[3GScottishUser]

Customers have slammed 3’s performance, according to the Mobile Industry Customer Satisfaction Survey.

Marketing consultancy Aura Corporation’s fourth annual survey polled 3,049 customers this year and found the network to be the worst performer in ratings of “satisfaction with network” and “satisfaction with retail store”. O2 led in both categories.

http://www.mobilenewscwp.co.uk/cgi-bin/articles.pl?id=9483§ion=15&action=display

[Ben]

Even as Three do continue to evolve (I was going to say improve... but that's still pretty subjective) it's going to be hard to shrug off the shackles they have made for themselves. It could be five or so years yet before we see them competing with the other networks in these stakes, I predict, if we still have them in five years time.

[Hands0n]

What an incredible result! I can understand "Satisfaction with retail store" - they really are drab Co-Op Funeral-style places. They look like Lord Foster has had a hand in the design (he likes black, black and then more black - see any of his building designs).

"Satisfaction with network" astonishes me though - and I'm inclined to think that its more that 3 have had a fairly mediocre selection of 3G handsets and plagued by new handset launch troubles (mostly because they fiddle intrusively with the firmware during branding). That coupled with a world-leading poor quality Customer Service operation will be bound to generate dissatisfaction with "the network". The shame [about that particular result] is that their actual "network" is very good - widespread 3G availability and, by all accounts, better 2G fallback.

There is very much right with 3 - but where they fall over so badly is their corporate disdain for "the wrong type of Customer" coupled with their Customer Services in Mumbai which could win awards for direness and atrociousness. Until they get their attitude right in the case of the former, they will be singly unable to improve the latter - they won't even have the inclination to do so.

Five years time Ben? I'd wager that we won't have 3 in their current format. I'm surprised they've lasted this long!

[3GScottishUser]

Hold on Hands on..... Co-Op Funeralcare shops are actually not very drab.... they are lilac and white and not morbid like the black and white 3Stores. I have still yet to see one busy!!

Meanwhile back at the survey ranch 3 scores lowest for customer service - again!! No surprise really as the 1000's of customer comments on the Internet confirm. It is absolutely criminal to ignore the mammoth damage that continues to plague the brand. No matter how good the network or the offers the measure of any service oriented company is how well they handle things when customers need advice etc.

If 3 want 'quality customers' (e.g. ones that contribute more than £15 a month) they need to provide a high quality customer service. The more complex the products and service the more important this becomes.... do they just not care??? It must surely be in their interests to heed the survey results for their own long term benefit? Am I missing something?

[Hands0n]

Like I said previously " ...... corporate disdain for "the wrong type of Customer" " and until that is remedied 3 face a bleak future. The company needs a top-down refit of management who actually recognise that the Customer is the sole reason that they exist. Not the technology, not the services, not the content but purely and simply the Customer! They day they get that 3 will become a formidable force to reckon with.


Edit: Re the Co-Op reference - I really mean that one would just as soon have the need to visit a Co-Op Funeral shop as a 3 store! The gloomy air of the latter would be a good match for the reality of the former! Although, I do acknowledge that Co-Op Funeral shops do their best to ease the pain and suffering of those that have such a need to visit them. Unlike 3 stores ...... oops I think I've entered a recursive loop!!!