What does it take to build meaningful customer connections in 2025?

What does it take to build meaningful customer connections in 2025?

From the evolving role of AI to the growing demand for instant, personalized experiences, today’s businesses are navigating a fast-changing customer engagement landscape. Expectations are higher than ever and meeting them takes more than just new tools. It takes strategy, speed, and a commitment to staying human.

To unpack the biggest takeaways from Twilio’s 2025 State of Customer Engagement Report, Twilio’s VP of Revenue and Growth Marketing, Vanessa Thompson, sat down with Krish Sailam, VP of Marketing Technology & AI Operations at Nextdoor—a platform dedicated to connecting neighbors, local businesses, and communities. Together, they explored the trends redefining how brands connect with customers and how leaders like Nextdoor are using AI to build stronger communities while keeping trust and empathy front and center.

Whether you’re rethinking your customer journey or optimizing your tech stack, this conversation is your playbook for meeting rising expectations—at scale and with authenticity. Here are a few key takeaways from their discussion: 

1. AI should make things easier for both businesses and consumers

Too often, businesses implement AI with a narrow focus: boosting productivity, cutting costs, or reducing support tickets. While those outcomes matter, they’re only half the equation. Businesses must consider how AI can benefit consumers, too.

At Nextdoor, that balance is intentional. The company uses AI behind the scenes to streamline internal workflows, but it also uses AI to create better, more effortless experiences for its users.

Take their “For Sale” and “Free” ads section. In the past, listing an item meant uploading a photo, writing a description, and figuring out a fair price. Now, AI does the heavy lifting.

“We've made that incredibly simple,” explains Krish. “Just take a picture of whatever you're trying to sell, like a couch, and our AI will understand what it is, craft a creative and fun description for you, and even suggest a price based on the pricing dynamics of your local area. All you have to do is take the picture and then hit ‘post.’” 

The result: less friction, more engagement, and greater value for both businesses and consumers.

2. Convenience is now the key driver of consumer trust

For the last two years, data privacy has been the top trust builder with consumers. But in 2025, that’s shifted. According to Twilio’s 2025 State of Customer Engagement Report, the new trust drivers are responsive customer service and easy returns and refunds—both rooted in one thing: convenience.

What does this mean for brands? As Krish puts it, “the expectations for our industry are not always being set by our industry.” Instead, it’s brands like Amazon, ChatGPT, and Gemini that are defining what “good” customer experiences look like. Instant answers, same-day shipping, frictionless experiences, these are the baseline consumers have come to expect. Brands need to rise to the occasion or risk losing customers’ trust and business.

When it comes to building trust, convenience isn’t optional—it’s expected. Falling short of customer expectations can erode trust faster than you can rebuild it. That’s why knowing when to hit pause on a project isn’t a failure, it’s a strategic choice. If a new experience doesn’t meet the standard for speed, accuracy, or ease of use, it’s better to hold back than risk losing credibility with your customers. 

3. Human-centered, not just human-sounding

Last year, only 48% of consumers wanted AI to “feel human." This year, that number jumped to 69%. Why the change of heart? According to Krish, it’s tools like ChatGPT and Gemini that are once again influencing customer expectations. These AI agents don’t just sound human—they act human. They remember past interactions, build rapport over time, and make conversations feel less transactional and more personal. 

“The concept of not just having brands talk at you, but talk with you is starting to become more normal,” explains Krish. “But we also have to think about: what does human-centered mean? It’s about empathy, rapport, and continuity. If I interact with [your brand], I want you to be able to remember and build on that experience.” 

This kind of consistency and collective intelligence matters across every channel: email, chat, phone, and beyond. Customers don’t want to feel like they’re starting from scratch every time they reach out to a brand. They want one unified experience—not a disjointed handoff between siloed teams. Regardless of whether a customer is interacting with sales, marketing, or customer service, every team should use the same knowledge on the customer. Going forward, that seamless, human-centered continuity will be key to building lasting trust and loyalty. 

Key takeaways for every brand

1. Design for mutual value: Don’t just use AI to wow your board members and senior execs. Use it to deliver clear benefits to your customers. Ask yourself, “How does the customer win here?” That mindset leads to smarter, more strategic use of AI.
   
   

2. Make convenience instant: Top brands like Amazon and ChatGPT are setting the pace for others, regardless of industry. If your experience isn’t fast, seamless, and intuitive,your customers will find one that is.
   
   

3. Experiment fast and often but have a threshold of quality: Trust is hard to earn and easy to lose. If a new tool or feature isn’t meeting your high standard, it’s better to delay launch and take the time to improve it than roll out something that falls short of customer expectations.
   
   

4. Build continuity into every channel: Customers want to feel like your brand is talking to and only cares about them, not to be shuffled between disconnected teams or tools. This means stitching together data, context, and conversations across every channel to deliver a consistent, human-centered experience.
   
   

Looking to boost customer engagement and unlock AI insights? Download the 2025 State of Customer Engagement Report or watch the on-demand Twilio Talks session today.