As the new year begins to unfold, we look at some of the communication trends we can expect to see emerge and grow in 2019. Here are some of the most important ones to watch this year.
Wholesale VoIP termination
Cloud-based communications are not new and increasing numbers of businesses have adopted this technology in the past year or so. However, this trend is set to continue for 2019 and beyond, with both homeowners and businesses recognising the many benefits that wholesale VoIP termination brings. In particular, with more people working remotely, cloud-based communications will serve their needs far better than ever before.
Data mining
With 5G becoming more readily available, more of us will be using communication applications this year that make use of artificial intelligence and big data. In particular, interactive voice response (IVR) is one trend to look out for in 2019.
Video communications
Internet speeds are getting faster, thanks to 5G. This opens up wider opportunities to communicate more effectively, with video likely to take centre stage this year. Traditional voice communications will fast be replaced by video calls and conferences, instead, and this ties in with the likely increase in demand for VoIP technology. In addition to video, communications of the future are likely to become more visual overall, with studies suggesting that 84% of communications will become visually-oriented.
Voice search
While voice communications could be overtaken by video, this does not mean to say our voices will be increasingly phased out of the equation when it comes to communicating or searching for information. In fact, voice search will take priority this year, where around one-in-four searches are expected to take place by voice search. Wider numbers of people are likely to use virtual assistants to communicate and search, speeding up many processes.
A focus on value
When the recession hit almost a decade ago, many businesses had to rethink their communications strategies in order to cut costs. The uncertainty of Brexit over the coming year could force businesses to take another look again at their communication infrastructure, placing value at the top of their agenda. With getting value for money high priority, expect to see VoIP form specialists such as IDT take the limelight in 2019 and communications that are are centred on an open source.
Data as a currency
Consumer data has such a high value in society today that it is almost regarded in currency terms. Data is a valuable communications currency for brands and in order for consumers to hand over their data, businesses need to create high-quality services that encourage this data transaction. Data as a valued communications commodity will be a trend to watch in 2019 and beyond.
Measurable communications
As 2019 emerges, we will see a spike in communications systems or methods that are more measurable. Communications will be measured to analyse engagement rates, demographics and monitoring for research or training purposes. This will help to improve the quality of communications and make them more efficient, possibly even saving time and money.
