Infobip enables Metrobank to seamlessly deploy Viber rich business messaging

Metrobank achieved up to 50% cost reduction using Viber rich business messaging to enhance communication with millions of Filipino banking customers

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The conversational marketing future in banking

MANILA, Philippines – Metrobank, the second-largest private universal bank in the Philippines, has tapped Infobip, a global cloud communications platform, to deploy Viber rich business messaging as part of its focus to transform its operations and enhance its customer communication strategy by tapping a trusted and secure digital messaging platform.

Through Infobip’s plug-and-play implementation, Metrobank was able to seamlessly integrate Viber business messages into its existing processes and with minimum additional work. Being a part of rich business messaging solutions on the app, Viber business messages allow brands to send personal 1-2-1 messages to their existing client base who gave consent to receive brand notifications. After only two days of set-up and a week of testing, Metrobank was able to create a unique customer experience by sending rich content such as images and videos in promotional Viber business messages with special offers to millions of Filipinos. With rich messaging on Viber for Business, Metrobank has since been able to achieve up to 50% cost reduction on what otherwise would have required multiple SMS messages to convey its latest offerings.

“Infobip provided a solution that enabled us to quickly start benefiting from using Viber rich business messaging for sending marketing messages, using both a portal and an integration with our customer relationship management (CRM) system. The integration with Salesforce was extremely easy to set up and with no disruption to our business processes, and no requirement to involve technical resources from other departments. We have been very satisfied with the entire process and appreciate the ease of working with a partner with a local office in the Philippines,” said Ramon Martin Rodriguez, Performance Marketing Head, Metrobank.

The conversational marketing future in banking

Infobip notes how customers continue to evolve with technology. While SMS remains a fundamental component of many companies’ omnichannel strategies, Infobip’s Messaging Trends 2023 report finds a notable rise in messages sent through messaging apps like Rakuten Viber, highlighting the increasing adoption of enriched channels facilitating conversational interactions. 2023 Philippine statistics from Rakuten Viber also show a 52% year-over-year increase in business messages delivered on its platform and an impressive 377% increase in conversational business messages exchanged between users and brands (around-sales support, collecting customer feedback, and more).

“The current business landscape, including that of the banking industry, has entered the era of conversational everything – whether for marketing, support, or sales. Customers across the globe want a conversation with a brand on the channels they already use. These conversations are getting richer, more convenient, and more personalized,” explains Cecile Tizon, Director for Sales in APAC, Infobip.

With Metrobank, Tizon adds that conversational marketing uses a combination of marketing and promotional campaigns to interact with customers on their favorite channel, to inform, educate and re-engage based on previous interactions. By providing customers with information in a format and style that appeals the most to them, Metrobank is able to offer its customers a more efficient and rewarding banking experience.

“Today, chats are humanity’s preferred medium for conversation,” says Noa Bar Shay, Senior Director, Partnerships at Rakuten Viber. “With Filipinos spending almost four hours on social media and messaging apps on average daily, these channels have become primary places for brands to reach and engage with their customers. With solutions such as Viber’s rich business messaging, businesses can connect with these audiences, build targeted marketing campaigns, and create conversational experiences.”

Partnering with Infobip to deploy promotional Viber business messages allowed Metrobank to achieve more with its communications budget and deliver tangible value for the bank. It is now looking to further expand the partnership with Infobip to include the deployment of Rakuten Viber’s conversational business messages, allowing two-way messaging between brand and a user, to drive further efficiencies and improve the customer experience for its clients nationwide.

For more information, see: https://tinyurl.com/infobipmetrobank.