1. consumerlab
OPTIMAL
CONSUMER
EXPERIENCE
An analysis of how operators can maintain
and improve customer satisfaction
An Ericsson Consumer Insight Summary Report
February 2012

2. contents
Enhancing the consumer experience 3 Ericsson ConsumerLab has conducted research that
identifies what really drives the consumer experience
when using communication services. This research also
Focus on the US market 4 shows what needs to be implemented to further enhance
this experience.
Satisfaction vs importance 5
In order to fully understand what makes the consumer
experience dynamic, Ericsson ConsumerLab has
Combining satisfaction and importance 6 released a set of unique results that measure consumer
satisfaction and importance. These identify the
improvements that operators can undertake in order
Optimizing the consumer experience 7 to optimize the experience.
Meeting tomorrow’s needs 9 The research was conducted in three countries: the US,
Russia and Brazil. This report focuses on the US study
and briefly presents findings from the Russian
Highlights from Brazil and Russia 10 and Brazilian markets.
ericsson consumerlab
– the voice of the consumer
Ericsson ConsumerLab is a knowledge-based To be close to the market and consumers, Ericsson
organization that provides consumer insight ConsumerLab has team members working in most
to influence strategy, marketing and product of Ericsson’s market regions. Being part of the
management within the Ericsson Group. Ericsson Ericsson Group gives the organization a thorough
ConsumerLab has more than 15 years’ experience understanding of the ICT market and business
in consumer values and behavior research, models. This broad knowledge is unique and is
including the way people act and think about ICT the basis for Ericsson’s credibility and integrity.
products and services. This insight helps operators Ericsson ConsumerLab is able to share the big
to develop attractive revenue-generating services. picture, with an understanding of where the
individual fits in and what this means for future
Knowledge is gathered through a global research trends and services.
program which interviews 100,000 individuals in
more than 40 countries and 10 megacities annually www.ericsson.com/consumerlab
– statistically representing the views of 1.1 billion
people. This is based on both quantitative and
qualitative research, and hundreds of hours of in-
depth interviews and focus groups with consumers
from different cultures. This research includes
general market and consumer trends, and in-depth
insights into specific areas.
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3. Enhancing the
consumer experience
Today, operators compete in a very different market to Ericsson ConsumerLab has conducted a study that
the one they faced only a few years ago. uncovers consumer insights that operators can
capitalize on in order to shape the future consumer
Consumers can choose from an abundance of experience. The results allow us to understand what
brands, products and services when communicating, represents an ideal consumer experience today and
sharing, and socializing. Because of this, the market tomorrow for selected target groups of consumers.
is increasingly driven by consumer needs and desires.
People expect to be able to manage their service how
they want, when they want and from any device.
In such a competitive market, operators need to adapt
by rethinking the way they interact with consumers.
This study looks beyond the key parameters of price
and quality to get a thorough picture of what really
matters for the consumer experience.
The Key findings
> True picture > service and support most important
Measuring satisfaction levels is not enough, Service and support has been measured as
by combining this with what is important to having the highest impact on the relationship
users, we get a true picture of the optimal with an operator today. The key driver being a
consumer experience. “service representative that is knowledgeable
about the individual”.
> over half are satisfied
62% of subscribers are satisfied with their > unmet needs
operator. This level varies when asking the There are still unmet needs that could
consumer how satisfied they are in a particular further improve the consumer experience.
situation/interaction with their operator. These include transparency, efficiency
and proactivity.
> Different priorities
The study clearly shows that different consumer
segments have different priorities when it comes
to what is most important in their relationship
with their operator.
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4. focus on
the us MARKET
Ericsson ConsumerLab met and spoke with 72 This latter disappointment is a reflection of consumer
consumers from different demographic groups in expectations which have been set by other industries,
Chicago and San Francisco to acquire an in-depth such as the travel and credit card market. These
understanding of their experience when interacting sectors regularly reward loyalty with better service or
with service providers. monetary incentives.
This has enabled us to identify the main expectations Based on feedback from the consumers, a list of 58
and frustrations that consumers have with operators separate questions were identified that could be used
that are not meeting their needs. in an online survey. We categorized the results into
five different touch point areas: service and support,
There were recurring unmet needs voiced by initial purchase process, billing and payment, account
consumers during the interviews. These included lack management and loyalty building.
of transparency in billing, a generalized customer care
approach and a lack of loyalty building. Satisfaction was measured on three levels:
1. Overall satisfaction with the operator
For example, consumers have complained that while
their service bills had increased over time, better 2. For each touch point area
rates were made available to new customers through
3. For each of the 58 questions
promotions. Loyal customers are therefore penalized by
being forced to pay full rates.
We observed that satisfaction levels decrease when
asking the consumer how satisfied they are with a
Figure 1: Overall satisfaction levels for each of the touch point areas specific situation/interaction with the operator.
The more specific the questions, the more varied the
100% answers were regarding satisfaction. Overall, it was
found that 62% of respondents were satisfied with
80%
their operator.
More than half of the consumers studied are
60% satisfied with their operator; however satisfaction
levels decline slightly as the consumer engagement
process continues.
40%
Rewarding consumer loyalty through personalized
20% service and attention is the touch point area that
consumers indicate needs the most enhancements.
0%
Initial Billing Account Service Loyalty
We also observed that a large portion of consumers are
purchase process & payment management & support building indifferent, indicating that communication services are
a low priority today. However, there is an opportunity to
Completely satisfied Indifferent Completely dissatisfied
increase satisfaction for these consumers in the future.
CuStomER ExpECtAtIonS Of those that had contacted their operator in
the last 6 months, 61 percent had wanted to
In general, US consumers who have contacted
upgrade or downgrade their services, 58 percent
their operator are less satisfied than those who
were calling to resolve a technical issue and 51
have not. Those same consumers are also
percent were interested in information about new
shown to have generally higher expectations
services or products. Some consumers may have
of their operator.
contacted their operator more than once.
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5. satisfaction vs
importance
Simply measuring how satisfied consumers say The results show that service and support is the most
they are with their experience does not give us a important touch point area in the overall consumer
full understanding of which expectations are most experience today. Service and support is mostly
important to optimizing the experience. Therefore we driven by customer service representatives being
have added another dimension that measures the knowledgeable about the individual. Initial purchase
importance of each question. process is a close second.
Figure 2: Importance levels of the five touch points
TOday
Initial purchase Billing Account Service Loyalty
process & payment management & support building
29% 13% 2% 49% 8%
Different consumers – different needs Figure 3: Defining the touch point areas
Different consumer profiles have different needs.
All touch point areas are important for the overall
consumer experience but the touch point areas that
are the most important differ between segments.
Initial purchase process
The initial purchase process is driven by an individual’s
ability to customize the service to meet their own
specific needs. This is the most important area
for more senior and less tech-savvy individuals.
Billing & payment
Billing and payment is of great importance to
career-minded people. These groups of people are
comfortable using technology as part of their everyday questionS
lives, and expect complete transparency regarding the Account management
financial aspect of their account. Identified in qualitative
research to measure the
Loyalty building and account management are consumer experience
especially important for young professionals, as Service & support
most are in the process of establishing their lives
and have started to pay for services themselves
relatively recently.
Loyalty building
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6. combining satisfaction
and importance
Figure 4: Combining satisfaction and importance
More satisfied
latent
strengths MAINTAIN
de-prioritize Prioritize
Less satisfied
Less important More important
IDEntIFyIng SuCCESS
By studying both
the satisfaction and
importance of each
expectation, we are
able to identify which
areas operators have
successfully implemented
today, and what needs
to be prioritized to raise
the experience.
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7. OPtimizing the
consumer experience
there’s always
something you don’t
really want, like with
my operator I did not
want my landline.”
parent
San Francisco
Operators already have many satisfaction drivers in Satisfaction drivers that have been
place but there is still great potential for improvement successfully implemented
across all touch point areas.
Customization
give consumers the opportunity to personalize
Figure 5: shows the main expectations that have been services to meet their specific individual needs
successfully met by operators.
provide detailed information about each consumer to
Figure 5: Successfully met expectations the customer support reps
Speed
Customer service representatives can make immediate
decisions to solve problems more quickly
Simplicity
Continue with offerings that are easier to understand
MAINTAIN 24/7 customer support Prioritize
maintain 24/7 availability of customer support for
Implemented drivers of satisfaction that need to be trouble shooting
Drivers of satisfaction for the future
continuously maintained and enhanced consumer experience
HIGH SATISFACTION, HIGH IMPORTANCE LOW SATISFACTION, HIGH IMPORTANCE
Customization Speed Transparency Efficiency
Simplicity 24/7 customer support Proactivity Consumers in control
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8. OPtimizing the
consumer experience
Figure 6: Drivers to be prioritized
It is not enough to just maintain the areas that
work today. Service providers need to implement
prioritized drivers to provide consumers with an
optimized experience.
Figure 6 shows the main drivers of satisfaction that
Prioritize need to be implemented in order to achieve the
optimal consumer experience in the future.
Drivers of satisfaction for the future
consumer experience Creating the optimal consumer experience
LOW SATISFACTION, HIGH IMPORTANCE
Transparency
Avoid hidden clauses in contracts and other
communications to the consumer
Transparency Efficiency Efficiency
Guarantee that a problem will be resolved within a
specific time period, with penalties if not achieved
Proactivity
Proactivity Consumers in control Recommend cost savings based on past consumption
Consumers in control
Offer consumers the tools they need to keep track of
usage and spending in real time
I was disappointed
when the trial
price period
changed without
any notice and
the rates went
up. They’re poor
at explaining
prices, services,
and options.”
young professional
Chicago
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9. Meeting tomorrow’s
needs
Today, loyalty building, account management, and These touch point areas currently contribute more to
billing and payment contribute less to the overall the consumer experience of young professionals and
consumer experience than initial purchase process and other tech-savvy consumer segments. We know from
service and support. previous research that the usage patterns of such
groups are an indication of the likely direction of future
In addition to maintaining the satisfaction drivers consumption patterns.
that create a good consumer experience today, there
is an opportunity in the future for operators to capitalize
on consumer expectations that have not yet been
fully met.
When analyzed in detail, these consumer expectations
call for proactivity and transparency to provide
consumers with a greater feeling of control over their
account. They are classified within the loyalty, account
management, billing and payment touch point areas.
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10. highlights from
brazil and russia
Figure 7: Importance levels of the five touch points in Brazil
Initial purchase Billing Account Service Loyalty
process & payment management & support building
1% 19% 32% 47% 1%
Brazil
Service and support is most important for the There is also high satisfaction with polite and friendly
consumer experience in Brazil followed by account customer service representatives. However, a quicker
management and billing. response time is required to create the ideal consumer
experience. A mandate to make immediate decisions
The Brazilian consumer experience is characterized by would help customer service representatives to
high levels of control over usage and spending. This is achieve this.
mainly due to the fact that the majority of users are on
prepaid payment plans.
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11. Figure 8: Importance levels of the five touch points in Russia
Initial purchase Billing Account Service Loyalty
process & payment management & support building
1% 44% 4% 50% 1%
Russia
The service and support touch point area is most
important for the consumer experience in Russia,
followed by billing and payment.
Russian consumers have high levels of control over
their spending, due to the majority being on prepaid
payment plans.
In the Russian market there is a marked frustration
regarding the lack of warning about service outages.
Operators can improve on this by providing advanced
warning before service interruptions, and offer
compensation for lost usage.
Regional survey variations
Internet penetration is a lot higher in the US than brazil
in Brazil and Russia. The Russian and Brazilian
> Sample is representative of approximately
respondents therefore represent the more tech-
42 million people
savvy proportion of their country’s population.
> 900 interviews
us
> Daily to weekly internet and mobile
> Sample is representative of approximately
phone users
100 million people
> 1,100 interviews russia
> Online population who own and use a mobile > Sample is representative of approximately
phone and subscribe to an internet service 25 million people
> 900 interviews
> Daily internet users, highly educated,
mobile phone users
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12. Ericsson is the world’s leading provider of communications
technology and services. We are enabling the Networked Society
with efficient real-time solutions that allow us all to study, work and
live our lives more freely, in sustainable societies around the world.
Our offering comprises services, software and infrastructure within
Information and Communications Technology for telecom operators
and other industries. Today more than 40 percent of the world’s
mobile traffic goes through Ericsson networks and we support
customers’ networks servicing more than 2 billion subscribers.
We operate in 180 countries and employ more than 100,000 people.
Founded in 1876, Ericsson is headquartered in Stockholm, Sweden.
In 2011 the company had revenues of SEK 226,9 billion (USD
35,0 billion). Ericsson is listed on NASDAQ OMX, Stockholm and
NASDAQ, New York stock exchanges.
The content of this document is subject to revision without
notice due to continued progress in methodology, design and
manufacturing. Ericsson shall have no liability for any error or
damage of any kind resulting from the use of this document.
Ericsson
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www.ericsson.com © Ericsson AB 2012