Unlocking the potential of prosumers: 5 Expert tips for your telecom journey

Sep 7, 2023 4:15:10 PM

"Telecom companies have traditionally categorised their clientele into two distinct groups: "Consumers" and "Business" users, tailoring their product offerings, pricing structures, and services to suit each category's specific needs."

Smiling black man in suit with a tablet in his hands

By Raine St.Claire

In the wake of the "post-pandemic era," characterised by a surge in remote work and home-based activities, a new breed of customer has emerged, known as the "Prosumer." Telecom companies have traditionally categorised their clientele into two distinct groups: "Consumers" and "Business" users, tailoring their product offerings, pricing structures, and services to suit each category's specific needs.

These Prosumers, however, defy the conventional boundaries. They share similarities with business users but exhibit heightened connectivity demands compared to the consumers of the past. Picture a scenario where a marketing executive working for a global design firm relies on uninterrupted video calls with colleagues in Tokyo and Los Angeles, all while operating from their residence somewhere in South Africa. These individuals necessitate steadfast, high-speed connections that can seamlessly support video conferencing while enabling concurrent web browsing on other devices. They may even seek to stream content from various parts of their household, all the while ensuring that their children can access Wi-Fi for homework.

For remote and hybrid workers, their current internet setups often fall short of meeting these novel work-from-home demands, prompting a frantic pursuit of residential fibre-optic internet solutions.

Differentiating between consumers and prosumers

The key distinction between consumers and prosumers lies in their roles and actions within the market. Consumers predominantly buy and use products or services, while prosumers are actively engaged in both producing and consuming these offerings. For example, a consumer might purchase energy units from a utility company, whereas a prosumer invests in solar panels to generate their electricity.

Consumers generally do not participate in the production or customisation phases; they function primarily as end-users who purchase and utilise a brand's products or services. In contrast, prosumers go beyond mere consumption; they actively contribute to the creation and tailoring of products or services to meet their needs.

From a business and marketing perspective, prosumers are highly engaged users deeply committed to fostering the growth and enhancement of your products and services. They play a pivotal role as valuable contributors to product development and marketing strategies. Typically, prosumers actively engage in the production process by providing feedback on desired features and customisation requests. In some cases, they even leverage the brand's tools and resources to independently create their content or products.

The global fibre to premises (FTTP) market

In 2020, the global Fibre to the Premises (FTTP) market garnered a valuation of R300- billion, with projections indicating that it will more than double by 2030. This impressive growth is characterised by a robust Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 10.62% over this period. As a result, both established telecommunications giants and emerging players in the industry are energetically expanding their fibre-optic infrastructure on a global scale.

Nevertheless, despite our ability to anticipate the needs of this burgeoning Prosumer demographic, the central question remains: how can telecom companies effectively engage and cater to their unique demands? What strategic adjustments should these telecom companies implement in their distribution and sales approaches to capitalise on this evolving trend?

This article explores five challenges that telecom companies may encounter as they endeavour to leverage the Prosumer trend and provides practical strategies for rapidly surmounting these obstacles.

1. Understand and target the prosumer market

The challenge:
Telecom companies tend to be slow to adapt to changing markets, often neglecting the Prosumer segment. To succeed, they need effective mass advertising that resonates with this audience.

The solution:
Establish the Prosumer as a target market and create tailored marketing campaigns that emphasise the benefits of high-speed internet, productivity enhancement, and seamless connectivity. Showcase home office scenarios with multiple devices in action. New Zealand's Chorus sets an excellent example with its compelling fibre optic advertisements.

Who’s doing it right?

Chorus in New Zealand provides a stellar example of targeting the Prosumer market with its captivating fibre optic advertisements, showcasing the possibilities of high-speed connectivity.

2. Promote fibre adoption with confidence

The challenge:
Telco retailers often focus on wireless sales, leaving fibre behind. Customers can be hesitant due to concerns about complicated setups and the hard sell approach.

The solution:
Telcos should prioritise fibre by creating in-store displays that highlight its benefits. Offer "easy switching" assistance to reassure customers. An excellent example comes from Eastlink in Canada, which encourages customers to try out fixed-line solutions with a user-friendly DIY approach.

Who’s doing it right?
Canadian quad play provider, Eastlink, sets a commendable example by offering a range of fixed-line solutions and promoting a DIY execution option to ease customers into the world of fibre connectivity.

3. Leverage customer data for contextual selling

The challenge:
Telecoms have vast amounts of customer data, but it's often underutilised and leads to ineffective outbound campaigns.

The solution:
Implement AI-powered contextual selling. Utilise customer usage data to identify Prosumers and target them with personalised offers. Train your staff to identify potential Prosumer customers and upsell effectively.

Who’s doing it right?
Vodafone Group, a global telecommunications giant, has established a mature network across multiple countries with a strong focus on business customers. They offer comprehensive product catalogues and a digital tool called "V-Hub" to support businesses in managing their telecom needs effectively.

4. Streamline product maturity and pricing

The challenge:
Pricing structures and product maturity vary between consumer, Prosumer, and business clients, leading to fragmented systems.

The solution:

Adopt integrated billing and commerce platforms designed for both B2B and consumer markets. Simplify offerings to bridge the gap between small businesses and consumers. Consider dedicated business lines to cater to the unique needs of business owners.

Who’s doing it right?

Vodafone Group's extensive network infrastructure includes a product catalogue that provides offerings for everything a business could possibly need, including mobility, fixed line, and business service offerings. They also offer the "V-Hub," a digital tool that acts as an online repository and knowledge base for business owners to access essential information and tools.

5. Optimise

Acquisition efforts with digital solutions.

The challenge:
Telcos often struggle to effectively inform customers about fibre availability, and face-to-face acquisition methods are outdated.

The solution:
Embrace digital solutions for door-to-door teams. Equip agents with platform-enabled tablets to provide real-time consultation and complete transactions on the spot. Implement self-service kiosks in high-density areas for quick sign-ups. Focus on hyper-local strategies to maximise customer reach.

Who’s doing it right?

While the telecom industry as a whole has room for improvement in this area, adopting more targeted e-commerce strategies, mobile sign-up kiosks, and pop-up retail locations can lead to significant improvements in customer acquisition.

Embrace the prosumer evolution

As the telecommunications landscape continues to evolve, the emergence of Prosumers presents exciting new opportunities for growth. To succeed in this dynamic market, telcos must adapt their strategies, embrace digital solutions, and effectively communicate the benefits of high-speed fibre connectivity.

Are you ready to tap into the Prosumer market?

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