NACCM 2010: Rogers Communications’ Customer Retention & Satisfaction Approach

Presented by Josée Bourdages — NACCM 2010

Listen to be proactive.

Josée oversees service strategy and customer loyalty for Rogers’ Fido brand, which is perceived as the most caring brand in Canada’s telecom industry.

Customers consistently tell them that they want to be respected and treated nicely – as nice as a new prospective customer. To that end, every offer is considered to be provided to both new and existing customers, and the profitability analysis is important.

As a service strategy, being proactive is the key element, avoiding problems in the first place or at least informing customer proactively when issues do occur. And when customers do contact Fido they treat each customer as an individual and personalize communications, starting with thanking them for how long that individual has been a customer.

It’s no surprise then that Fido listens to their customers in pursuit of anticipating future needs. In one example, they found that customers over age 45 want to talk on the phone, while under age 45 wanted technical interfaces. So Fido is implementing interfaces that can best serve both groups, which has the benefit of reducing cost to serve while also improving customer loyalty.

There are 5 areas in which Fido listens:

1. Suggestion Box: Through their on-line site, “Throw Fido a Bone,”customers can not only submit suggestions, but also see status and vote on others. Customers want to be listened to, and companies must show that customers are part of the feedback loop.
2. Focus Groups: an ongoing part of Fido’s operations, from everything from products to billing statements. And while the perception was that customers wanted “bigger” solutions that could be more complex, they often find that customers want simpler solutions that do less.
3. Survey Results: All agents know their own scores, the team’s scores, and overall scores. Sharing the data is critical, even if the feedback is bad. They’ve implemented a program called Fido Bravo in which agents are recognized, and they allow agents to select calls on which they are coached.
4. Continuous Improvements / Quality: Josée’s process team maintains an internal site of all policies and processes, complete with a “seal of approval” that indicates that the submission has not only been received, but addressed and implemented.
5. Special Projects: Since they talk to so many customers every day, front-line agents have tons of ideas and the ability to find the best solutions. Fido temporarily assigns agents to such special projects that can engage their expertise and drive employee retention.

Similar to a Customer Experience Council, Fido has a “Dumb Policy Committee,” which reviews the annoyances that come to their attention and implement solutions that improve the experience.

Bottom line: There are many ways to listen. Use them – and most importantly—act.

This blog was written by Steve Bernstein and is co-posted with the Customer Insight = Revenue blog.