Now that the dust has settled, itâs clear that many pandemic-initiated changes to telecom customer service are here to stay. 58% of customers say that their customer service expectations increased during the pandemic while COVID continues to shape customer service trends in 2023.
In telecom, one of the worldâs most competitive industries, providing fantastic customer service is crucial to longevity and customer retention. In order to survive over the long haul, telecom companies must make excellent customer service one of their top priorities.
This article outlines five strategies you can use to positively impact telecom customer service for your company.
5 Ways to Impact Telecom Customer Service
With a 21% churn rate, telecom companies lose customers faster than almost any other industry. While retaining market share can seem like an uphill battle, providing remarkable telecom customer service is a relatively easy way for telecom companies to stand apart from their competition.
Read on to learn five ways to impact telecom customer service and retain customers. You might also find helpful information in this article outlining the 15 customer service KPIs you need to be tracking â and this one to learn 10 tips to help reduce churn and improve customer retention.
1. Provide Omnichannel Support
Great customer service must be convenient, which is why omnichannel support has become the gold standard. Omnichannel support hit primetime in 2020 with the acceleration of digital channels as people navigated the new normal of lockdowns. While the tide of the pandemic may have shifted for the better, Forrester surmises that the resulting customer service expectations are here to stay.
Post-pandemic, 78% of customers expect to be able to engage with companies on their preferred channel at any time â and they expect to switch between channels without having to explain the same issue multiple times to different reps. To meet this demand, savvy telecom customer service departments have turned to omnichannel support, which tracks all customer interactions in one place, regardless of how many channels the customer uses â or how many stakeholders are involved. This has given rise to systems like Plecto that can sync data between a companyâs CRM, helpdesk software, and other systems into a âcollaboration hubâ for a 360-degree view of each customerâs interactions with the company.
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2. Provide comprehensive self-service tools
Demand for self-service support tools is increasing with 40% of customers preferring to use self-service tools to find answers to simple questions. Knowledge bases that include troubleshooting help along with video tutorials and FAQs are particularly popular among todayâs consumers. In addition, more and more telecom companies are offering the ability to manage and configure subscriptions online, which many customers find preferable to waiting in a queue and having to interact with a live person. In addition to their ability to positively impact telecom customer service scores, self-service tools can help boost profits by reducing the cost of handling inbound inquiries.
3. Use AI to predict telecom customer service demands and improve response times.
AI-enabled predictive behavior analysis can help telecom companies predict customer inquiry volume and types. This information can help companies to schedule the right customer service resources, thereby reducing wait times while having the right expertise on hand to provide knowledgeable and efficient troubleshooting and technical support. This relatively simple change can positively impact telecom customer service efficiency while boosting profits and improving customer satisfaction at the lowest possible cost. According to Harvard Business Review, telecom customers who receive a response to their issue within 5 minutes are willing to pay $17 more per month for their wireless subscription â amounting to over $200 in annual revenue per subscriber!
As customers become accustomed to receiving support via chatbots, some telecom companies are exploiting this familiarity to further increase efficiency and slash support costs by using AI chatbots to address common customer support issues. Since introducing chatbots, telecom company TIM Brasil has seen a 75% increase in the number of customer support inquiries resolved without involving a live customer service rep.
4. Use AI to personalize telecom customer service and experiences.
According to McKinsey, 71% of customers expect personalization â and companies that excel at personalization stand to generate 40% more revenue from personalized marketing vs. those that donât. This is fantastic news for telecom companies, which collect huge amounts of customer data!
The most successful telecom companies have begun mining their data better understand customer expectations, sharpen their segmentation, and improve personalization. Used to its fullest potential, telecom companies can use the data they collect to personalize experiences based on the customerâs previous interactions across all channels (e.g., surveys, online activity, reviews, omnichannel customer service requests).
Personalized customer service runs the gamut from offering products and services tailored to each customerâs needs to greeting them by name to tailoring promotions and special offers to their personal preferences. Common channels for personalized customer service and experience include customer-initiated support channels, push notifications, and emails.
5. Give telecom customer service reps the power to make decisions.
78% of customers say theyâve had to contact a company multiple times in order to resolve an issue. This is largely due to internal processes that hamper customer service repsâ ability to resolve issues without escalation all while increasing inbound support costs. By empowering reps with adequate access to customer information and the ability to make decisions, companies can not only improve customer satisfaction but also cut costs while improving job satisfaction and lowering attrition among high-turnover customer support staff.
Customer service telecom needs Plecto!
Telecom customers demand convenient and personalized customer service that exceeds their expectations. Plectoâs customer service dashboards can improve efficiency and help customer service teams provide best-in-class service by visualizing key customer service metrics in one place.
Plecto integrates with the most popular CRM and support systems to help telecom companies visualize and track key metrics related to important customer service activities, including ticketing systems, phone calls, satisfaction ratings, and more!
Plecto also includes performance-driving features like leaderboards, contests, and instant notifications to keep customer service reps motivated and engaged.
Sign up for a free 14-day trial and stay ahead of your competition by building a top-performing team that can really impact telecom customer service for your company!
