Business Communications Trends and Predictions for 2024

It’s the time of year when business leaders will be reviewing their successes (and perhaps some of the things that didn’t go quite as planned) in 2023 and looking at the communications trends that will help guide their organisations to greater achievements in 2024. Given the technological developments in business communications we’ve seen over the last twelve months, there’s a lot to look forward to, much of it driven by artificial intelligence (AI). Here are DigitalWell’s top communications trends and predictions for 2024 and how they will shape the way organisations communicate both internally and externally.

Generative AI will play a major role in automating and moulding every aspect of business communications, especially when it comes to CX. With the help of AI, businesses will be able to leverage every point in the customer journey for greater benefits. Expect hyper-personalisation to be a trending term throughout the year.

Omnichannel management will become easier too. AI will get the right message to the right person on the right channel at the right time on their preferred platform. The days of bombarding the customer with the same message across multiple channels are numbered.

Customers will be willing to pay more for better experiences. Businesses that use advanced CX and contact centre technologies to offer richer, more frictionless, rewarding journeys will benefit from increased repeat business and lifetime customer value.

UC tools have been revolutionising the way teams communicate and collaborate for some time now, but in 2024 we expect to see a surge in adoption, driven by a need for greater efficiencies and productivity in a distributed workforce. AI companions, such as Copilot, for instance, will become commonplace.

While hybrid work practices were just being introduced in 2023, 2024 will see them become firmly established. Companies will look to put employee experience first and foremost, embedding new ways of fostering organisational culture through UC applications to foster an Augmented-Connected Workforce (ACWF).

Virtual team-building activities, mental health resources, gamification and more transparent communication will be essential components in communication and collaboration.

Given the level of cyberattacks in 2023, security will be a greater priority for businesses than ever before, integrated into every component of IT infrastructure from SD-WAN and SASE to using Blockchain encryption to secure platforms.

Beyond that, companies will look at new ways to protect their infrastructure from economic downturns, war, environmental events, global pandemics and emerging competition. When implementing or upgrading infrastructure, organisations will look for partners that can provide robust consultancy and aftersales services, ensuring that solutions are optimised both in terms of business benefits, as well as business-specific security needs.

The market for SD-WAN is still growing rapidly across many sectors, especially financial services and retail where it is helping businesses improve reliability, agility and security while meeting growing customer expectations.

With an increasingly complex regulatory landscape, companies will look to build compliance mechanisms into their networks, integrating these solutions into SD-WAN and cloud infrastructure and also look to outsource the management of these solutions.

Global spending on cloud computing is set to top $1 trillion in 2024, as companies look to become more efficient and agile. Emerging use cases make it clear that as-a-service offerings will be the key to success in these endeavours. Cloud adoption will evolve from being a disruptive technology to a business necessity, allowing companies to take advantage of new technologies, gain a competitive edge and scale.

Cloud infrastructure, will, for example, be a driver for companies seeking to the make the most of emerging AI applications. Most businesses don’t have the resources to do this for themselves, but they will be able to do it through AI-as-a-service platforms.

Multi-cloud and hybrid-cloud strategies will continue to gain momentum, enabling organisations to optimise performance, improve redundancy and mitigate risk while boosting productivity.

As we step into 2024, the communications landscape will see another transformative shift. Technology, coupled with a human focus will shape the world of work and business making it not only more efficient for new ways of working, but more empathetic and inclusive.

Ensure your company is ready for all that 2024 offers. To futureproof all your communication needs, talk to an expert at DigitalWell.