J.D. Power and Associates 2011 U.S. Wireless Retail
Sales Satisfaction Study--Volume 1, released today, shows that although overall satisfaction generally declines as the length of the
wireless retail sales process increases, lengthy periods explaining the
device's operation do not negatively impact retail sales satisfaction.
T-Mobile ranks highest in customer satisfaction
among major wireless carrier-owned retail stores for a fourth
consecutive time with a score of 739, performing particularly well in
price and promotions, such as competitiveness of service plans and
devices offered. Sprint Nextel (730) follows T-Mobile in the rankings
and also performs well in price and promotions.
The study finds that, as the amount of time spent during the wireless
retail sales transaction increases, customer satisfaction generally
declines. Among customers who wait longer than two minutes to be greeted
when entering the retail facility, overall satisfaction is 103 points
lower than among those who are greeted within two minutes (762 vs. 659
on a 1,000-point scale).
This decline in satisfaction holds true for all stages of the sales
process with one crucial exception: the time taken to explain the
wireless device operation. In fact, satisfaction increases as the time
spent explaining the device's operation increases. Overall satisfaction
among customers who receive an explanation in less than one minute is
740, compared with 758 among those who receive an explanation between
five and 10 minutes in length. The average reported time to explain
device operation is six minutes.
"Within the past year, there have been a number of new product and
service plan innovations where, in most cases, customers needed to be
re-educated in terms of device operation usage and how they can get the
most from their phone," said Kirk Parsons, senior director of wireless
services at J.D. Power and Associates. "Instructing customers on
operating particular devices affords salespersons an opportunity to
display their own knowledge, as well as to showcase the handset lineup
and latest offerings. As smartphone adoption rates continue to climb,
this practice becomes even more important, as the average monthly
spending is $6 more among customers who received a device operation
explanation, compared with those who did not."
Overall satisfaction with the retail sales process decreases
dramatically when customers are not given adequate time to shop due to
pressure from the salesperson to rush the sales process. Satisfaction
among customers who indicate having experienced this kind of pressure
during the sales process averages 124 points lower (630) than among
customers who indicate not having experienced pressure (754).
The study also finds the following key retail wireless sales transaction patterns:
- Nearly three-fourths of customers indicate that a salesperson
offered to explain the number of plan minutes during their most recent
visit - a decrease of four percentage points from six months ago. Four in
10 customers indicate having been shown a coverage map or an explanation
of the latest technology - an increase of four percentage points during
the same time period. - The average total time customers spent in the retail store to
complete the sales transaction was approximately 57 minutes - an increase
of one minute, compared with six months ago. - Satisfaction with the retail experience among smartphone owners is
24 points higher than among owners of traditional handsets (742 vs. 718,
respectively). Overall retail sales satisfaction among new smartphone
owners of devices that run on the Android OS platform is higher, due
mainly to aggressive price/promotion activities. - More than one-half (56%) of wireless customers visit their retailer
to upgrade or replace a phone from their current carrier. Renewing or
changing an existing wireless plan (38%) and purchasing a new device
(31%) round out the top reasons customers cite for having visited a
retail store within the past six months.
The 2011 U.S. Wireless Retail Sales Satisfaction Study--Volume 1 is
based on experiences reported by 8,501 wireless customers who completed a
retail sales transaction within the past six months. The study was
fielded between July and December 2010.
Now
in its eighth year, the semiannual study analyzes evaluations from
customers who recently had an in-store wireless retail sales experience.
Overall customer satisfaction with major wireless carrier-branded
stores is based on four factors: staff (49%); price and promotion (27%);
store facility (14%); and store display (10%).