Customer satisfaction requires transparency, anti-fraud, local adaptation and customer care as part of the purchase process, but it doesn’t end there. After the transaction, following up with the customer is as important. Understanding the post-purchase process is vital as the end-user’s need to fully comprehend what appears on their mobile phone bill.

For Guillaume Briche, CEO of Digital Virgo: “What happens once the user makes the purchase is as crucial as all the steps taken in the pre-purchase process. Support, inform, facilitate and respond, are the four main challenges of the post-purchase experience and have the common goal of improving customer satisfaction”.

By addressing the following four main challenges of the post-purchase process, customer satisfaction can be improved and the whole Carrier Billing ecosystem can become sustainable in the long term thanks to the end-user’s trust.

1. Support in the Purchasing Experience

All payment solutions need to be regulated to offer users confidence and convenience. There are several actors and stakeholders involved in setting up secure and regulated practices, including:

• Regulatory Authorities
• Professional Associations
• Telecom Operators
• Service Providers
• Technology Solution Providers

These organizations collaborate to set standards that create a trustworthy environment for users, helping to promote the growth of mobile payments. Although there are national standards that vary across countries and regions, there are also varying habits and practices among telecom operators within the same country.

The activity of professional associations such as the AF2M in France or WASPA in South Africa, which bring together and coordinate the work between communications operators and groups representing service publishers and technical providers, is an essential element for success.

The user journey in Carrier Billing is mainly based on three key steps:

• The act of payment by entering a mobile number, by a simple click, by sending an SMS, or by a phone call
• A welcome SMS
• A billing confirmation SMS

The end-user is provided with the service’s URL, its ID, and customer service contact details to finalize their delivery experience. This allows the user to access the post-purchase customer area offered by the telco.

However, there are variations between telecom operators, each having its own processes and practices.
The monthly invoice, which lists payment transactions, is often a key point of discussion. It plays a crucial role in enhancing customer satisfaction, posing a significant challenge in terms of delivering accurate and clear information.

2. Information and Post-Purchase Communication

Transparency is key in the whole process, as customers prefer to access the information they are looking for on intuitive and efficient databases. This is why customer satisfaction is closely tied to the clear and transparent availability of information.

The mobile operator bill faces two main challenges: visibility and understanding. The first challenge is related to the organization and clarity of the online customer interface. Does the end-user have easy and quick access to their account? Significant efforts have been made to improve user experience (UX) strategies, and while there are still areas that could be better, it can be said that access to billing spaces provided by operators is becoming more user-friendly for customers.

The second challenge, understanding, is often more difficult to address. Carrier Billing involves multiple parties, including the telecom operator, the service provider, and the aggregator. While the end-user can usually identify their telecom operator, recognizing the merchant from whom they purchased a product or service is not always as clear. The bill lists the subscriber’s transactions, but is it sufficiently understandable? What improvements can be made? Several telecom companies, particularly in Europe, have introduced initiatives to identify “best practices” that can enhance the post-purchase experience.

• Enter the name of the service on the invoice.
• Indicate the email and number of the associated customer service.
• Explain on the invoice the role of each player and clearly identify them.
• Create a section on the invoice dedicated to third-party products and services paid via Carrier Billing.

A well-informed user during the post-purchase phase provides us with a clearer understanding and more precise data, which helps enhance our analysis and better protect the user.

While considerable efforts are being made to communicate with the end-user, the bill remains a vital source of information, containing crucial details that must be included. By improving its clarity, visibility, and comprehensibility, everyone involved in the Carrier Billing ecosystem can contribute to greater customer satisfaction.

“As players in this ecosystem, we are all responsible for helping to fulfill these two missions. Expanding protection and improving the reputation and understanding of mobile operators’ bills. By improving post-purchase and making it more transparent, customer confidence will inevitably be enhanced”, adds Guillaume Briche.

3. Facilitate the Post-Purchase Process

Digitalization has given users a lot of autonomy and this has become essential in the post-sale customer journey. Subscribers want to have full control of their payments. They have become accustomed to it and demand a customer space dedicated to their transactions where they can easily manage their subscriptions and data after the purchase.

In the section focused on customer information, we highlighted the importance of visibility and the need to offer a dedicated space for the subscriber. This space is now a crucial part of the post-purchase experience, just like the service delivery or payment process. It should be straightforward and enable the user to access transaction details with as few clicks as possible.

• A direct access link from the confirmation SMS.
• A responsive platform designed for the mobile environment.
• Real-time information (subscription, unsubscription, invoicing, full refunds…)

At Digital Virgo we offer a self-care portal dedicated to the end-user, providing him with autonomy when checking and managing subscriptions.

4. Respond Clearly to the User

When choosing a brand, a company or a provider, the quality of the customer service is definitely a key factor, even more important than the product or the service itself sometimes.

Customer service plays a key role in ensuring customer satisfaction, becoming active right after the purchase is made. The reputation of the service, the publisher, and the telecom operator relies on how efficiently and quickly customer service responds.

The quality of post-purchase customer support is determined not only by accessibility but also by the expertise of the staff and their ability to resolve customer issues. The most frequent problems related to invoice payments include:

• The customer tried to pay but the transaction failed.
• The customer was charged but did not receive the service they purchased.
• The customer claims that they never made a purchase and demands their money back.

It is essential for support teams to offer clear and relevant responses, using tools and communication channels that are specifically designed to deliver the best post-purchase experience.

At Digital Virgo, we offer a specialized customer service portal to oversee the entire end-user relationship. We provide carriers with a flexible and tailored solution that meets their specific needs.

After answering questions and requests from customers, analysing and giving feedback will also be essential for the future.

“More qualitative feedback allows for more analysis and data automation, which ensures few benefits such as higher protection for end-user and fewer errors in the future post-purchase strategy”, concludes Guillaume Briche.

Want to know more on how to improve your customer journey. Contact us!