Reach out, I'll be there: why communicating with customers can't stop after the contract is signed

It’s not often the arcane realm of technical development spills out into the wider business world, but that’s arguably what happened with software as a service.

That might sound strange—but hear me out.

Many of us in tech fondly remember when you bought a licence for an application or a box to run an application—and that was it. You put it in a server room or data centre and it whirred away doing its thing until a patch, point release or obsolescence demanded a change. The model meant little to no contact with the vendor or reseller until change was needed or it broke.

That model changed fundamentally with software as a service.

A whole new relationship

While there had already been services and service-level agreements (SLA), the move to as-a-service consumption brought the conditions of an SLA to broader software and application use. No longer did you buy a licence, box or app and go away until it needed something—now you were buying into a relationship, a long-term interaction with a supplier or service provider which meant a very different way of interacting.

In telecoms we were often guilty of the old operating model. We sold services and connectivity but often, once connected, we didn’t communicate as richly or as often as we could and should have to see how the customer was getting on, how they were using what they were paying for, and if we could do better for them. But with the growing familiarity of the as-a-service model and the accompanying boost in customer experience, customers began to question why other companies weren’t stepping up to the plate.

Some sections of the industry stepped up, and others didn’t. Those that did benefited. Those that didn’t suffered.

Being more

Many of us in the telecoms industry realised we were more than mere providers of connectivity. We saw the potential for us to unite our wealth of knowledge by leveraging our services from a broad spectrum of customers and use cases—and we knew we could add value.

By having a more proactive relationship with customers, we knew we could inform their thinking about how to better use what we provide, and help them develop their own capabilities. We could identify not just what ‘good’ looked like, but could also show them roadmaps for transformation.

However, all of this is possible only by way of deep and regular communication, which increases understanding and develops the dynamic into a bona fide partnership.

Day-to-day and beyond

Just as many organisations were planning for their next phase either in recovery or expansion because of new demand, geopolitical events made the global situation even more unstable and unpredictable.

It’s absolutely vital to communicate with customers to understand their situation, both in the day-to-day and in the long term. Global supply chains have been disrupted in ways few could have predicted, resulting in massive shifts, regionally and worldwide.

If you haven’t spoken to a customer in a month, how are you going to know the challenges they face? Or the challenges you can help them with?

The best thing about this is that it doesn’t take a huge shift to improve this state of affairs.

A call, email or meet-up can be all you need to get started. It doesn’t need to be formal, arranged months in advance. But the contact does need to be regular and easy. Only then can you ask “How’s it going?” and expect a legitimate answer.

And then you’ve really got to listen.

The listening partner

A listening partner is one who hears the crucial information and can provide assistance by way of information and references. Tell the customer about examples of organisations facing similar difficulties. Explain what other businesses have done to meet the same challenges or pivot operations in a similar way. Share the blogs, the thought leadership and white papers that will help them build or reinforce a plan.

Let’s be frank: it’s going to be a horrible time over the next 12 months for all?companies. But if you play that right, everyone involved can come out stronger on the?far side.

We have worked hard here to improve customer experience, driven by the need and desire to help people. We put in place those processes and facilities to increase contact, track needs, and provide supports.

And in 2020 we truly stepped up and came into our own.

Stepping up

We asked 1,200 IT decision makers across the US, Europe and Asia how they would rate their current network provider during the pandemic across several key areas. The respondents comprised a mix of Colt customers and those who work with our peers.

What we found was that, when it came to reliability, 9 out of 10 respondents rated their provider as good or excellent. But for Colt customers this was 93%.

All that work was recognised last year when Colt won a 2021 B2B Customer Experience Award at the UK CS Awards, a rarity in the telecoms sector.

Contact and constancy

Going back to basics, our rating and recognition stems from the simple principle of contact: regular communication across many channels—formal and informal alike, but always constant. It’s no bad thing that people don’t want to just buy something and never be heard from again. Customers expect engagement, and it’s sound business sense to provide it. Then together we thrive.

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