Survey: 46% of UK ‘overwhelmed’ by range of broadband bundles
July 18, 2019
UK consumers are feeling increasing overwhelmed by the range of broadband and content bundles on offer, according to the a report from EY’s annual digital home survey of 2,500 UK consumers. Nearly half of households (46 per cent) in the latest survey (2018) believe there is too much choice in the market, up from 43 per cent in 2017.
In addition, while most consumers respond to introductory offers, even more find them to be a source of confusion rather than clarity. While 55 per cent of consumers agree that introductory offers play a significant role in their choice of broadband provider, 56 per cent of consumers find that these offers make it difficult to work out which broadband package represents the best value.
In a crowded and often confusing marketplace for broadband bundles, customer service credentials are a key differentiator, according to the report. Over half (56 per cent) of consumers believe that a single point of customer service is an important reason for taking a bundle of services from one provider. Furthermore, 32 per cent of households surveyed say they are willing to pay more for their broadband bundle in return for good customer service. And, 37 per cent of consumers consider a reputation for good customer service as an important factor if they are going to switch providers.
When it comes to customer dissatisfaction, 38 per cent of consumers surveyed have contacted their service provider in the last 12 months with a query or to resolve an issue. The majority of issues related to broadband performance (67 per cent), followed by billing queries (22 per cent) and upgrading or downgrading a package (19 per cent). However, 13 per cent of consumers who have broadband issues do not contact customer support, this rises to 23 per cent of 18-24 year olds.
The customer support experience itself is a frustrating experience for some households, with one in five (20 per cent) dissatisfied with the response to their broadband issues. When asked why they were dissatisfied with the response, particular pain points for consumers were lack of issue resolution (36 per cent), time spent interacting with customer support (29 per cent), and multiple transfers to different departments to resolve an issue (26 per cent).
Adrian Baschnonga, Global Lead Telecoms Analyst at EY said: “Broadband bundle providers should take heed of ongoing customer grumbles as they look to improve satisfaction and loyalty. It is essential for them to provide customers with simplicity and value to stand out in an ever more crowded market place. A good reputation for customer support is also a critical factor in purchasing and switching decisions. Providers should take extra care to deliver a smooth customer experience that recognises why support might be needed and offers the most painless route to resolving issues.”