Carphone Warehouse readies ‘complete transformation’ of customer experience
Carphone Warehouse is readying a “complete transformation” of its customer experience introducing in-store comparison “smart tools” as it looks to grow its UK market share by being a more customer-focused business.
The move is backed by a campaign dubbed ‘Each and Every Customer Counts’, which includes a £10m investment in TV advertising and social media activity created by CHI & Partners.
The TV campaign kicks off this weekend along with social media activity, which will emphasise the comparison capabilities of its new “smart tool”, which is now live on the Carphone Warehouse website.
The new smart tool will see the retailer give every staff member in-store a tablet to implement a new programme called Pinpoint which guides customers through choosing networks, tariffs and handsets and involved re-training 3,000 store staff.
The tablets detail to consumers what each network offers individually, as well as asking the customer five key questions that result in a recommendation of a handset, tariff and network.
Once those 5 questions have been answered and a suggestion has been made, the tool includes a “future proofing” element, to see if the phone, network and tariff will still be right for the customer over the average two year contract period which is discovered by answering questions around data usage.
The tool also has a live tariff checker, which compares more than 12,000 deals from the other networks and competitors and a coverage checker for 4G which allows the customer to check two different postcodes, such as work and home.
Julian Diment, marketing director at Carphone Warehouse, says: “We were the guys that ultimately invented mobile phone retailing. This is a complete transformation using the power of our colleagues with the power of technology to make sure we are genuinely making the right recommendation based on the costumer as an individual rather than ‘here’s some deals’.”
Carphone Warehouse reported sales up 5.2 per cent on the previous year at £816m for the quarter ending 29 June. It highlighted UK contract sales performing particularly well, although the group’s French business is continuing to decline. Excluding the French market sales would have increased by 13.2 per cent.
Diment says: “We’ve had a good year and reported UK increases of significant like for like growth but it is a highly competitive and challenging market in terms of retaining and growing that market share. That’s why we invested in these tools so heavily, even in difficult times, to make sure we stay ahead of the competition.
“We have actually communicated that we’re looking to exit the French market in the immediate future, so there isn’t a long term retail business for us in France.”
