As more consumers are using instant communication applications/tools such as text messaging (SMS) for their day to day activities, many businesses are looking to use those same forms of technology to improve the communication experience with their customers. Fortunately, the concept of merging business communications with popular consumer applications like texting isn’t limited to enterprises with large budgets. It is evident that small and medium sized companies are also being forced to rethink their communication strategies with their customers.
However, to provide text messaging services that deliver appropriate communications to customers, businesses are asking how to make this happen without unreasonable budget-crushing financial investments, potential security risks, integration challenges and more. Telcos have never necessarily been under the most pressure to adopt new technologies even though their customers have expressed unsatisfactory services from them. As a result of how essential their products and services are to the modern world, many of the big telcos have few issues meeting their revenue targets today.
In today's ever-evolving marketplace, finding creative ways to brand your company is becoming increasingly difficult; therefore, many businesses are focusing on finding new ways to serve their customers better. Considering the high churn rate in telecom companies, one would expect them to be in desperate need of a well-oiled customer experience machine. Not to imply that Telcos do not know this; they are definitely aware of it and while it may seem like a simple fix, adopting new technologies and improving customer interaction, such as business texting software, does not come without some hesitations and some resistance from within.
This blog discusses some of the internal barriers within the telecommunications industry that impede the adoption of innovative technologies such as business text messaging software.
- Defining a clear scope at the outset
Often the biggest hurdle to any change is the inability to reach agreement on what the scope for the change is for all parties involved. Considering the true cost of implementation, it should come as no surprise to anyone that Telco executives are far less likely to commit to hardware purchases and software licenses if they were aware of the true implementation costs. Creating a clear, compelling definition of the change must be the starting point of every change initiative. Those expectations go beyond the time and budget expectations or the technical objectives. Moreover, they must consider the human capital elements of the project as well. This is where many businesses miss the mark when it comes to a technology shift, as they are too focused on how a system might work, rather than how it might be used by people in their new roles.
- Employee resistance to change
There is a risk that a technological change could lead to significant levels of resistance because of work flow disruption. This resistance can be out and expressed to senior leaders or kept to employees themselves. In either case, they shouldn't be ignored. Telco leaders will need to create a plan for how that resistance will be identified and managed if any. It's not that resistance to change is inherently bad -- it's just that resistance could slow down adoption during the integration phase.
- Problems with integration
There is a need to evaluate any new technology being introduced into the business from the perspective of existing processes and legacy technologies that might be affected. Integration problems should be handled as a matter of priority rather than being treated as an afterthought, as this can lead to very costly issues. Integration problems may prove to be very expensive in the long run.
- New technologies may introduce new security vulnerabilities
New technologies go through a maturity cycle; the early phase can be rife with security vulnerabilities. Adopting new technologies may expose your company to new security threats, so it’s important to cultivate a culture of learning and of quick responsiveness. That way, your people learn to anticipate rather than just react to changes.
In order to remedy some of the challenges mentioned above, it will be necessary to implement a people management and change management strategy simultaneously. Statflo, on the other hand, has characteristics that enable it to address the integration, risk, and privacy concerns that telecommunication companies worry about. This is accomplished by emphasizing the following factors:
- For integration, Statflo works with your existing CRM tools through our open APIs and pre-built integrations. It can even be embedded directly inside your application to address integration challenges.
- We provide flexible user interfaces that can be configured to provide context and content based on the requirements of customers.
- A telecommunications company can specify content rules that apply to both inbound and outbound messages
- Using compliance controls, Statflo enforces brand and legal standards, providing customers with peace of mind with local legal compliant messaging standards, tight security around their information, and professional processes to ensure that their data is safe.
- It is possible for telco businesses to enforce brand and legal standards by controlling what is sent and received by their employees. All data is tracked and can be sent to external business intelligence tools for sale attribution.
- Statflo has a risk-based assessment security program to protect its clients. The framework provides administrative, technical, and physical safeguards to ensure the confidentiality, integrity, and availability of data.
Conclusion
The process of acquiring and installing new technology isn’t always as simple as it sounds, especially for legacy industries like telecommunications. The challenge for many organizations lies in making sure that personnels and consumers adopt the new system in full, and use the new processes consistently. However, if you can overcome these obstacles, you will be well on your way to a successful implementation of new technology.
Book a demo to learn more about Statflo.
