Biometric SIM verification: a threat or opportunity for cellular firms?
Actual count to help companies identify real sales and loyal customers
Actual count to help companies identify real sales and loyal customers. STOCK IMAGE
LAHORE:
The biometric verification of SIMs is in full swing and rightly so. Customers are receiving messages from cellular operators to get their numbers verified and rushing towards their nearest touch points for the same reason.
Proactively, cellular operators have installed extra counters and more employees at their front offices and placed even more remote offices to assist their customers. All of the operators have uploaded FAQs (frequently asked questions) on their websites to help their customers understand the process.
The exercise of biometric verification may take a couple of months. A huge influx of customers is expected at all touch points, especially of those who have received messages while the word of mouth is also generating more walk-in than the routine.
Huge walk-in with zero revenue
Typically, this huge walk-in is not generating much revenue for the operators. It is, instead, a threat to their business as they will be losing a reasonable number of their customers when the verification exercise ends and the real count of customers appears. This may lead to a serious damage to their figures, targets and repute. However, there is a brighter side of the picture as well.
Strongest financial muscle
The cellular industry has always been one of the strongest financial muscles of Pakistan’s economy. It has not only produced employment opportunities for the middle class but also deposited a big chunk of taxes in government accounts.
Above all, it has always played a vital role in efforts aimed at eliminating terrorism from the country by shutting down its services when required and by introducing PTA-aligned standard operating procedures (SOPs) of activating new SIMs.
The new SIM activation through 789 in the recent past and then activation through thumb impression on biometric device have already earned a good number of real customers for the cellular operators. And the recent exercise of getting existing numbers verified through the biometric system will help the operators reach the actual number of users.
Biometric verification – a blessing in disguise
Every business needs an actual count of customers to be profitable, productive, innovative and cost-efficient. The cellular industry has a golden opportunity to revisit this all along with its marketing strategy, customer experience, vision and sales targets.
By the end of this biometric verification exercise, cellular companies will get to know the count of on-board customers. It will eventually identify their customers’ lifecycle, customer behaviour and real sales.
The biometric system will help cellular operators in a number of ways.
It will help them identify real sales and loyal customers. They would be able to give their customers absolutely customised offers and bundles of free minutes, SMS and data usage which will not only enrich their usage but will bring back the trust level to their large subscriber base.
Cellular operators will be able to manage their subscriber base on real time usage and park them in a better segmentation model.
Real sale gives real revenue. The organisation does not revolve around fake numbers and does not develop wrong perception of the market. It improves company’s image in its competition and brings good packages for the employees as well.
Customers with lower ARPU (average revenue per user) will not be a liability for them after the re-verification exercise. Low ARPU generating customers can be turned into high ARPU with a better strategy as customers are also bound to stick to a few SIMs instead of having many.
Operators can also find their dormant users and reconsider customers’ lifecycle mapping policies which can eventually bring them back.
3G and 4G can be a hot cake for high ARPU and especially for data users soon after identifying those customers who use their SIMs for data usage only. Hybrid offers for such customers will not only satisfy existing customers but it will also increase the chances of Port In.
Customer’s behaviour will be predictable and the operators will be in a better position to introduce new products for their old customers who will contribute towards their revenue even if they are less productive right now.
With customised packages, offers and customer-centric approach, companies will improve their product quality and overall price perception.
Cellular operators can earn good revenue through their BTL (below the line) promotions and can reduce the possibilities of failed campaigns because of the true data.
Having customers’ information to give them a ‘WOW Experience’ through gifts on their special days has been one of the dreams of the cellular operators. However, it was not possible previously because of the wrong data.
The organisations can plan better when things go smooth soon after verification process. These surprises have a history of achieving customer satisfaction worldwide.
The writer is a corporate training specialist at Mobilink
Published in The Express Tribune, February 2nd, 2015.
The biometric verification of SIMs is in full swing and rightly so. Customers are receiving messages from cellular operators to get their numbers verified and rushing towards their nearest touch points for the same reason.
Proactively, cellular operators have installed extra counters and more employees at their front offices and placed even more remote offices to assist their customers. All of the operators have uploaded FAQs (frequently asked questions) on their websites to help their customers understand the process.
The exercise of biometric verification may take a couple of months. A huge influx of customers is expected at all touch points, especially of those who have received messages while the word of mouth is also generating more walk-in than the routine.
Huge walk-in with zero revenue
Typically, this huge walk-in is not generating much revenue for the operators. It is, instead, a threat to their business as they will be losing a reasonable number of their customers when the verification exercise ends and the real count of customers appears. This may lead to a serious damage to their figures, targets and repute. However, there is a brighter side of the picture as well.
Strongest financial muscle
The cellular industry has always been one of the strongest financial muscles of Pakistan’s economy. It has not only produced employment opportunities for the middle class but also deposited a big chunk of taxes in government accounts.
Above all, it has always played a vital role in efforts aimed at eliminating terrorism from the country by shutting down its services when required and by introducing PTA-aligned standard operating procedures (SOPs) of activating new SIMs.
The new SIM activation through 789 in the recent past and then activation through thumb impression on biometric device have already earned a good number of real customers for the cellular operators. And the recent exercise of getting existing numbers verified through the biometric system will help the operators reach the actual number of users.
Biometric verification – a blessing in disguise
Every business needs an actual count of customers to be profitable, productive, innovative and cost-efficient. The cellular industry has a golden opportunity to revisit this all along with its marketing strategy, customer experience, vision and sales targets.
By the end of this biometric verification exercise, cellular companies will get to know the count of on-board customers. It will eventually identify their customers’ lifecycle, customer behaviour and real sales.
The biometric system will help cellular operators in a number of ways.
It will help them identify real sales and loyal customers. They would be able to give their customers absolutely customised offers and bundles of free minutes, SMS and data usage which will not only enrich their usage but will bring back the trust level to their large subscriber base.
Cellular operators will be able to manage their subscriber base on real time usage and park them in a better segmentation model.
Real sale gives real revenue. The organisation does not revolve around fake numbers and does not develop wrong perception of the market. It improves company’s image in its competition and brings good packages for the employees as well.
Customers with lower ARPU (average revenue per user) will not be a liability for them after the re-verification exercise. Low ARPU generating customers can be turned into high ARPU with a better strategy as customers are also bound to stick to a few SIMs instead of having many.
Operators can also find their dormant users and reconsider customers’ lifecycle mapping policies which can eventually bring them back.
3G and 4G can be a hot cake for high ARPU and especially for data users soon after identifying those customers who use their SIMs for data usage only. Hybrid offers for such customers will not only satisfy existing customers but it will also increase the chances of Port In.
Customer’s behaviour will be predictable and the operators will be in a better position to introduce new products for their old customers who will contribute towards their revenue even if they are less productive right now.
With customised packages, offers and customer-centric approach, companies will improve their product quality and overall price perception.
Cellular operators can earn good revenue through their BTL (below the line) promotions and can reduce the possibilities of failed campaigns because of the true data.
Having customers’ information to give them a ‘WOW Experience’ through gifts on their special days has been one of the dreams of the cellular operators. However, it was not possible previously because of the wrong data.
The organisations can plan better when things go smooth soon after verification process. These surprises have a history of achieving customer satisfaction worldwide.
The writer is a corporate training specialist at Mobilink
Published in The Express Tribune, February 2nd, 2015.