Top 10: Trends Shaping Telecom CX

Telecom customer experience (CX) in the telecommunications industry covers all interactions customers have with a telecom company. In the competitive telecoms market, CX is a core focus for companies in the sector. A 2022 report from Zendesk showed that 61% of customers will defect to a competitor after just one bad experience. Without customer satisfaction, there can be no business success. 

Here are our Top 10 key trends shaping customer experience in the telecom industry:

10. AI-driven customer insights

Turkish software developer Etiya takes customer experiences to the next level and actively seeks new ways of improving CX with AI, with its BSS Platform.

Etiya revealed that AI support allowed customer services to be more human-focused, offering tailored and fast resolution for customer issues, thus contributing to improved, long-term customer satisfaction.

9. Network reliability

High expectations for network reliability and resilience, especially during critical times, are pushing telecoms to invest in infrastructure that minimises downtime and service disruptions.

“Your customers are already expecting the impossible from you. You should be ready to deliver the impossible to them,” said Amir Abdelazim, CTIO at Asiacell. “We made it our mission to use our digital transformation to deliver a reliable service and to bring the customer inside our business.”

8. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)

While still majorly affected by cost, customers are moving towards brands which clearly prioritise sustainability. This can be in regards to utilising renewable energy to uplifting minority groups in the business.

“The most important principle of our CSR policy is that we deal with our impact on humanity and environment in a very conscious way and that we do everything we can to ensure this impact is positive. That way of thinking is becoming increasingly important in our company culture and identity,” said Laura van Gestel, Director of Corporate Social Responsibility, at VodafoneZiggo.

7. Data privacy

As cyber attacks continue to hit the news, customers are increasingly concerned about their data privacy and expect telecom companies to focus on improving security measures to ensure their data privacy.

Earlier this year, the MEF released its 10th Annual Consumer Trust Survey, highlighting the need for trust, transparency and security. 

Results from 9,750 smartphone users showed that perceptions of privacy have declined across the mobile sector, reversing a long-term upward trend. In addition, telecom operators must educate consumers about their data privacy and security to help them make informed decisions and protect themselves.

6. Digital-first experience

Evergent, a customer management leader in the telecommunications sector, offers the Digital Commerce Bridge, a platform which enables communication service providers to launch flexible, digital-first services across entertainment, healthcare and finance, without the need to disrupt their existing BSS infrastructure.

“We’ve created a hassle-free, agile digital enablement layer that focuses on powering dynamic customer relationships and new subscription revenues while keeping core BSS infrastructure intact,” said Vijay Sajja, Founder and CEO of Evergent.

5. Dedicated customer service

T-Mobile has taken significant steps to strengthen its network, teams and resources, to offer invaluable customer service during a crisis. For those communities that live with the threat of hurricanes or wildfires, T-Mobile has expanded its network with permanent backup power solutions and opened a Community Support Advocates Program to provide disaster response.

“In times of crisis, T-Mobile is ready to show up for our customers and our communities and take action to help in recovery where it is most needed,” said Jon Freier, Consumer Group President at T-Mobile.

4. Self-service

Digital self-service is a term for online solutions to enable customers to operate autonomously on a company website. This means that they can find an answer to their query quickly and through digital channels, without the need for them to wait in line to speak to a real person. 

In addition to bolstering the company’s loyalty management, digital self-service systems can help telcos to boost sales, create a more subtle and impactful marketing strategy, give customers more agency, reduce the cost of customer service and build a future-proof experience.

3. Omnichannel support

The wealth of new connectivity solutions on the market has enabled companies to connect to their clients 24/7, from anywhere in the world. This is a huge advantage for telcos and when used in full, companies can take their CX standards to entirely new heights. 

With the advent of these new technologies, customers’ expectations for CX are increasing rapidly. Adopting a truly omnichannel approach means that telcos need to offer immediate communication to their client base.

2. 5G rollout

5G networks are transforming customer expectations with faster speeds and lower latency. Vodafone was the first UK network to offer 5G roaming and is continuing to roll out 5G across Europe faster than any other network. Following its merger with Three, the combined business will invest £11bn (US$14bn) in the UK over 10 years to create one of Europe’s most advanced standalone 5G networks, which Margherita Della Valle, Vodafone Group Chief Executive, called “great for customers and great for competition”.

However, 5G requires a lot of energy to run. Back to an earlier point, a telecom’s 5G deployment must be balanced out with sustainability, or the business will hit one CX mark, only to miss another.

1. Personalisation

Implementing AI-powered tools that enable in-depth personalisation at scale through any channel will have a big impact on telecom CX. As well as standardising content and data processes, such tools can provide content recommendations at a personal level. Sellers can then augment these recommendations with their own knowledge of the buyer, leading to more memorable and meaningful interactions that are tailored to the buyer’s specific use case.

Analysing the data captured from buyer interactions at every stage of the sales cycle will help telecoms understand the behaviours and activities that can be used to deliver the best outcomes. Sellers can also leverage content engagement insights to identify and create the most effective content for specific buyer personas. Ultimately, it all comes down to identifying the content that has been proven to accelerate purchasing decisions and connecting this content with internal coaching and outreach workflows to optimise sales operations.

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