UK: O2 moves to change perception of it’s Mobile Broadband

Here’s a worrying stat: One in ten current mobile broadband users feel that they have been mis-sold.

“….consumers feel that they were deceived on the cost of the service with nearly a third complaining that the ongoing cost was higher than expected. One-fifth were also upset that they were unable to use mobile broadband where they wanted it despite being told by providers that there would be coverage. Another 13 per cent were frustrated that there was no returns guarantee if the service wasn’t right for them and around half wanted inclusive Wi-Fi as standard…”

So that said, it’s refreshing to see O2 taking a proactive approch to address the problem:

“On the back of this, O2 today announces a total refresh of its mobile broadband offering, laying the foundations to reinstate customer confidence in the market by providing simple, honest advice to help consumers understand the best solution for them.

The refresh includes making it easier for customers to be certain of their ongoing spend including a price reduction on core mobile broadband tariffs, the launch of a new coverage checker and a 50-day Happiness Guarantee set to turn the market on its head and offer a superior customer experience. These elements will help reinforce O2 as a highly competitive provider of mobile broadband and allow its customers to stay connected whether at home or out and about.

For heavy Mobile Broadband users, O2 is also introducing a new 10GB package for £30 per month on a two year tariff and is also the only provider to offer all its customers unlimited Wi-Fi through any of the 6,100 hotspots through an exclusive partnership with The Cloud.”

“Across the industry there are too many customers whose mobile broadband expectations have been set too high and have then been disappointed, which is a terrible shame given there are loads of people who are having a great time with mobile broadband,” said Peter Rampling, Marketing Director, O2. “We want to continue to try to set the right expectation so all our mobile broadband customers know what sort of service they are going to get. And rather than just say it, we are underwriting this commitment with our unique 50 day happiness guarantee.”

Hang on, did that say “set expectations”? Surely not! The Mobile sales process is built on theoretical maximums and things you ‘could’ do, so it’s almost turning logic on it’s head to see that a Mobile company is trying to manage expectations correctly! Joking aside, this is a GOOD move, and for the complete package of changes, they ought to be applauded.a

Customers can purchase O2 Mobile Broadband in any O2 retail store, online at www.O2.co.uk, Carphone Warehouse, PC World, Phones 4U or by calling O2 customer service on 08705 214000.