Indeed, communication is not just about nice slogans, beautiful images, catchy posts on social media, or a sleek website where you can easily find all the information you need. No. It goes far beyond imagery and the written word. Especially if you consider everything a company does to reach its clients or communicate with them.

For instance, have you ever called a company to ask a question about a product, or called your bank to solve an issue concerning your account or portfolio? The journey you take as part of this – your client experience – also forms part of a communication process. Sometimes it is carefully orchestrated in order to reinforce your interest or loyalty; sometimes it is a little less successful, with the risk of losing you along the way. Where “telephone contact with the company” is concerned, things have changed significantly not only due to artificial intelligence and automation, but also pressure on margins.

Whereas it used to be relatively easy to reach the person in a company who could answer your question, this person now seems to have disappeared. The direct contact has vanished. What you are left with is an obstacle course.