WebEngage, a full-stack service provider specializing in customer retention, engagement, and automation, has launched the 2022 edition of its trends & insights report. Titled Cross Channel User Engagement – A Winner’s Playbook, the in-depth report sheds light on some of the best-kept secrets in contemporary user engagement and customer retention strategies in the MENA region and beyond.

WebEngage has uncovered that dynamic lifecycle campaigns generate 2–7 times more click-through and conversion rates than standalone campaigns. As far as user engagement patterns in the MENA region are concerned, the best time to send emails is between 4–8 PM, with 24% of conversions happening during this time. In addition, the best time to send WhatsApp messages is between 12–4 PM, with 33% of all conversions happening during this time. Overall, the highest conversion rates are achieved between 12–10 PM in the MENA region, the leading SaaS company has revealed.

In addition, WebEngage has also assembled fail-proof marketing strategies being adopted by leading brands and digital marketers, especially in the aftermath of the pandemic outbreak and the accompanying increase in digitalization. The comprehensive report also touches upon how the omnichannel strategies and each channel have contributed to the bottom lines of digital-first organizations.

The key highlights include:

• The correlation between the global crisis and the increase in channel adoptions between 2020–22
• Uptake of contextualized and personalized campaigns in relation to standalone promotional campaigns
• Industry-specific channel bifurcation strategies
• Current trends in channel bifurcation strategies across industries
• Preferred channels for user engagement across geographies
• Best time slots for user engagement in specific channels and geographies

“I’d rather call this a cheat sheet than a playbook because, to the right eye, it’s a fail-proof customer retention strategy on a platter. Today’s customers are spoilt for choices, and they expect brands to go above and beyond their normal code of conduct. They expect brands to not just understand their needs but predict their requirements. With thousands of data points a brand tracks per user, it is only fitting for customers to expect a hyper-personalized experience. If there’s anything the last couple of years have taught us, it is that challenges, and opportunities, will keep emerging. Experimenting, adapting, and course-correcting are the only way out,” said Chirag Parmar, Senior  Manager – Special Projects, WebEngage.

As Parmar rightly notes, consumer buying behavior has evolved and continues to evolve, drastically. As a result, it has become mission-critical for brands to pivot to omnichannel approaches and engage the right customer at the right time through the right channels. In light of this status quo, WebEngage’s Trends & Insights Report 2022 — which gives a location-specific, deep-dive analysis of user engagement and conversion — is both timely and consequential.

Most importantly, however, WebEngage has released insights pertaining to industries as diverse as B2B, BFSI, Fin-Tech, eCommerce, Ed-Tech, Gaming, Healthcare, Media & Entertainment, and Travel & Hospitality. The insights are based on the analysis of 400+ billion messages and 835+ billion user events, across 10 industries and five regions between 2020–22.

“We’ve experienced 3–4 years of growth in just 3–4 quarters for our customers. They’ve been resilient, innovative, and heavily invested in focusing on a single north-star metric: Customer Retention. Customer retention has been and continues to be, the differentiating strategy of sustainable, high-growth businesses and unicorn bubbles. The marketing landscape has dramatically changed. With advancements in technology and the availability of data, the struggle is no longer to find what sticks but more towards bringing a synergy between data and technology. It’s the era of predictive marketing, where marketers now need to think beyond just witty one-liners and eye-catching graphics,” expressed Avlesh Singh, Co-Founder & CEO, WebEngage.

Avlesh Singh, Co-Founder & CEO, WebEngage

Under Avlesh Singh’s tutelage, WebEngage has assumed a leading position in the global SaaS value chain, particularly in the MENA region. As a testament to its reputation, its client eXtra — Saudi Arabia’s fastest-growing retail brand — recently announced a 33% increase in purchases through localized user engagement campaigns. Similarly, another client Gourmet — a leading retailer in Egypt — announced a 20% increase in customer retention. Both the brands had adopted WebEngage’s full-stack Retention Operating System. Fuelled by such successes, WebEngage has recently expanded into South Africa and Nigeria, scaling its existing operations in the UAE, KSA, Egypt, Kuwait, and Qatar.