"My CEO just told me that we need to blow away our year end customer number objectives but he can't give me any additional marketing dollars to spend."
---November 3, 2001, by the VP of Marketing at a mid-sized Broadband Service Provider

"Best of Class" Broadband Service Providers' (BSPs) use a variety of tactics to maximize their customer numbers. These programs range from creative customer retention to excellent multi-channel sales programs; and from novel web-based marketing campaigns to street fighting that entails slugging it out with competitors via guerrilla marketing. During the next four issues, the "Best of Class" tactics that have been field tested and proven successful will be detailed for each of the topics above. Nine specific customer retention tactics are discussed in this month's column.

It's not a coincidence that customer retention is the first element discussed in this review of what "Best of Class" BSPs use to be successful. Generally, saving a customer from disconnecting is substantially less expensive than the cost of adding a new customer. The following are nine relatively low cost retention tactics that generate results.

New customer satisfaction rating email: This tactic asks new customers to rank their customer education, the sales process, and their service installation. The email should contain a limited number of questions and be easy to email back to the BSP. This email should be sent within a day or two after each new customer's installation. Once the procedure is established so that the Network Operation Center automatically sends a customer satisfaction rating email to each new customer, it's an inexpensive tactic to maintain. The customer feedback allows the Help Desk to follow up on individual issues before they become serious customer problems. It also creates a record of new customer concerns so that the management team can develop tactics to mitigate the effect of each category of complaint. Of course, all emails must generate a prompt response from the service provider.

Welcome telephone outcalls to new customers: A telephone call to each new customer welcoming them to their BSP generally surprises and delights consumers. After all, it's unlikely that they received a welcome telephone call from their electric or telephone company. Besides demonstrating that the BSP is sufficiently interested in the customer to welcome them and ask if they have any questions, problems that are identified can be respond to on the spot. To reduce the labor-intensive aspect of this program, the Help Desk or Call Center can call new customers during quiet periods. A welcome telephone outcall starts the customer relationship on a positive basis, and will help mitigate voluntary churn caused by occasional and unavoidable disappointments.

Semiannual customer satisfaction survey: This program identifies trends by benchmarking customer satisfaction, identifies individual customer problems that have not been satisfactorily resolved, and extends a customer-oriented and caring image to the customer. It's most effective to ask customers to opt in for the survey during the installation process, and to conduct this survey via email. In addition to identifying problems and positives that can be resolved or reinforced, it sends customers a message that the BSP cares. Some BSPs quote actual customer comments, or use the results of the surveys within their marketing collateral materials.

Regular focus groups sessions: These customer discussion groups allow BSPs to obtain a qualitative sense of customer satisfaction. Focus groups allow companies to anticipate and make proactive changes by a thorough understanding of customer satisfaction, and to identify new products and potential service enhancements through regular discourse with existing customers. Since focus group participants often discuss their experience with other customers and prospects, regular focus groups have the added benefit of generating good will and word of mouth advertising.

Annual service agreement renewal programs: Some BSPs offer new customers one-year service agreements in return for a discounted installation fee. For BSPs that offer these types of agreements, a renewal program mitigates churn by helping ensure that a high percentage of the annual agreements are renewed. The first element of this tactic is to develop a database that permits the BSP to conduct a courtesy call to the consumer 90-120 days prior to the service agreement termination to verify that the customer has no outstanding problems. At 60-90 days prior to the service agreement termination date, the BSP should contact the customer and provide a call-to-action that encourages the consumer to renew the annual agreement. Starting the renewal program 90-120 days in advance allows the BSP sufficient time to correct problems and set the stage for the consumer to sign up for another year of service.

Customer loyalty program: Churn can be mitigated by BSPs by delighting customers and increasing their satisfaction through establishing a customer loyalty program. There are many different types of loyalty programs, but the purpose of these programs are to encourage customer retention by rewarding consumers that subscribe to incremental services or for their tenure as a customer. Loyalty programs often motivate customers by allowing them to select a value added service or choose a premium (such as a hat or golf shirt with the company's logo for an echo marketing affect). These programs must be carefully planned and managed, since it is difficult to discontinue loyalty programs once they are initiated.

Service call satisfaction email: Identify customer education or service questions and deficiencies by sending a questionnaire email within 24 hours after each service call is completed. The Help Desk or Call Center service representative should promptly respond to all survey responses by thanking them or responding to their questions. A summary of the responses will identify frequent or repeat problems, and will allow management to develop programs to proactively minimize their causes.

Customer welcome kit: Create a welcome portfolio for new customers. The kit should emphasize customer education materials and is often one of the few tangible aspects of a BSP's product. If the kit does a good job educating the customer, then consumers will more fully enjoy their complete service. Also, a welcome portfolio can help consumers learn about their new broadband service when they are offline.

Disconnect minimization tactics program: Identify the reasons why consumers mostly commonly choose to voluntarily disconnect their broadband service. Reasons may include: a competitive offer from another BSP, that the service costs too much, that a consumer does not feel as if they use the service frequently enough to justify the premium cost, and repeat service problems, among others issues. BSPs should create new processes to minimize customer frustration for each major category that is identified, and develop specific tactics to overcome objections for each common voluntary disconnect reason.

"Best of Class" BSPs use creative tactics to achieve their budgeted customer numbers. This is the first of four articles that will discuss field-tested and low cost ways to maximize customer counts. Future articles will discuss multi-channel sales programs, novel web-based marketing campaigns, and street fighting via guerrilla marketing.

About the Author

Don Kent is CEO of eCablevision, a broadband consulting company. He has spent over 26 years working with early stage companies specializing in the delivery of broadband and digital content services.