Edition #38: Why Ordering Telco Should Be As Easy As Pizza & Chips

Think about the last time you checked-in to a hotel - did you stand there for an eternity while the front-desk clerk typed…and typed…and typed some more?

Why does this happen? They have sophisticated reservation systems. They likely already have all the information they need, and your room has certainly been pre-scheduled. Taking the payment isn’t complicated – and any extras will be collected at the end anyway. So why does this take so long?

This is a classic example of a business that could use technology to deliver a great customer experience, but their systems don’t talk to each other. The result? Duplicate entry, swivels, and the dreaded “type, type, type” as the queue grows longer and longer.

I mention this example, because this, in a nutshell, is what telcos are still doing to their customers. Despite a much more complicated sales process than a hotel check-in, the technology exists to make transactions fast and easy – but many are still plagued by manual processes that absolutely kill the customer experience.

In this edition of Telco Talk, we’ll look at some lessons from other industries, and how they can help telcos finally close the sales experience gap.

Taking Lessons From Pizza & Potato Chips

We’ve established telcos shouldn’t take their experience cues from hoteliers – but for a great example, they needn’t look further than their local pizza shops and crisp entrepreneurs.

Digital products, especially apps, have shaped how people buy things. Now everything happens at the click of a button.

Customers have grown accustomed to these super simple experiences. Just look no further than your local pizza shop – they have mastered giving a simple experience, while offering complex options.

Want to buy your pizza in-person? Go ahead.

Order online and pick it up? Yep.

Have it delivered to your home? Sure.

Or your best friend’s house? Why not?

Or set up a recurring subscription for pizza, to be delivered twice a month every second Friday at 8pm? Go for it.

I may have been stretching the boundaries a little with the pizza subscription there, but not really - these capabilities do exist.

If a fast-food establishment has figured out how to simplify the experience of choosing a pizza, customizing the toppings, paying for it, and scheduling pickup/delivery – that complexity can certainly be replicated in a telecoms world.

Here’s another example - take the UK potato chips start up Spudos, featured on Dragon’s Den. They run an online only service for you to buy potato chips – REALLY GOOD potato chips, that are completely plain and un-seasoned. Then, here’s the kicker – you buy your “Spud Dust” flavor sachets and put as much as you like on the crisps.

Want Salt & Vinegar so strong your eyes not only water but they almost melt? Heck yeah!

Want to mix a couple of the flavors so you get “Southern Fried Chicken” with a “Crispy Bacon” after kick? Absolutely.

Their subscription service is incredible and takes seconds to program how many flavors you want, and how many big bags of potato chips you want every month. My 10-year-old son and I are hooked!

Telcos can take a lesson from both of these tasty examples around ease of use and personalization of experience.

Telco’s Transaction Problem

Now granted, telecom transactions are a lot more complex than a takeaway order. There are tons of products for sale, most of which have upfront, recurring and usage-based fees. Key information is contained in different systems, turning a simple transaction into a complex endeavour indeed.

Despite these challenges, this is actually a problem that has been solved! Clever developers have created a modern Point of Sale that is fully integrated with the billing and other supporting systems. The result? Unlike our hotel example, these transactions happen quickly and effortlessly - without customers being aware of the massive orchestration that happens in the back end.

With a fully integrated system, sales reps don’t need to re-enter data, and customers get a fast, consistent experience that drives profits.

Despite this, there are still a lot of telcos who are not using a POS this way. Instead, they use a two-tier system, with a cash drawer built on top of the product catalog that integrates to nothing at all. This means double entry, swivels, and a whole host of problems that the poor salesperson has to deal with, much like our beleaguered hotel clerk.

I was reminded of this recently when I saw a social post from a telco I know well about their new store openings. As I flicked through the pictures, I saw one image of three desks all slotted together, with three classroom chairs for the lucky customers to sit on. Plastic dividers separated each pod, and there were giant PCs and screens on each desk.  What really caught my eye (pun incoming) was where the staff members were looking - they were TRANSFIXED on their screens. Ironically, the pods had several branded slogans visible, saying “Let’s Talk” and “Just Talk to Me”.

(I won’t post the picture to protect the innocent!)

It does not have to be this way.

I am confident that this telco’s swanky new stores are like putting lipstick on the proverbial pig. No investment in HOW things are done; no consideration of the customer experience; no examining the fine details, like time and motion studies, to find ways to shave precious minutes off transactions.

We need to think beyond the typical and make interactions less transactional, and more interactive – it’s all about the discussion and consultation.

But why is that important?

Complexity. Convergence. More is more.

Over the years, telecoms companies have diverged from the original core offering of wireless. Now there is fixed line, broadband and fiber. There are Value Added Services, including subscriptions, and free Netflix, and data roaming and international calls. And, and, and…

If you can’t run the conversation well? The customer waits there wondering, “Why is this taking so long?”.

Proof It Can Be Done

The technology to make telco transactions fast, simple, and seamless already exists - it’s just rarely implemented the right way.

During our recent project with Saudi Arabian giant Mobily, their transactions were taking over 6 minutes end to end, using a typical telco legacy system powered by one of the world’s biggest tech firms. We’ve got it down to less than 2, which is as close to ordering a pizza as telecoms  can get.

By implementing a platform that integrates all channels and supporting systems, omnichannel becomes possible. The dream of “one cart across every channel” isn’t a fantasy - it’s working in the real world, and it proves that telco transactions don’t have to be hard.

But ultimately, the biggest benefit of getting your POS in order is how it transforms the sales experience. Staff get to do more of what they love to do – which is sell. Now they can have meaningful conversations that are not punctuated by huge silences as they struggle to navigate a CRM masquerading as a POS with over 100 check boxes on one screen.

Wrapping It Up

At the end of the day, telco retail shouldn’t feel like checking into that hotel - where the systems are technically advanced but practically disjointed.

Customers just want clarity and speed. When telcos take a page from the pizza-and-chips playbook - giving customers simple choices, easy customization, and instant checkout - everyone wins.

It’s time to give your customers a retail experience that finally feels as modern as the devices we sell.