Digital customer engagement is such a critical piece of the customer loyalty puzzle for marketers today. But, if customers aren’t happy with their wireless providers, brand loyalty goes out the window.
According to the 2016 Accenture Screenager Report, more than half of smartphone users surveyed indicated they are dissatisfied with their mobile experiences and are ready to switch mobile providers.
Here are some key takeaways from the report:
60% are dissatisfied with their connectivity and experience and would switch providers;
62% are concerned about the security of financial transactions;
47% are concerned about privacy and security; and
83% are unhappy with mobile advertising interfering with their experience.
What’s more, here’s another a challenge for wireless providers: The percentage of consumers that plans to increase spending on smartphones, tablets, laptops, and PCs in the next 12 months dropped by 60% since 2014, from 33% to only 13% in 2015.
Nearly three-quarters (71%) of smartphone users said they would pay more to a provider for better connectivity, and more than four in five (83%) said they would buy more products and services if reliability and the speed with which problems are resolved were improved.
“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,” said Marco Vernocchi, global digital lead of Accenture’s Communications, Media & Technology operating group. “The key is delivering new, high-quality, multi-device and multichannel 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.”
Despite the general theme of the report, it’s clear that consumers’ digital appetite remains strong. The report found that the most common activities for which smartphone owners use their devices – other than talking and texting – are watching video (cited by 81% of smartphone owners) and playing online games (69%).
The report includes the following strategic recommendations from Accenture Consulting to help providers retain customers by improving the mobile experience while developing new revenue streams:
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, omnichannel 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.
The 2016 Accenture Screenager Report was derived from data collected in Accenture’s 2016 Digital Consumer Survey, the company’s latest annual research report that investigates the attitudes, behaviors, and top trends of consumers adopting and using mobile smart devices and related services.