In the mobile market, the customer experience is the No.1 factor for success, said Dan Hesse, CEO or Sprint Nextel, speaking at Goldman Sachs Communacopia Conference. Hesse has called "all hands on deck" to improve Sprint's overall customer experience. The impact of this company-wide initiative will be measured in terms of customer churn and the volume and length of customer-care calls. Incentive plans are being tied to improvements.
Another critical factor for success is the company "brand health". Here too, Hese said he is implementing programs to improve the Sprint brand, both for existing companies and past customers, many of whom may have had a bad experience in the past. Once Sprint has a story to tell, its advertising will pick up again with the goal of reestablishing the brand image.
Moving forward, Hesse believes the company's nationwide data network will help it attract and retain new customers. The challenge is to make data plans simple and to make them worry-proof. He believes customers want personalization but have been frustrated with all of the configuration settings on smart phones and other mobile devices. Sprint will start offering in-store personalization help to make sure customers are ready to go at the time of purchase.
From a macro economic perspective, Hesse said wireless networks are less susceptible to turbulent conditions than wireline networks. The process of wireless substitution could actually lead to higher net adds in tough times, and a drop in corporate wireless phones might lead to more adds on the consumer side.
Hesse expects the Clearwire deal to close on target in Q4.
An archived webcast is online.http://www.sprint.com
- In December 2007, Dan Hesse was named President and CEO of Sprint Nextel, following the resignation of Gary Forsee.
