‘Tiis ganda no more?’ Filipinos’ digital patience may wane over time

FILIPINOS have the second-highest level of digital patience among seven Asia-Pacific countries, but this could shorten over time as more brands compete in the digital space, according to a US-based customer engagement platform Twilio.

- By Beatriz Marie D. Cruz

A LAPTOP screen shows an interaction with an AI chatbot.

About 76% of Filipinos consider themselves patient when dealing with online or automated customer service, Twilio said in its “Decoding Digital Patience: The Philippines spotlight” report.

Filipinos’ level of digital patience is the second highest among seven countries in the Asia-Pacific and Japan (APJ), only behind Indonesia (85%). It is also well above the APJ average of 68%.

Customers in Japan (65%), India (65%), Australia (64%), Hong Kong (60%), and Singapore (59%) are more impatient online, Twilio said.

"The digital world has really redrawn the boundaries when it comes to something like waiting, and I think that's going to increasingly put pressure on brands to compete for users' attention," Nicholas Kontopoulos, vice-president of marketing, Asia-Pacific & Japan at Twilio, told BusinessWorld in a video interview last week.

"We'll likely continue to see improvements being delivered by brands as a consequence of Filipinos' patience level maybe decreasing."

Digital patience, which refers to a user's willingness to deal with brands online, is expected to be the “new currency” of customer experience, Twilio said.

It attributed the high level of digital patience to the Filipino phrase “tiis ganda,” or a user’s willingness to “endure discomfort for a worthwhile outcome.”

According to the report, Filipinos were more willing to accept delays for better security (68%) and customer support (62%) than their regional counterparts.