Verizon's Consumer Group CEO takes a huge step toward improving the company and the industry
Verizon's Consumer Group CEO is trying to improve the carrier by making subscribers feel that they are being heard.
Over the last few years, you've read our articles telling you how wireless providers such as T-Mobile, AT&T, and Verizon have been criticized by subscribers for failing to put customers first. We told you about wireless executives who look the other way while reps take advantage of their customers, charging them for purchases that were never consented to. All of this stems from the increasingly higher goals that carriers demand that their reps meet every month or face losing their jobs.
Verizon Consumer Group CEO Sowmyanarayan Sampath recently sent an email to customers. In the email, Sampath tried to soothe Verizon customers by writing that the carrier is "raising the bar" and has "taken a different path.” And he added the often-heard phrase, "You’re the reason we’re here." He ended the email by saying, "We’re building an experience that will earn your trust, every single day. If we ever fall short — I want to hear about it, so we can get better."
Verizon's CEO has made a bold move in an attempt to improve the wireless industry's image
While it all sounds like the usual fluff that an executive writes his customers to keep them from leaving, Verizon's Consumer Group CEO included something at the end of his email that was surprising. To help Verizon customers pass along their experiences to the CEO so he can hear what is going on, Sampath included his email address so that Verizon customers could pass along to him their experiences as Verizon subscribers.
Verizon Consumer Group CEO Sowmyanarayan Sampath has an opportunity to improve Verizon and fix the wireless industry. | Image credit-Verizon
To let you know how rare this is, as a Verizon subscriber myself for over 20 years, there were times when I really wanted to speak to the CEO, who was Lowell McAdam at one point in time. Somehow, I figured out the email address for his office and was able to communicate with McAdam's team. So I can really appreciate what Sampath is doing. The important question is, "Will the CEO of the consumer group investigate customer complaints and actually make the necessary changes?"
The Verizon executive might not get the opportunity to read all of the emails sent to him. But he has the opportunity to make Verizon subscribers feel better by at least having members of his team read these emails and respond to them. This is the sort of thing that T-Mobile CEO Mike Sievert should do, but probably never will. Appearing at investor and tech conferences might be great for getting your name in print and perhaps goosing the price of the stock up. But it doesn't fix the problem that some T-Mobile subscribers might have when they notice that a rep charged them for new lines they didn't ask for, or they were charged for device insurance they didn't want.
To be fair, this happens to other carriers besides T-Mobile. But if Verizon's Sampath actually follows through on his email and eliminates customer pain points by making changes, this is going to help Verizon lower its churn rate. It also will help the firm keep more subscribers, and perhaps steal some away from its rivals.
Sampath has the opportunity to fix the wireless industry in the U.S.
It seems to me that there used to be a carrier that eliminated customer pain points, put customers first, and this helped them become the fastest growing and most innovative wireless provider in the U.S. Do you remember who that carrier was? Yes, it was T-Mobile back in the day when it was the Un-carrier. Of course, T-Mobile had a different CEO at the time. While John Legere seemed to be as customer-friendly as a CEO could be, I don't recall Legere giving away his personal email address in an email sent to customers.
Sampath has a golden opportunity to do several things now. He can turn Verizon into the consumer-friendly carrier that T-Mobile used to be. He can help improve the image of the industry which, frankly, seems to be ahead of only used car sales in the U.S. All the executive has to do is read the emails he is sent and reply with some answers that help to relieve Verizon customers' pain points and let them know that they are being heard. That will make them feel happy to be Verizon customers.
A little more than a decade ago, this was the formula used by John Legere with T-Mobile. He made T-Mobile customers feel special, as though they were part of something big. That they were part of a big team. It worked until he left. Now, Sampath and Verizon have fired the first salvo in an effort to fix an industry that has been broken.
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