A new era of customer experience platform with 5G and tech breakthroughs

• TM offers personalized, omnichannel solutions amidst evolving needs and digital growth.
• TM’s solution: Personalized, omnichannel services amid digital growth.

When customers encounter problems with a brand, their main focus is on finding a solution, not the company’s internal structure or divisions. Top brands grasp this outlook, recognizing that their customer experience platform, whether managed by the customer service or marketing departments, can deliver outstanding customer experiences (CX).

Today’s CX leaders are pursuing new metrics that illustrate the value of customer service beyond mere issue resolution. Traditional metrics like concurrency rates, average handle time, or first-touch resolution gauge the efficiency and productivity of teams, but they don’t reveal the complete picture. Therefore, customer service teams aim to broaden their roles and functions, transforming into brand ambassadors or influencers, amplifying the brand message, and turning service instances into revenue-generating experiences.

The progression of customer service teams is likely to further blur the lines between social care, customer engagement, and marketing community management. By 2023, the most successful brands will intertwine these varied elements to craft an optimal CX through a blend of brand and support conversations.

High-achieving brands will devise initiatives that encourage customers to share their positive experiences. Although people are naturally inclined to share a negative experience, they tend to be less expressive when a brand surpasses their expectations. Thus, customer service teams can prompt customers to share their exceptional experiences by establishing sharing triggers and employing digital tools. The most effective CX teams will promote this behavior, leading to more retargeting opportunities.

In Malaysia, TM (Telekom Malaysia), the country’s largest telecommunications company, is ardently committed to rejuvenating the TM brand by enhancing various touchpoints, spanning from retail experiences and contact centers to field teams. Lolitta Suffian, the Head of Customer Experience at the Telekom Malaysia Group, recently spoke with Tech Wire Asia about how TM is utilizing CX to propel sustainable business growth.

Rejuvenating the brand through customer experience

Considering the constant evolution of customer demands, which presents significant profitability risks, and given Malaysia’s digital economy’s rapid growth, TM strives to provide customers with a personalized, omnichannel experience. This approach caters to customer needs and capitalizes on the vast potential of convergence benefits. TM is deploying various strategies to elevate its customer service, focusing on expanding its digital self-service capabilities.

Suffian elaborates, “Our CX program is designed with a ‘customer first’ management approach – with the highest priority given to enhancing the customer experience at every touchpoint of their journey.” She further explains how they proactively manage the end-to-end user experience using advanced analytics, reinforcing processes, optimizing resources, and consistently enhancing CX fundamentals.

Being driven by a customer-centric approach, the telco company is dedicated to delivering superior customer experiences. Three fundamental principles guide this strategy:

• Simplicity: The company strives to enhance accessibility and availability, ensuring seamless interaction for all users. A user-friendly environment catering to diverse needs is created by simplifying processes and reducing unnecessary complexities.
• Convenience: The objective is to craft tailored experiences that align with each individual’s needs. Understanding customer preferences enables service modifications to offer maximum convenience and meet specific needs.
• Contextuality: By leveraging data analytics, the company can deliver the ideal experience at the right time and place. Interpreting customer data and understanding their context allows TM to offer personalized interactions, anticipate needs, and create a more relevant and meaningful experience.

Transforming the customer experience platform with values

TM has incorporated the Net Promoter Score (NPS) as a comprehensive system throughout the organization, enabling the extraction of insightful information and triggering enhancements across all customer touchpoints.

“Our Voice of Customer (VOC) program actively gathers feedback from our customers. We gain valuable insights into their expectations, pain points, and preferences, enabling us to make informed decisions and implement targeted improvements,” she emphasized. “The data collected serves as a valuable resource that informs our continuous improvement initiatives.”

Feedback received is thoroughly analyzed and used to pinpoint areas that require improvements, ensuring that customer needs and expectations are effectively addressed.

In 2022, TM successfully integrated its CX Value Programs into the customer journey using a flexible execution strategy. This initiative transformed the NPS from a simple measuring tool into a robust system promoting continuous customer experience improvements. The CX Value Programs were designed to cause a transformative impact on the customer journey. Discussing how TM equips its frontline teams with customer insights, Suffian mentioned that the company has fully embraced and operationalized the NPS system, making it an integral part of its operational framework. 

The rise of 5G

The advent of 5G technology significantly impacts the customer experience landscape, and questions surrounding customer needs and expectations in this transition period are what TM is diligently preparing to address.

In 2022, TM rolled out the initial phase of its 5G services. This included unlimited data provisions for existing Unifi Mobile consumers and new clientele. By providing this 5G service, TM further fortified its standing as a leader in the fixed-mobile service sector, catering to consumer and micro, small, and medium enterprise (MSME) segments with the most inclusive and high-speed all-in-one solution available.

With the continued expansion of 5G coverage throughout Malaysia, Suffian shared that this growth is instrumental in broadening TM’s reach. It offers a significant opportunity to propel Unifi’s convergence strategy further, leveraging the robust base of its three million households and close to 400,000 MSME customers.

“Our collaborative efforts with the government in nation-building will expedite the deployment of smart cities, smart industries, and 5G-enabled applications – contribute to the establishment of a sustainable and inclusive digital society and economy, fostering progress and inclusivity for all,” she concluded.

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