Web Self- Service in Telecommunications.

1. IR Knowle DGe Se RIeS June 2009
Web Self-Service in
Telecommunications:
Growth, Differentiation,
and a Sustainable Solution
to High Cost Customer Support
“Frustrated web site visitors are more likely to opt for an
alternative site (45% would do so) than they are to bother
contacting customer service, or end up flooding customer
service with questions, driving up support costs.”
Jupiter Research, 2008
“Even in economic downturns, firms need to keep
customer experience momentum and chart a course
toward Experience-Based Differentiation.”
Forrester Research, 2008
Now is clearly not the time to abandon a focus on
delivering a superior customer experience online.

2. Web Self-Service in Telecommunications: 1
Growth, Differentiation, and a Sustainable Solution
to High Cost Customer Support
why Telecom executives should be Interested
To say that the telecommunications industry Among the report’s recommendations for telecom
is undergoing rapid change would be an firms, Forrester Research warns that
understatement. “even in economic downturns, firms need to keep
customer experience momentum and chart a
More market entrants have arrived in the highly course toward experience-Based Differentiation.”
competitive telecommunications space over the last Now is clearly not the time to abandon a focus on
decade than in all the years preceding; customers delivering a superior customer experience.
are increasingly turning to the online channel
for research, transactions and resolution to their In another recent report measuring online
problems; and the vendor offerings themselves customer service specifically, the Customer Respect
have expanded and deepened in complexity, Group examined 10 leading providers of TV,
with greater choice and interoperability than ever Internet and telephone triple-play services. The
before. group gave each provider a score out of 10 in each
of the two categories for Online Help and Account
And so, in the face of this rapid change and under Management.
the constant threat of customer churn, how are
telecom companies managing the customer The results for these 10 leading companies were
experience in this new era? For most, the answer “all over the map”, with many providers scoring well
would be “Not very well”. below an acceptable average for any industry, let
alone one faced with an ever-changing competitive
With high service expectations and a plethora of landscape and the challenges associated with
choices to meet their needs, modern consumers significant customer churn.
demand rapid, accurate and in many cases instant
service and support. The majority of telecom
providers, according to industry benchmarks, offer
poor-to-average customer experience online, and
face a major upswing in support costs as customer Many Telecoms offer a poor
support systems struggle to keep pace with
increasingly complex product offerings and customer experience online,
a demanding customer base.
and face a major upswing in
One market analyst report that (rather
unintentionally) highlights this issue is Forrester
Research’s recent edition of its Customer Experience
support costs as a result.
Index. This report ranks the customer experience
capabilities of many leading companies across a
variety of industries. Out of 114 companies indexed
in the report, the bottom ten organizations, or the
worst performers in customer experience, were
dominated by the telecommunications industry.
The dubious honor of being in the bottom 10 was
shared by three TV service providers, two ISPs and
one wireless service carrier.

3. Web Self-Service in Telecommunications: 2
Growth, Differentiation, and a Sustainable Solution
to High Cost Customer Support
The Silver lining:
Customer experience Is the Path to Growth
Is there a silver lining for the telecom executive? By contrast, in the telecom industry, where a
Yes. In other industries (such as hospitality, for majority of companies offer mediocre customer
example) customer experience scores typically experiences, the opportunity to achieve differentiation
trend much higher(1) meaning more firms through enhanced customer experience is very real.
congregate at or near the top of the customer
experience playing field. With many firms already With the customer experience bar currently low,
enjoying high customer satisfaction ratings, change and advancement can have major results.
enhancements to the customer experience comes
down to the pursuit of incremental gains. Among a The telecom company that commits now to
field of leaders, it’s harder to be seen as the leader. breaking away from the pack has a much greater
Differentiation is harder to achieve. opportunity to distinguish itself as a truly
customer-focused organization and enjoy the
customer loyalty that goes along with this (not to
mention revenue growth potential).
with the customer Knowing this, it stands to reason why most telecom
executives recognize that improving the customer
experience bar so low, experience across all channels (including online)
is the path to stimulate growth. But how can this
change and advancement be accomplished within a reasonable amount of
time, resources and budget; and most importantly,
can have big results. where do you start?
Blueprint for Improving the Telecom Customer experience:
First, Understand the Customer
Perhaps more than any other industry, the Online, it doesn’t matter that these business-to-
“web-savvy” segment of the telecom customer consumer experiences do not take place within the
base is growing, and dominating all other same industry, what matters is that they take place
customer segments. As such, for many telecom within the same channel (that is, they all take place
providers, customer satisfaction (and loyalty) on the web).
begins, and is heavily shaped by, the experience
they deliver online. “If I can apply for a mortgage and transfer funds
online, then why not investigate, bundle, and
What’s more, that satisfaction is being compared inquire about telecom and entertainment services
to other experiences online, regardless of industry. too?” a customer might wonder.
As far as today’s online customers are concerned,
it’s fair game to compare likes, dislikes, features “what’s more, if I can process an entire credit card
and functionality experienced on any combination application online, with zero frustration and no
of corporate web sites, whether these web sites are need to resort to a customer service hotline, why
that of a bank, a resort, a manufacturer of sports can I not find the information I need to select the
apparel, a university, or a telecom provider. home entertainment bundle that’s right for me?”

4. Web Self-Service in Telecommunications: 3
Growth, Differentiation, and a Sustainable Solution
to High Cost Customer Support
Blueprint for Improving the Telecom Customer Experience: First, Understand the Customer (cont’d)
A telecom vendor knows there are complexities to
their service offering and delivery. The web-savvy
customer, however, who lives by the credo that
“everything is, or should be, easier online” A major benefit of
does not see things from the same point of view.
improving the online
Companies who understand and, more importantly,
act to enhance the online experience have an customer experience
opportunity to not only positively impact customer
loyalty but also to significantly reduce customer is improvement to the
support costs.
How? With an optimal and effective web self-service.
bottom line.
The Appeal of web Self-Service:
Growth, Differentiation and Cost Reduction
Web sites offer a convenient and efficient Clearly, what telecom companies must do is to give
channel for customers to explore, understand customers the ability to use their web sites to more
and customize new telecom services. In fact, 83% efficiently resolve customer issues, questions and
of consumers indicate their primary source for concerns on their own.
non-technical customer service information is
company web sites.(2) The key word here is resolve.
How frustrating for the customer who tries to find Certainly, the essence of customer satisfaction is
what they need and can’t. Also, how costly for the the resolution of the issue that started the customer
company that ends up paying the ultimate price on the path to inquiry in the first place. When this
through customer defections. Or for the company resolution can be made online, in a self-service
who incurs staggering support costs by attempting manner, the customer experience is enhanced and
to resolve simple informational queries that its cost of service is significantly reduced. No emails
web site (the preferred service channel of many sent. No calls to customer support placed.
of its customers in the first place), could not.
Recently, a number of innovative telecom providers
“Frustrated web site visitors are more likely to have achieved this by adding Instant Answer Agent
opt for an alternative site (45% would do so) than technology to their web site. An Instant Answer
they are to bother contacting customer service, or Agent allows web site visitors to find answers to their
end up flooding customer service with questions, support concerns quickly, by keying in questions
driving up support costs.” – Jupiter Research in natural language and getting the “One Right
Answer”, regardless of the hundreds of ways a single
Indeed, up to 60% of email volume is caused by question may be asked.
customers who cannot get answers online.(3)

5. Web Self-Service in Telecommunications: 4
Growth, Differentiation, and a Sustainable Solution
to High Cost Customer Support
The Appeal of Web Self-Service: Growth, Differentiation and Cost Reduction (cont’d)
Contrast this positive customer experience with
the dreadful ones prevalent among web sites
that do not offer effective, next generation web
self-service. One painful example is the use of a
what telecom providers
keyword “search” tool where customers are being
served with dozens of pages of results, each with must do is to give customers
varying degrees of relevancy. Another example is
customers visiting a FAQ page that offers scores the ability to use their web
of questions and answers in short blurbs with
additional links to “additional information” – with sites to more efficiently
this type of self-service, what customer wouldn’t
need to pick up the phone? resolve customer issues
Four Steps to next Generation web Self-Service
Truly effective Web Self-Service platforms deliver 3. Customize the experience.
measureable cost reduction, enhance the customer Replaced your company-centric approach to online
experience and provide true insights into the support content delivery and replace it with a
questions and concerns of a disparate and fickle customer-centric approach.
telecom customer base. Focus on the following four
key steps as you work towards delivering optimal There is no need to perform a series of clicks in
information and service across key touch points for the quest to finding the answer. Customers should
your telecom organization: not have to click through sections of the web site
to identify the context, category, or product type
1. Deliver consistent information. as it relates to their question. Instead, they should
One of the major frustrations customers experience be able to simply key in their question, in their
on some web sites is that answers can be found own words. What’s more, when the results of their
in multiple locations. Sometimes answers can be query are served, there should be no further effort
conflicting with stale information remaining live required on the part of the customer to then “find”
on some web pages while not on other web pages. the answer amidst pages of search results.
What’s more, answers often vary in depth and
completeness depending on where they are found. 4. Create a Seamless
For example, information on a specific product Multi-Channel Experience.
page could be very detailed compared to the quick When a customer is in need of direct human
summary information found on an FAQ page. interaction, make sure your site can facilitate a
seamless multi-channel experience by recognizing
2. Make the path to resolution easy. prompts that indicate the customer should
Clearly mark the “path” to the answer for be transferred to an assisted support channel
customers. Do not bury key information such as email, online chat, or a call center. For
deep within an FAQ page. Ensure that this example, certain questions such as “How do I
is prominently located so that visitors can cancel your service?”, “I need to speak to a live
immediately begin to ask questions using natural representative”, or “How do I purchase your
language, just as they would on the phone or in deluxe package?” can trigger an automatic
person, or at one of your retail locations. escalation to a live attendant.

6. Web Self-Service in Telecommunications: 5
Growth, Differentiation, and a Sustainable Solution
to High Cost Customer Support
A Final Thought:
The Time for Differentiation Is now
With many telecom competitors scoring on the
low end of the customer satisfaction spectrum,
any telecom that can make great strides to their
online customer experience now will put significant
distance between itself and those competitors that
delivering average, or worse, customer experiences
online. Differentiation in this area is attainable
now. Telecoms who put forth a concerted effort
to accommodate the increasingly savvy online
customer segment will not have far to go to carve
a unique path.
Telecom providers have
the potential to drastically
reduce costs while increasing
customer satisfaction.
Here’s how the right tool for
web Self-Service can help you. For More Information
For more information on cost effective ways to enhance
the customer experience at your organization contact:
Proof Points from one telecom Mike Hennessy
IntelliResponse
provider include: mike.hennessy@intelliresponse.com
• Call center volume immediately
About IntelliResponse
IntelliResponse enhances the multi-channel customer experience for
dropped 11%; monthly volume businesses and educational institutions via its Instant Answer Agent, a
question-and-answer software platform that allows web site visitors to ask
reductions now as high as 25% questions in natural language, and get the “One Right Answer”, regardless
of the hundreds of ways the question may be asked.
• 100% increase in CSAT This industry leading On Demand software platform is used by both
consumers and contact center agents. With more than 200 live, customer-
• ROI in excess of 300% on call facing implementations answering 50 million+ questions with one
right answer, IntelliResponse is the gold standard in first line customer
deflections alone experience management.
Some of the world’s most recognized corporate brands and higher
education institutions trust their customer experience management needs
to IntelliResponse - including ING Direct, TD Canada Trust, Scotiabank,
Penn State University, The Ohio State University, University of British
Columbia and Harvard University Extension School.
(1)
The Customer Experience Index, 2008, Forrester Research
(2)
Influencing the Online Experience - Service Excellence Research Group
– 2008
(3)
Forrester Research, September 2008
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