Back in 2015, Zynga realized the benefits of messaging-based support for its millions of players and began looking for a solution. Thanks to capabilities like in-app messaging and FAQs, as well as automated device data collection, Helpshift emerged as a clear winner over the other solutions under consideration. Today, the Helpshift platform continues to power Zynga’s support for more than 88 million monthly users with an almost 2x increase in agent productivity.

With more than 88 million monthly players across a number of web and mobile-based games such as Words With Friends and FarmVille, the Zynga team knows how to build a loyal player base. These players love playing games on their mobile phones, and many dedicate large quantities of time to playing Zynga’s games on a daily basis.

Player engagement is important to Zynga, so the team naturally wanted to do everything possible to make it easy for players to stay in the game and continue having fun while connecting with friends and family.

Up until 2015, players had to leave a Zynga game if they had a question or required assistance. They’d click on “help” and be taken out of the app experience and into a web browser in order to contact support. From there, they could reach out — but there was no guarantee these players would return to the app afterwards.

Zynga Chooses Helpshift for In-App Support Capabilities

Streamlining customer support and keeping players in the game became a top priority as the team worked towards optimizing the player experience overall.

“Fast response times and personalized care and attention are key to high-quality support,” said Faye Por, Zynga’s Director of Customer Service. The Zynga team learned how conversational messaging could achieve these goals of personalized service at scale.

Messaging would provide players with a familiar and convenient experience — similar to an “iMessage” conversation that they’d have with friends, plus they would never have to leave the app to get help.

The benefits of the Helpshift platform are not limited to messaging-based communication, though. The platform also supports a fully-native knowledge base that is accessible both on and offline to support players at every stage of their journey.

Thanks to Helpshift’s easy-to-use agent console, agents can respond to issues and resolve them faster too.

It’s largely these reasons that contributed to Zynga choosing Helpshift three years ago. The Zynga team was able to get up and running with Helpshift in just a few days, at a much lower cost.

“Players could now get help without having to leave the game, which was a huge advantage,” said Por. “Now we build deeper relationships with our players and support them at scale.”

Faster, More Convenient Help Means Engaged Players and Agents Alike

“From a player’s perspective, everything is all in one place. You can play your game, read FAQs, or get help all from within the app. It’s a connected experience right at your fingertips and allows us to be where our players are,” said Por. 

Being where the players are: this is a subtle notion, but makes all the difference. It’s about catering to player expectations and preferences for modern communication.

In this case, these preferences seamlessly align with agent productivity goals as well. “Agent responses can be more conversational and concise to complement messaging-based support,” added Por.

The efficiencies gained by messaging aren’t just anecdotal, though. “With nearly the same number of support staff and improved productivity, we were able to handle 185 percent more contacts in 2017 as compared to 2015,” concluded Por.

That equates to quicker resolution times for players, and increased retention and engagement as a result.