Regional carrier sees additional CRM opportunities with move toward LTE
Customer relationship management has always been a serious subject for mobile operators as in most markets around the world the wireless communications space often has more competitors than other communication segments. This has forced mobile operators to remain especially attentive to the needs of their customers.
This focus has increased in recent years as the competitive landscape has changed due to growing saturation in many markets, which has eliminated the “low-hanging fruit” excuse of just picking up new subscribers to replace those that might flee. Also, network technologies have evolved with the move toward all-IP-based LTE rollouts that have allowed mobile operators to more finely parse out information on the needs and habits of their customers.
More recently, mobile operators have begun to look at deploying a broader range of software solutions to help deal with CRM platforms as well as beginning to look at the benefits network virtualization technologies can provide. In addition, social media has become a new facet of CRM operations, with mobile operators now looking for more personalized interactions with their customers.
RCR Wireless News spoke with Jean Lin, director of customer life cycle management at U.S. Cellular, as part of a larger report looking at the CRM space to garner insight from the regional mobile operator on how it is reacting to the changing CRM market.
RCR Wireless News: How does customer retention management factor into U.S. Cellular’s business model?
Jean Lin: At U.S. Cellular, our goal is to provide the world’s best customer experience, and that doesn’t stop once a customer buys a device from us. Customer retention management is a crucial part of that experience. We focus on maintaining a relationship with our customers by ensuring we are providing timely, relevant and valuable communications throughout their life cycle with us.
RCRWN: What impact has the move toward LTE/IP network technology had in how U.S. Cellular approaches CRM?
JL: Digital marketing will become critical in providing customers with relevant, timely, and valuable communications to foster the relationship with our customers. As data usage and smartphone penetration continues to grow, the digital marketing experience will become more of a mobile experience. We will continue to leverage the mobile experience to enhance the relationship with our customers.
RCRWN: With mobile competition seeming to be as heated as ever, what importance does CRM play in how U.S. Cellular approaches its customer interactions?
JL: CRM is critical in ensuring that we continue to maintain a relationship with our customers by leveraging one-to-one communications. At U.S. Cellular, we want to leverage every customer interaction to deepen the relationship with our customers. Retaining current customers is vital to the health and growth of our company, and it is something that we are very focused on.
RCRWN: What impact has consumer changes in their mobile communication usage had on how U.S. Cellular approaches CRM? Has increased data/smartphone usage made it easier to model CRM policies?
JL: As data and smartphone usage increases, it provides us with more touch points and more opportunities to have a relationship with our customers.
RCRWN: How have U.S. Cellular’s vendor partners been able to support the carrier’s CRM needs?
JL: Our vendors are able to help us measure our performance against industry benchmarks and identify best practices to optimize our CRM efforts.
RCRWN: What changes do you see coming in how U.S. Cellular approaches CRM? What changes do you see in the CRM market in general?
JL: We anticipate continued expansion of CRM communications channels as more customers embrace data usage and smartphones. Digital marketing will be critical in providing customers with relevant, timely and valuable communications to foster the relationship with our customers.
For more on the CRM topic please check out our feature report “Customer Relationship Management: Predicting Subscriber Health” and our accompanying webinar on the topic.
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