3 Ecommerce Strategies for Telecommunications Post-Pandemic

The right ecommerce strategy can help communication service providers (CSPs) offer an authentic omnichannel experience. It can enable them to deliver proactive and empathic customer service and develop innovative touchpoints with new technologies such as 5G, Artificial Intelligence, Virtual Reality, and more. All of these can help CSPs meet the customers' expectations in the post-pandemic era.

Digital is the new normal. This trend is only going to get stronger post-pandemic. Even after the symptoms of the COVID-19 subside in most of the world, there is a high chance that people will continue to follow social distancing norms and prefer contact-less operations. There is always a new virus making news, reminding the world to be ready for anything. The new normal has given way to customers with specific digital and experience expectations from the businesses they support, and communication service providers (CSPs) are no different.

Customers are likely to be inclined toward CSPs that provide self-service, omnichannel, and instant communication. The need for fast and seamless data connections and quick resolutions to any network issues has become a norm. It will be expected by companies that want to retain customer loyalty.

Common gaps in telecommunications ecommerce strategy

Here are a few common mistakes telecom service providers make:

Neglecting the omnichannel approach

In the digital world, your customer can be present in any part of the globe. However, they may or may not have access to all the channels you are present. Therefore, neglecting any medium can cost you business. Providing a seamless and unified experience across channels was always important, but now it is necessary. The use of each channel must be conceptualized and delivered separately yet works with the overall marketing and business strategies that your company has in place.

Not improving the on-page search experience

Most telecommunications businesses deliver a standard search experience on their website. They believe that implementing search functionality is a one-time process. In actual practice, the search functionality needs to be improved in terms of the relevance of the searches and the placement of the search bar on the site page. According to a Forrester study, 8 out of 10 visitors start looking for an alternative online store if they don't find convenient website navigation or relevant search results. It is hard to bring such visitors back to the website when online stores have preferred to search for a product during the pandemic.

Delivering standard, or lack-lustre, customer service

It is not unusual for telecommunications companies to receive millions of customer requests every day, especially when people cannot visit physical stores. With more employees working from home, delivering quick and empathetic customer service can be challenging. But post-pandemic customer service needs to be personalized with a sense of urgency. Talking to multiple customer care executives and unsatisfactory auto-response should not be a part of post-pandemic telecommunications customer service.

Telecom ecommerce marketing strategies to follow post-pandemic

Here are some CSP ecommerce marketing strategies that can help improve customer experience post-pandemic.

Enhanced search experience

As consumers expect more from their interactions with service providers, telecoms will need to use predictive behaviour systems, such as customer data platforms, to show customers the products or services they are most likely to buy. Telecoms can place the search bar on targeted pages and sections and display sticky search components that are visible even as the user scrolls through the products. This personalization will reduce the time used for searching and increase conversions.

Omnichannel-enabled smart customer service

CSPs need to enable their customer executives to handle queries intelligently. They should have access to what the customer is complaining about on social media and possible solutions. They should have access to the information about all the customer's problems in the past so they can provide a solution quickly and proactively.

Unified presentation layer for all service channels

Communications service providers have multiple internal communication channels such as service portals, knowledge management platforms, marketing websites, and more, which operate in silos. Their look and feel, as well as their experience, differ drastically. A unified presentation layer can solve this issue and provide a consistent experience across all the channels, not only for internal teams but as part of the larger picture, for the end-users as well.

Solutions for communications providers

Acro Commerce is building the future of telecommunications with our telecom partners. Telecoms need partners with a deep understanding of the critical issues and competitive pressures inside and outside of their organizations, partners who are integrated into their business strategy and who drive the development of technology-based solutions. Please take a look at our Telecommunications case study to learn more about the digital solutions we have built for the telecom industry.

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About the author: Miles has written extensively on emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, machine learning, blockchain, the internet of things, cloud, DevOps, and microservices. He has a keen interest in ecommerce, including CMS, front-end, and back-end technologies.