When it comes to loyalty bundles, an identity crisis is emerging
5G hasn’t been the reliable consumer revenue generator mobile hoped it’d be and competition to keep subscribers remains fierce. This has led most operators to explore loyalty plays that often include bundling of third-party digital services.
Basically, “We value you as a customer, here’s a premium service on us.”
The strategy makes sense but the executions can get clumsy.
Often, consumers have to jump through a series of hoops to sign up for the service. They need to use proprietary portals, promo codes and create new accounts. That’s if they bother trying at all. For many, if it’s not dead simple, they won’t take advantage of the offer.
Worse than just a missed opportunity
It’s actually worse than just a missed opportunity for mobile operators to build subscriber loyalty. Even consumers who do take advantage of the offer end up establishing a separate profile and relationship with the non-mobile entity.
This means when consumers sign into the service, they’re not using their mobile identity and probably not even thinking about their mobile provider at all. Mobile operators have no insight into how often the subscribers use the service to get a sense of how valuable it may be as part of an overall offering. There is also a missed opportunity to upsell additional services based on usage.
Yet, the operator keeps writing the check to subsidize the cost.
These issues will compound as the proliferation of digital services gets more confusing for consumers to navigate, and business strategies and relationships continue to evolve.
Reconsidering the power of mobile IDs
Now is the time for mobile operators to consider the power of the mobile identity they provide consumers and supercharge it to become a one-stop pass for unlocking the services and experiences subscribers want most. Business benefits span increased subscriber retention, new revenue growth opportunities and subscriber growth.
At Mobile World Congress Barcelona last month, I had close to a dozen meetings with mobile operators, most of them in the same boat. They know they’re missing multiple opportunities but aren’t clear about how to capitalize on them.
Understanding that identity management limitations are at the heart of these challenges is the right place to start.
Most mobile operators already have their own identity platform. The idea is to extend this platform to support authentication and log-in to services the operator doesn’t operate.
Here’s what that should look like in practice:
Smooth log-ins for promotional services. The operator offers subscribers a free digital service as part of their subscription. Rather than “sign up” for the service, the subscriber logs in with their existing mobile operator account and are instantly granted access. The operator handles the access authentication in the background.
The operator manages the billing relationship. Rather than the subscriber getting an account statement from the digital service showing the credit, the operator manages the entire relationship via the subscriber bill, in-app or email.
Sky’s the limit. Operators learn from the experience and extend subscriber identities to a range of services. Think of a modern AARP or AAA card. I know if I’m a subscriber of Mobile Operator X, I can use my identity to sign into these 100 services for an immediate discount or free access. Think shopping clubs, magazine subscriptions, travel sites and more. Suddenly, my mobile identity is my non-stop pass to savings.
This experience requires identity integrations with all partners across a range of devices. This has been a hang-up for many operators that face the daunting task of doing these integrations themselves. Increasingly, they are turning to partners for help.
Offering value added services is smart business. Leaving opportunities on the table and providing a clunky user experience for consumers lessens the value for operators in the process. Creating a truly connected experience will offer consumers more bang for their buck while providing ROI for operators.
That’s good for subscribers and it’s good for operator bottom lines.
