer data. The recent trend of AI in the sector is also developing space for technology. According to analytics firm Invoca, nearly half (49%) of the US consumers trusted advice generated by AI technology in the retail category, more so than any other type analyzed. In May 2020, Wallmart used the first-ever AI-powered Self-Service Scales to its stores in China.
• US-based Zappix offers cloud-based Digital Self-Service solutions that leverage the speed of Visual IVR and the convenience of Robotic Process Automation (RPA) to provide enhanced customer experiences. Some of the claimed benefits of the solutions for retailers mentioned by the company are reduced calls to agents, lower contact center costs, enhanced customer experience, automation of repetitive processes, targeted revenue growth opportunities, enabling live agents to focus on high-value queries, and shorter average handling times per call, among others.
• Zappix also claims that its solution can be integrated with any CRM, Order Management System, and other back-end systems to connect customers directly to the retailer. The company also offers Zappix Actionable Analytics that tracks the customer journey and provides reports analyzing consumer behavior and trends. With other retail companies expected to follow suit, the demand for self-service solutions poised to increase. However, the risks of data theft, fraud, and losing a touch-point with the POS customers are expected to challenge the deployment of self-service solutions in the retail industry.

North America Contributes to Maximum Market Share

• North America has the largest market share and dominates the customer self-service software market. This is due to the rising social media penetration, significant self-service software vendors, and high cloud-based deployment of self-service solutions. The increasing penetration of web self-service solutions and mobile among consumers is also estimated to encourage the growth of the North American market in the next few years. Additionally, the presence of several leading customer self-service software players is anticipated to supplement the development of the market studied.
• US-based Big Fish Games uses an automated SmartAssistant that leverages information from the customer’s web session (including keywords searched), to offer a 360° personalized service. Using this approach, Big Fish Games has increased its customer satisfaction to about 94%, achieved a self-service web rate of 96.4%, and saved USD 870,000. The recent COVID-19 outbreak further expanded the scope and adoption of customer self-service solutions in the retail industry. For instance, Walmart, in its 22 Canadian stores, deployed self-scanning outlets.
• Walgreen’s Drugstore.com offers web self-service on Facebook and Twitter. Customers who search and shop online can chat with an agent, to find products, resolve issues, and learn about promotions. With this strategy, the company has raised order sizes by 20%, and saved around USD 350,000, through call deflection. 7-Eleven Inc., an American international chain of convenience stores, offers chatbot on Facebook Messenger to enhance the customer experience. The chatbot converses with the customers, using AI that powers automation, but also lets the users sign up for the 7Rewards customer loyalty program, and find a nearby store with available discounts and promotions.
• Large companies in the region have already embraced AI as a part of their digital transformation. For instance, banking service providers, like JP Morgan Chase, Bank of America, and Capital One, have already deployed virtual assistants in the form of chatbots. They have also successfully streamlined their back-end operations, such as workforce management, thereby saving high costs. IBM offers AI solutions for call centers, quoted that bot interactions in the banking industry are expected to hit 90% by 2022.

Competitive Landscape

The customer self-service software market is fragmented, due to the rise in self-service, like ATMs, Kiosks, and vending machines. The need for the software is also increasing, which makes the market attractive for many companies to enter with their product offerings. Moreover, many players are offering many solutions catering to the need of the consumers. Some of the key players in the market studied are Oracle Corporation, Salesforce.Com Inc., SAP SE, Microsoft Corporation, BMC Software Inc., and Verint Systems Inc., among others.

• May 2020 - Oracle announced the availability of Oracle Analytics for Cloud HCM which is built on Oracle Analytics Cloud and Oracle Autonomous Database, Oracle Analytics for Cloud HCM provides HR executives, analysts, and business people with better insights into workforce management by enabling a comprehensive view into data from across the organization. The self-service analytics capabilities help customers get the maximum value of Oracle Cloud HCM.
• November 2019 - SAP SE and Accenture formed a partnership for co-innovating and co-developing the new SAP Cloud for utility solutions to help companies manage business processes and customer experiences more effectively. SAP Cloud for Utilities utilizes smart technologies and real-time business insights, offering better capabilities around marketing, product bundling, self-service, and the fulfillment of multiple functions.

Additional Benefits:

• The market estimate (ME) sheet in Excel format
• 3 months of analyst support

Companies Mentioned

Oracle Corporation
Salesforce.Com Inc.
SAP SE
Nuance Communications Inc.
BMC Software Inc.
Microsoft Corporation
Verint Systems Inc.
Zappix Inc
Zendesk Inc
Zoho Corporation Pvt. Ltd

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