Part of CCS Insight’s annual consumer research in the UK delves into people’s interactions with their mobile provider. It offers an interesting snapshot into their preferred methods of communication.
The study, which polled just over 1,000 respondents in the UK, shows that the top two expected methods are both digital: visit the operator’s website (35%) and use its app (27%). More-traditional means such as speaking over the phone or visiting a store in person are less popular, favoured by 19% and 18% of Britons respectively.
Other ways of getting in touch with mobile operators include online chat (17%), social media (6%) and making a video call (3%). However, just over a quarter of people (27%) said they don’t plan to have any contact at all (see chart below).
The trend toward greater use of online channels is good news for operators. It helps them become more responsive and accessible to their customers and offers significant opportunities to save costs through automation.
As part of the research, we explored how people intend to use their mobile provider’s app. Two main reasons emerged: to check their bill and monitor usage. But there were several other popular answers, including to access customer support, use an operator’s loyalty scheme, browse for mobile phones or accessories and add more data.
The findings should encourage EE. In October 2023, the network set out plans to boost engagement with its app as part of a broader goal to become more relevant in the lives of its customers (see Instant Insight: EE Launches New Platform to Spearhead Push Beyond Connectivity).
We also probed into the use of online chat and found that more than four in 10 people have used this service from their mobile provider. This was highest among younger age groups, suggesting usage will continue to grow. We identified two main reasons for turning to chat: to discuss a bill or get technical support.
Vodafone customers came out as more likely to use online chat than those at rivals Three, O2 or EE. This may stem from its investment in its Tobi chat bot, which has been available to customers for several years (see Tobi or Not Tobi).
Online chat is often cited as an area where generative artificial intelligence can enhance customer interactions. At the recent MWC, for example, South Korea’s SK Telecom demonstrated how the technology could go beyond answering common customer questions, such as by also selling tickets to attractions to roaming visitors (see Insight Report: MWC 2024: Telecom Operators).
Meanwhile, Orange is trialing a new service called Find, which helps call centre advisors quickly identify information from various sources, such as its own website and internal databases (see Orange Showcases Its Innovation Credentials).
Generative artificial intelligence could also support analysis of customer sentiment to create more-tailored responses to enquiries or help communication in different languages using a real-time translation tool.
The migration to digital interaction continues to raise questions about the long-term role of high-street retail. According to our research, about a third of UK mobile phone owners can recall visiting a phone shop in the past six months. Although this is lower than in previous years, it’s still a significant number. And the reasons for visiting a phone shop extend far beyond just browsing for a new device: people told us they also went for technical support, to discuss a bill, to trial new technology or to collect a purchase they had made online.
Still, as I argued here, it’s hard not to see the role of physical retailing diminishing further in the long term as online channels become more influential and new technologies like e-SIM begin to take hold.
Data from BT backs this up. The operator said that the number of its retail stores fell 20% in the period from 2018 to 2022. And between 2017 and 2022, the number of customers per service agent leapt 33% as the total number of minutes served per customer fell 31%. This suggests that its care has become more efficient and automated as well as reflecting a drop in complaints.
A question I’m sometimes asked is whether operators should strive to be more like Amazon, which conducts nearly all its business online and sees little need for a dedicated customer support team. Maybe this should be the long-term goal for telecom operators as they become far leaner and more efficient.
But such a scenario feels like years away. Many people, notably older customers, still prefer to have a conversation with their provider, be that over the phone or face to face. And these more traditional channels also present an excellent opportunity to upsell new services, troubleshoot common problems and get a sense of how customers are feeling and whether their needs are changing.
For the near future, people will want to interact with operators through different methods. The most successful operators will be those that offer the widest and most flexible means of getting in touch.
For more details about this survey, please contact us.
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