Industry executives and experts share their predictions for 2018. Read them in this 10th annual VMblog.com series exclusive.
Contributed by Andy Fruhling, Head of Digital Experience, Applications & Analytics, Nokia
Moving to 'Digital Time' – How service providers will become digital powerhouses
2018 will be the year in which
communications service providers (CSPs) re-double their efforts to implement technologies
and processes they need to better serve customers living digitally connected
lifestyles.
This will be nothing short of a reinvention
in the way CSPs traditionally service and interact with their customers, and the
year ahead will be a critical turning point. If not, CSPs will be unable to
catch up or keep up with the digital champions who are rapidly capturing the
growth potential of the digital mobile lifestyle. From webscale giants like
Google, Amazon and Facebook that are becoming the dominant content and
technology platforms, to the array of start-ups and over-the-top (OTT)
providers delivering content and services on top of the network, digital
players are becoming digital winners.
Unless CSPs adopt new ways to connect
people, experiences and data and then take instant action, they will falter and
risk becoming bit-pipe businesses with limited opportunities for growth, or at
worst, become irrelevant to most consumers.
Here are four key ways CSPs are reinventing
to move ahead of the pack:
1. Operating in ‘Digital Time' - CSPs will
optimize their technologies and processes to engage with customers in ‘Digital
Time': delivering the right service through the right channel when the moment
of opportunity arises. Operating in Digital Time means being able to act just before the moment, in the
moment or immediately after the moment that a customer is at a point of
inflection in their interaction with the service provider. Customers are won or
lost in these moments. Digital Time also means connecting with customers
naturally within the flow of their mobile experience to bring them added value,
without disrupting their activity. By operating in Digital Time, CSPs will be
able to enrich and monetize customer experiences with new, more relevant offers
and services.
2. Harnessing the power of ‘connected
intelligence' - Great digital experiences start with the
customer and all of the things and people he or she connects with. In order to
become true digital powerhouses that engage with their customers in Digital Time,
CSPs need to thoroughly understand them - what they want, what they need and
what they find valuable. To do this, CSPs need to harness the power of
‘connected intelligence' - connecting insights, people,
processes and technologies. In doing so, CSPs will have a much better sense of
customers' needs at any point in time, arming themselves with the information
to deliver and monetize new services and delight their customers.
3. Delivering ultra-personalized customer
experiences - With
this wealth of intelligence, CSPs will build an accurate and detailed picture
of every customer's behavior, interests and experience. They will use this invaluable
insight to engage customers with highly-personalized and contextualized
offerings that match their personal profile. This is the key to exceeding
customer expectations and increasing customer loyalty, and allows CSPs to
differentiate themselves in this highly competitive industry.
4. Utilizing automation - Delivering a superior customer
experience in Digital Time will require automation, and CSPs will increasingly
implement automation throughout their operations. Automation enables CSPs to
make sense of the massive amounts of network and customer data at their
disposal, turning insights into action. Automation will also help streamline
operations and transform traditionally manual and reactive processes to dynamic
and predictive ones, enabling service providers to anticipate and respond to customer
needs in the moments that matter.
To see how all this works together, imagine
a customer using their smartphone to watch a streamed
video of a live concert. It's a sunny day, they are outside the Wi-Fi coverage
area, and, unfortunately, their data allowance is about to run out. Armed with
information about the customer's device and network status, the CSP can anticipate
this moment and proactively send a message to the customer, asking if they would
like to top up their data allowance to continue watching without interruption.
Or, imagine a sports fan entering a stadium to watch a big game. At the moment of
entry, the customer receives an offer from the CSP to download the free stadium
application, which offers deals on refreshments and other goods at the stadium,
and capabilities that allow him to watch instant replays during the game or
view stats on his favorite players.
The ability to offer highly personalized
and contextualized offers in Digital Time means customers are more likely to
deliver new revenue to the CSP and its partners, and remain loyal customers for
the long-term.
Moving to Digital Time is something that
the successful CSPs of the future will do, and 2018 is the year when they will
make significant strides in this effort.
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About the Author
Andrew (Andy) Fruhling has more than 25 years of experience in telecommunications and information technology. As VP Software Development - Digital Experience Portfolio, he leads the Product Engineering team (including strategy, product management, and R&D) for the market leading Motive Customer Care and Revenue Management portfolios. Under his leadership, Nokia has been recognized as the #1 for Device Management and #1 for Service Management by Analysys Mason. Prior to Nokia, he led Network Test Business Unit for Ixia and the OSS Organization for Oracle. Andy holds a Masters degree from the University of Texas and 2 undergraduate degrees from Texas A&M University.