Mobile First Customer Experience – It Is Here to Stay!

I have been with my mobile service provider since 2008. I have five connections under the same plan. I receive my bill on the 6^th of every month as an email, and it shows up on my UPI app as well as on the provider’s mobile app.

I didn’t receive the bill this month, and it was not reflected in their app either. So, I accessed their website to check for my bill, and I couldn’t find it. It said that my bills are paid fully and I don’t have any outstanding.

It also said that the next bill is expected on the 6^th of August, 2024.

I was confused. So, I clicked on the help button in the app and spoke to a chatbot with all pre-filled options. I had to try a few combinations, and then I gave up communicating my issue to the bot.

Then, I called their customer care, and after a few minutes of struggle, I was put in touch with their agent.

She profusely thanked me for calling their customer care, and she made statements that said that she appreciated my time and asked how she could help me.

I explained the problem. She listened to me intensely and mentioned that she would check in the backend. She put me on hold for a minute.

After that, she came back and said that she was also not able to access my bill details. However, she has requested her billing team to give me a call to resolve this, and I should be receiving this call within 24 hours.

They sent me a ticket number, and after a couple of hours, I received another message stating that the issue had been resolved. I was happy, and I tried accessing my email as well as the app to see if there was a bill delivered.

There was none.

So, I accessed their app again, and with a few more combinations, I was able to explain my problem to the bot. I got another ticket raised, which was eventually closed without any resolution.

Now, I spoke to their customer service agent again, and another ticket has been issued. I am sitting here with an SLA of 24 hours for a call back from their billing team.

What Would You Call This Experience?

I have been a user of multiple mobile apps, and I am fascinated by the options. I use Amazon, Netflix, Spotify, MakeMyTrip, and Zomato on my mobile regularly, and I have come to expect a similar experience with every other app that I come across.

That is not what I got with my mobile service provider’s app. So, I had to look at alternate options to reach them.

Mobile penetration worldwide has been phenomenal, especially in India. So, most organizations have started looking at mobile experience as the first line of contact with their customers.

It is imperative that you get your mobile strategy right.

How Do You Get an Amazon-Like Experience With Your Mobile Apps?

Let us start with the fundamentals and move into the advanced features of mobile app experience.

1. What Do I Want to See in the App When I Open It?

• A dashboard that displays my plan, billing cycle, features of my plan, and the services I have opted for.
• When I deep dive into any of the menu items, I should be able to see the details. For instance, when I click on my plan, it should show what I have opted for and my service usage. It should also provide me with an option to change or modify my plans per my needs.
• I keep traveling out of the country for a few months every year. When I do that, I should be able to pause my services and restart them upon my arrival back to the country.
• I should be able to access my bill details with itemized billing and bill payment history.

2. How About Personalized Services?

I expect the app to be integrated with its omnichannel customer experience infrastructure, and I expect it to have access to all the interactions I have had with the brand across various channels and interfaces.

Whenever I open the app, it should be able to give relevant offers and recommendations based on my interactions and behavior while using their website or mobile app. All my preferences, searches, and interactions should be a part of my profile, allowing the app to make educated suggestions.

3. Reviews and Ratings

Allow me to leave reviews and ratings for products or services easily. Besides, it should highlight top reviews and provide a way to filter by rating.

4. Notifications

Send push notifications on the app so I can choose between buying a product or subscribing to a service.

Add loyalty discounts based on my usage and provide that to me as offers.

5. Wish Lists

Allow me to save my wish lists so I can access them in the future. In case there is a change in price on the items on my wish list, send that to me as a push notification or a text, as it would help me choose whether to buy or continue to wait.

6. A/B Testing

Regularly conduct A/B testing to determine the best design, features, and messaging. Use the results to make data-driven decisions.

Would you agree that doing all this would create an experience that is very close to what you have come to expect from a mobile app?

The French philosopher and mathematician Blaise Pascal famously wrote: I would have written a shorter letter, but I did not have the time.

Likewise, the most important thing in a mobile app is to figure out what features need not be there instead of adding a lot of features and making it clunky to use.

After all, as they say, ‘Less is More.”