If you're like me, when you're mobile and want to interact with a brand -for any reason -you want to do so quickly. Even if you have an app for the brand you want to engage with, you prefer fewer steps to get in touch.  And many of us want these interactions to be messaging-based with the tools we already know and love. Simply put, brands need ways to offer simple, secure and seamless entry points for direct engagement.

Apple is making this vision possible with Apple Business Chat beta, and Cisco Customer Journey Solutions is proud to support this technology starting today. Business Chat is a new way for users to communicate directly with businesses using the Messages app on iPhone and iPad.

For example, let's say I'm searching for a business on my iPhone or iPad. I can now see an option to contact a business using Messages when using Maps, Safari, Search or Siri (or of course, the businesses' app itself). And I can continue the conversation with Apple Watch or Mac. No app downloads, no user information to give away, and no steps to take to do things such as get answers, place orders, learn more about nearby locations, and more.

Here's how it can help make our lives better:

I recently traveled to another part of the US and realized that I had forgotten to pack my disposable contacts. Since I struggle to read without them, I began to search for a store location near me. Search was followed by phone calls to coordinate the replacement.  Finally, I had to take time away from my trip to go to the store to pick them up.

However, imagine how that could be with Business Chat integrated with Cisco. I contact the company via Messages on my iPhone. Because I've previously disclosed my identity to the provider, they are able to locate my prescription and get in touch with my optometrist. They reach out later to confirm the order and ship the contacts directly to me or help me find the nearest location to pick up in person. So easy. And empowering.

This seamless consumer transition from the moment of need anytime, anywhere, to complete resolution is nirvana for most brands. It's true omnichannel success and takes the strain off app and commerce infrastructures.

Our goal at Cisco is to make customer care a delightful experience for both consumers AND brands. So that's why we're making Apple Business Chat a fully-integrated part of the Cisco Customer Journey Solutions experience so our customers can scale to new solutions like Business Chat while using the intelligence, processes, and personnel they have in place.

This means that Cisco customers will be able to optimize the agent experience using:

• Intelligent routing to help inbound communications go to the best available resource
• Context about a user's preferences to provide relevant service
• Reporting for managers and analysts to measure and improve service.
• Integrate with high-quality voice and video calling to provide seamless escalation to a different communications channel.

In summary, mobile messaging isn't just another feature -we see it as a major entry point for customer communications into the future. How you harness this channel in your contact center is the critical step. We believe we're positioned to deliver an exceptional experience for Cisco customers so that Apple Business Chat fits into, and even augments, their business objectives.

And for me, my experience of completing the entire contacts order from my iPhone is just around the corner. I am so excited that Cisco is working with Apple to make it happen.

Contact us at [email protected] for information about the beta trial program.