vB Easy Archive - Explaining migration to customers.

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Explaining migration to customers.
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Posted by: SoCal91302

We all deal with this on a daily basis, and I have yet to find an answer to give to customers as to why they need to switch from AT&T to Cingular, which is now owned by... at&t. I mean, yes.. "I" know why, but in your experience how do you explain it to the average person that comes in and wonders why they can't just buy a phone and keep their existing plan? Just want to try a new approach to making customers understand.

Posted by: ivwshane

Would tell them that billing system is different and that there really wasn't any interoperability between the two. I would also tell them that if I could just sell them a phone for use with their at&t account I would but when they go to put the sim card in it it wont work (tdma is even easier because it's a totally different technology then what we sell and cingular uses).

However it sounds like that you guys wont have to migrate customers pretty soon with the billing systems merging (except for tdma users maybe).

Posted by: Alfred_Neuman

whats worse is them asking "so what plan do i have?" and im like "i dont know"

and then them complain about not being able to keep their plans when they dont even know what they have :bangscustomersheadagainstconcretewall:

Posted by: theclarks1

For the customers sake tell them not too!!!!!

Posted by: audiovoxx

i would explain all the benefits of cingular.... rollover minutes, phones, i mean with aws its really hard to replace a phone, get a sim replaced, even lockline is running out of phones...... its just a matter of time before every blue customer is migrated i do believe you can sell the benefits of being on a orange network

Posted by: 3rdshift

like paying more and getting less?

Posted by: Isriam

how about you stop trying to migrate them, piss them off, and lie to them?

most customers cant wait for their contract to be over with cingular so they can switch to another carrier. people always think the grass is greener somewhere else, and sorry to say but CS reps and sales reps only make that feeling more with the BS they tell customers.

tell them to buy a phone on ebay, extend their ATTWS contract, and keep a blue sim. it doesn't matter as long as they continue to pay their bill year after year right? so why piss them off and make them want to switch carriers?

seriously, why the push to migrate? i've never heard one person migrate to orange that was happy. they just end up canceling their contract and going to t-mobile.

Posted by: sharksfan

Quote:

Originally Posted by Isriam

i've never heard one person migrate to orange that was happy.

I migrated, then reverse migrated 2 days later. ATTWS offers some invaluable features that CAN'T/WON'T be matched by Cingy, at least in the near future.

Posted by: sharksfan

Quote:

Originally Posted by audiovoxx

i would explain all the benefits of cingular.... rollover minutes, phones, i mean with aws its really hard to replace a phone, get a sim replaced, even lockline is running out of phones...... its just a matter of time before every blue customer is migrated i do believe you can sell the benefits of being on a orange network

I laugh everytime a CS rep gives me the rollover pitch. If I have a grip of minutes to 'rollover' each month, I am in the wrong plan to begin with!

Ebay is a great place to purchase new, unlocked, inexpensive GSM phones. Need a blue sim? You can find new/unused ones there as well. I just picked up a few along with a new 6620.

Rumor has it that Blue customers will be moved to the Orange billing system in the near future with plans/features intact. Basic leagacy features (Mmode, sms, mms) will still be available to addon as well.

Lockline isn't an issue. If you didn't have insurance on your phone before last summer, you cannot get it now.

Did I mention Manual Network Select? I live in an area that has very little native Cingy coverage. At home, my orange phone would hang on to a native tower with 1 bar... ALL calls would go to VM. With my ATTWS sim, I can select a roaming partner when I am home and enjoy my phone/features.

Free incomming SMS anyone? It's nice to receive daily sms of my sports teams scores, local weather, and headline news... for no charge!

Call/travel to Canada? The North America package is for you!

Why not explain to the customer all of the great features they currently enjoy, and that it may not be in their best interest to migrate. Later on, when they feel they must make a move, they just may come back to you for assistance.

There is no need to lie to Blue customers.

Posted by: Dhack32

we keep around blue sims sometimes since we have such a large customer base that's still on the charter plans...there's no way I'm gonna screw over someone who's been my customer for over three years. Sometimes it makes sense to switch to orange; most of the time - it's not very cost effective

Posted by: MrAlifEkin

Quote:

Originally Posted by Isriam

how about you stop trying to migrate them, piss them off, and lie to them?

most customers cant wait for their contract to be over with cingular so they can switch to another carrier. people always think the grass is greener somewhere else, and sorry to say but CS reps and sales reps only make that feeling more with the BS they tell customers.

tell them to buy a phone on ebay, extend their ATTWS contract, and keep a blue sim. it doesn't matter as long as they continue to pay their bill year after year right? so why piss them off and make them want to switch carriers?

seriously, why the push to migrate? i've never heard one person migrate to orange that was happy. they just end up canceling their contract and going to t-mobile.

Trust me. When i worked at the store I did everything I could to not migrate a customer. Yet, there are still those who insisted they wanted to migrate because the Razr phone looks so cool

Having to tell the customer about the migration fee, not keeping their plan, if one person on a family plan migrated then they all had to, blah blah blah. For what they payed me for migrations, it just wasn't worth my time. Everytime a customer told me they were an AT&T customer I would flinch and use sales tactics to get them NOT to migrate.

Posted by: Isriam

Glad to see there are people who work to retain customers instead of use the corporate BS on them.

I just don't get the whole migration thing. I'm orange, proud to be Cingular, but $$$$$ means more to me than trying to push ATTWS into the dirt.

Cingular doesn't make money on handsets. Its why they give away so many for free. Why not concentrate on keeping people locked into their contracts and happy so you have more retention? Oh well, I guess its why I'm not in sales.

Posted by: Rcadden

I will try to migrate someone, just cause it's a phone out my door. However, I also have Sprint and T-mobile at my disposal, being at an Agent. (Sprint more just to round out the kiosk, rather than actual sales). I will typically try to move them on over to T-mobile, one year contract, same number, close to the same amount of minutes. It usually works. I have had a coupla people migrate, though. M2M is it for most of them, as is the draw of a new phone. My first tactic, though, is always port to T-mobile, cause that gets me a primary rather than an upgrade.

Posted by: SoCal91302

Quote:

Originally Posted by Isriam

I wasn't asking for tips on how to convince them to migrate.

Posted by: SoCal91302

Quote:

Originally Posted by sharksfan

Now tell me how any of this relates to the question I posted?

Posted by: SoCal91302

Quote:

Originally Posted by Isriam

Glad to see there are people who work to retain customers instead of use the corporate BS on them.

I just don't get the whole migration thing. I'm orange, proud to be Cingular, but $$$$$ means more to me than trying to push ATTWS into the dirt.

Cingular doesn't make money on handsets. Its why they give away so many for free. Why not concentrate on keeping people locked into their contracts and happy so you have more retention? Oh well, I guess its why I'm not in sales.

Here is the deal, they come into my store and complain to me that they need new phones. I cannot sell them a phone that will work with AT&T. I am not looking here for advice on how I can "pull a fat one over" and make a few extra dollars (and I cannot stress the "few" part enough) on some unsuspecting customer. NO. I am asking how to make them COMPREHEND why I cannot do this. They think I am part of some consipiracy.

Posted by: SoCal91302

Quote:

Originally Posted by MrAlifEkin

Trust me. When i worked at the store I did everything I could to not migrate a customer. Yet, there are still those who insisted they wanted to migrate because the Razr phone looks so cool

So how do you explain it to the average person that comes in and wonders why they can't just buy a phone and keep their existing plan?

Posted by: SoCal91302

Quote:

Originally Posted by sharksfan

How do you explain it to the average person that comes in and wonders why they can't just buy a phone and keep their existing plan?

Posted by: SoCal91302

Quote:

Originally Posted by sharksfan

I migrated, then reverse migrated 2 days later. ATTWS offers some invaluable features that CAN'T/WON'T be matched by Cingy, at least in the near future.

Wonderful! So I take it you are not a Cingular sales rep? Thanks for playing!

Posted by: SoCal91302

Quote:

Originally Posted by theclarks1

For the customers sake tell them not too!!!!!

That is not the issue at hand. I am talking about customers that come in and get upset with me because I cannot sell them a phone that works with their current service. By all means they should keep the $99 unlimited everything plan, or whatever plan they had (assuming it was better) but that is not what I am asking. Some people get upset as if it is something I can control, so maybe it I am not properly explaining why the phones do not work with their service. So far only a few responses have been valid, while others see what they want to see and take the "WHY ARE YOU LYING TO CUSTOMERS" route. They have trouble comprehending English, and these are the same people that come into the store and don't "get it".

Most customers will change providers, or buy unlocked/at&t branded phones elsewhere.. but those are not the customers I am talking about.

So, how would you explain it in terms the average person, and the pea-brained flamers in this thread could understand?

Posted by: bssop

Quote:

Originally Posted by SoCal91302

I do this...

I take apart the phone and if it is a GSM phone, it makes it easier. In my area their is a load of TDMA still

So say it is a GSM phone...

"Here is what the situation is. When you signed with at&t they have this phone locked where it can only be used with their sim cards. T-mobile does it, and so does Cingular. Unfortunatly, you sign with At&t and they sold out.

What I can give you is _____ (enter migration)"

Posted by: Isriam

Its easy. Just tell them that ATTWS is no longer. They are owned by cingular and ATT phones are not made. If they want a new phone they have to buy one on ebay. Or they need to go to orange and lose a lot of features.

Pretty simple isn't it?

Posted by: bssop

Isriam...

Make sound like cingular is all bad and that EVERY rate plan is worse. I say 75% of the time they save money. Remember it was At&t that sold the company and your contract to another company.

Posted by: Isriam

I'm not AT&T. I wouldn't own a cingular phone if I didn't work for them. Since I do, I do.

If you want a great plan, check out Cricket or Alltel unlimited. Hell even Amp'd offers unlimited cell with unlimited data.

Cingular needs to fix their rate plans.

Posted by: MrAlifEkin

Quote:

Originally Posted by SoCal91302

So how do you explain it to the average person that comes in and wonders why they can't just buy a phone and keep their existing plan?

I simply told them that the phone is locked for only Cingular service and there was no way i can unlock it. They have a plan specifically made for AT&T phones and our phones are made specifically for Cingular service. Trust me I would try every which way to avoid a customer migrate (we used to call them 'customer migraines'). Especially if it was 10 minutes till closing time, and i would just want to get the heck out of there and go home for the day. I'm sorry, but a measely two bucks per "migrain" that never went against my monthly quota was never worth it for me, and was avoided by all costs.

Posted by: kilowatt

thank god i'm not in a former att market anymore. i hated messing with migrations. when i did have to do them, i would tell people it was their only choice to get a new phone and a new plan. otherwise find a way to get a phone on your own.

Posted by: Sprinter

If a Blue customer wants a new phone I tell them that what they have is grandfathered and no changes can be made unless it is to something current, so a rate plan change is in order.
This is even true for Orange accounts in some markets I believe. I know it's true for Orange accounts that have *really* old TDMA plans, a change to GSM will force a plan change in many cases.
I also know customer care tells Orange customers if they want new phones, they need new plans. I don't change plans on Orange upgrades unless the system won't let me keep it the same.

Posted by: kilowatt

i've never done an orange upgrade where the customer had to change the rateplan. it's always let me keep their current plan attached...even really old tdma plans.

Posted by: bssop

There is a few cases where you have to change a plan on an upgrade.

The 1000 min TDMA Promo comes to mind

Posted by: BellaDea

I'm a cingular rep and honestly I don't change people over ot make a buck. If it's not worth them to change over at the time, then I tell them not to do it. simple as that. rate plan changes period should only be done to benefit the customer.

as far as explaining migration, I let them know that (if they're on Blue GSM) they have a SIM that still has an AT&T logo on it and the phones I have now require a Cingular branded SIM which would require them to "migrate". this would also give them rollover minutes and blah blah blah. Now for TDMA it's easier cause you just tell them it's a different network that they need to migrate to either now if they want to or later but it will happen. TDMA is going away, no way to stop it. Also a lot of Blue GSM customers' quality of service is degrading due to (from what WNS has said and I've heard from a few people) the blue phones not getting the proper tower updates needed to get good quality of service. So in a way I tell people about that and explain it that way as well, just not so wordy.

as long as you make it simple and break it down, customers will usually understand any explaination you can give, just make sure it's not a lie