Social Media Expectations
What do customers expect after expressing feedback to telecom providers via social media channels? Most (63 percent) expect nothing at all, but 24 percent of telecom customers expect an immediate response from the company.
What Affects Buying Behavior?
Most people would agree that the customer experience is critical, but just how important is it for the telecom industry?
- 53 percent of customers said good customer experiences play an important role in their decision making
Just over half of customers say quality customer experiences are important influencers of their telecom decisions, but in today’s digitally and socially connected world, it’s not the only powerful influencer. Word-of-mouth also has an equally persuasive power that telecom providers shouldn’t ignore.
- 50 percent of telecom customers will consider a company based on a positive referral
Customer Experience Excellence is More about Emotions
When it comes down to actually serving customers over the phone, telecom providers have work to do, and the areas of improvement have more to do with emotion than one might expect. Customers overwhelmingly (72 percent) still prefer to speak with a live person for help, but those experiences often cause negative feelings and reactions.
- 50 percent of telecom customers feel lost in a corn maze when they encounter automated service systems
- 35 percent of customers in the telecom industry want to speak to a friendly, empathetic associate, yet don’t mind if they’re inept
- Customers experience feelings of hate when they hear phrases like “your call is important to us” and “that’s our policy”
So knowing all of this, what should telecom executives remember as they journey down the path to customer centricity?
- Most customers (63 percent) expect nothing from telecom companies after expressing social media feedback. While this means business leaders may have some time before they are under pressure to implement social customer care, this area is ripe for exceeding expectations and wowing customers
- 53 percent of customers let the customer experience play an important role in decision making, so make telecom service experience improvements a high priority—after all it could greatly increase sales
- A nearly equal amount of customers (50 percent) are influenced by their social networks, so make it easy for customers to share their excitement and positive telecom service experiences with their friends and family
- As many as 35 percent of customers want to speak with a friendly, empathic service associate, so the emotional experience is also a valuable part of the service telecom companies provide. Remember to evaluate your customer experience with your emotional diary close at hand.
