Smartphone penetration has reached 80% and usage continues to rise across the U.S. and 27 other countries around the world yet mobile subscriber satisfaction is sufficiently low enough to significantly impact churn, according to Accenture.
No less than 6 in 10 of smartphone owners are sufficiently dissatisfied with their current mobile services that they would switch. About the same percentage (62%) expressed concerns about the security of financial transactions done via mobile networks, and nearly half (47%) said they’re concerned about privacy and security, Accenture highlights in a news release.
In other recently research, Accenture found poor customer service could be costing businesses as much as $1.6 trillion. Over half of respondents to Accenture’s survey (52%) switched providers during the past year because they were dissatisfied with business providers’ customer service. Cable and satellite television providers, along with banks and retailers, were found to be ¨the worst offenders.¨
Mobile Subscriber Satisfaction Focus
Higher numbers (83%) of subscribers are unhappy about mobile advertising and its interference with their smartphone experiences, according to Accenture’s Screenager report, which is based on data from their recently released ¨2016 Digital Consumer Survey.¨
Marco Vernocchi, global digital lead of Accenture’s Communications, Media & Technology operating group pointed out the two-sided nature of the results. “Mixed data on consumer satisfaction coupled with flat growth in smart devices could be seen as a threat, but forward-looking providers will see an opportunity as consumers’ digital appetite has never been greater.”
“The key is delivering new, high-quality, multi-device and multi-channel experiences that meet the consumer’s expectations immediately. This requires smart, user-centric design that is guided by consumer insights gained through integrated analytics and supported with the connectivity, security and privacy consumers expect.”
Supporting this, Accenture says it’s clear that subscribers’ appetites for digital content remains strong despite a drop in consumer smart device purchase intention.
According to the report, watching video was the most popular smartphone activity (81%). Playing online games followed at 69%.
Offering advice as to steps mobile service providers can take to enhance subscriber satisfaction and capitalize on new revenue opportunities Accenture makes the following recommendations:
- Re-imagine the user experience from the user end and work back to the provider’s infrastructure and front-end systems.
- Create seamless, multi-device, multi-channel experiences from the time users first engage with their screens. Screenagers don’t have the patience to wait for a second or third version to get it right; loyalty is heavily determined by their experience, so executing flawlessly based on user insights is the key to building and maintaining that loyalty.
- Address the need for an integrated, omni-channel customer relationship approach and system to understand user behavior and intent. Meeting the demands of screenagers across the spectrum requires analytics that inform, coupled with agile front-end development capabilities to stay current and adapt quickly.
- Consider new revenue models. The device is a delivery vehicle for multiple services used daily – but users expect flexibility and value for their dollar.
- Institute an “open innovation” approach. No one provider can do it all. An “open innovation” approach that entails partnering with content and service providers to create a dynamic ecosystem to deliver desired services and apps is a key strategy to reinvigorate the user base.
- Take advantage of uniquely available data and insights. When upgrading their networks, providers should take full advantage of the massive quantity of data and insights that are uniquely available through networks and devices and target specific improvements based on user-centric insights.
- Use analytics to uncover customer insights. Users see connectivity as a commodity and pay for data and services. Using analytics to find customer insights will help providers clearly define value propositions, decide how to add differentiated value to their services, and ultimately enable them to develop new revenue streams.
- Develop guidelines for recommended apps and services. Privacy and security are very real concerns, but they are increasingly difficult to address given the complexity of the mobile ecosystem. Developing guidelines for recommended apps and services is one way to help customers protect themselves.
