As a mature industry, telecom is a space where there is high competition. In this environment, where the cost of switching is low for the consumer and brands must constantly compete to retain their customers, the need to differentiate is high. With as many as 48% of consumers opting to switch brands in search of better service, telecoms providers must focus on their customer experience (CX) delivery to stand apart.

Digital challenges for legacy telecoms providers

Many leading telecom operators were founded long before the advent of digital solutions. Successful over decades, these operators’ internal processes and systems often include older technologies which can make it difficult to keep pace with customer expectations and the offerings of newer providers.

Outdated technology 
Older technology may not provide the same level of service or functionality as newer technologies. Technologies may have been added over time creating standalone tools with restricted accessibility and disparate data sets.

Less flexibility
Legacy providers may have rigid processes and systems in place that make it difficult to adapt to changing customer needs or preferences. In addition, being larger organizations decision-making processes may be more complex than those of smaller competitors.

Difficulty leveraging data to reveal insights
With siloed data, organizations can find it hard to uncover the insights hidden in their customer data, making them slower to identify customers’ needs and deliver new products and services to meet them.

With a flood of digital-native players in the telecom space, legacy providers must drive digital transformation across their CX to compete.

The rise of digital-first mobile virtual network operators

The world's first Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO), Virgin Mobile UK, launched in 1999 and MVNOs subsequently began operating in the U.S. in 2011. Since then, the market has grown rapidly to become a $70.3B market in 2022 and is expected to reach $147.7B by 2032.

Purchasing wholesale network access from one or more of the major mobile network operators, such as AT&T, Verizon or T-Mobile and reselling this access to consumers under their own brand, MVNOs often offer lower price points than the major mobile network operators. And, with more modern systems and technologies, MVNOs offer consumers attractive digital-first experiences.

While the major telecom players still dominate the market, they must deliver a comparable experience to consumers to retain their market share, especially as their audience becomes increasingly familiar with a digital-first approach. Low-cost carriers are often an entry point for consumers, for example, offering niche products to cost-conscious customers or international travelers and more established players need to be well-positioned to attract these consumers as their needs become more complex.

Leveraging AI and data analytics to improve customer experience in telecom

Whether a legacy provider or new entrant to the market, telecom providers have a wealth of customer information within their business. Brands that make good use of this data have the opportunity to get ahead of their competitors through the delivery of a unique customer experience:

• Personalization
  Digital solutions including data analytics and machine learning can be leveraged to effortlessly gather data about customer preferences and behavior, which can be used to personalize the customer experience. Telecom providers can use this data to offer personalized promotions and plans to customers based on their usage patterns, encouraging additional purchases and driving customer satisfaction.

• Automation
  Automation improves CX in telecom by reducing wait times and eliminating errors. For example, automating the process of activating or deactivating services reduces the need for customers to wait on hold or repeat their information multiple times and deflects calls from voice-based channels, improving the experience for customers and driving cost efficiencies.
  
  And automation is not only for the customer. Increasingly, automation is being deployed to support the teams responding to customer queries. By automating routine tasks that fall to contact center teams, agents can focus more of their attention on the consumer and deliver better CX.

• Self-service solutions
  Digital solutions such as chatbots and AI-powered virtual assistants provide customers with instant support and assistance, 24/7. By supporting customers with routine queries and tasks, such as checking data usage or answering service questions, simple queries are deflected away from more costly live channels. 
  
  Self-service portals offer similar benefits, enabling customers to manage their account, view their usage, pay their bill and troubleshoot any issues they might have, all without the need to speak to a customer service representative.
  
  Digital solutions such as chatbots and AI-powered virtual assistants provide customers with instant support and assistance, 24/7. By supporting customers with routine queries and tasks, such as checking data usage or answering service questions, simple queries are deflected away from more costly live channels. 
  
  Self-service portals offer similar benefits, enabling customers to manage their account, view their usage, pay their bill and troubleshoot any issues they might have, all without the need to speak to a customer service representative.

• Predictive analytics
  Data analytics can be used to predict customer behavior, such as when a customer is likely to churn. This insight enables telecom operators to proactively address potential issues and improve customer retention.

• Insights
  Data analytics can be used to understand the customer journey, gain insights into customer behavior and preferences and identify pain points. This data enables telecom companies to improve services, develop new products and retain customers for the long term.
  
  Overall, the use of AI and data analytics enables telecom operators to improve CX by providing personalized, efficient and proactive service.

Creating an effective omnichannel approach to CX

From an interaction with a virtual assistant to comments posted on social media, the rapid growth of digital solutions has created a wide variety of spaces in which customers can interact with their telecom provider. While brands may consider these channels independently, for the consumer each interaction is with your brand and they expect you to know them as a single customer across channels.

To meet customer expectations, brands must bring data together into a single customer view and create a seamless customer experience combining both automated and live interactions.

Customers value effortless digital solutions to answer simple queries and perform routine tasks. In these low emotional effort interactions, such as checking available minutes or data usage, automation gives customers the fast, 24/7 solution they prefer. But in situations where emotional effort is higher, customers need easy access to an empathetic live agent.

A well-planned omnichannel approach leverages insights to determine which touch points can be automated and which require the support of live agents and directs customers to the channel that works best for them. Whether it be through a mobile app, live chat, social media or telephone, agents must have a 360-degree view of the customer’s interaction with the brand, enabling them to continue a seamless conversation with the customer.

Digital solutions offer telecoms providers the opportunity to enhance their CX while also deflecting contacts away from voice-based channels, creating cost efficiencies. Digitalization enables seamless personalization in a format that customers find efficient and easy to use, driving customer satisfaction.

As a global CX solutions provider with more than 30 years’ experience supporting some of the world’s leading telecom operators, Startek offers traditional voice-based and non-traditional digital contact center services. Learn more about how we can support your brand, contact us.