I’ve only been an M1 customer since the first mobile phone I bought when I first entered NS (so that my mom could keep in contact with me). That was about 10 years ago.
Recently, I was under a rather expensive BlackBerry plan from M1. The contract ended about 4 months ago and I was considering of changing to another cheaper plan. I was also considering getting a HTC Hero.
Early Saturday morning, I saw an advertisement placed by Starhub in the ST. They were offering the HTC for $98 (under certain conditions). One of the discounts offered was only for new subscribers moving from another company (i.e. M1).
I placed a series of calls first to M1 to verify the following things:
1. Was my contract over (just to confirm again).
2. What was the cost of porting over to Starhub.
3. Was M1 selling the HTC Hero and what was the cheapest price I could get it based on getting an equivalent Starhub plan.
I even went down to the M1 store at B1 in Plaza Singapura to check with the staff there about promotions, rebates, discounts for existing customers, plans before purchasing my HTC Hero from Starhub.
Any decent human being would have figured out:
1. I really wanted to buy the HTC Hero.
2. I was going to cancel my M1 line.
I’m surprised that no one from M1 that I interacted with offered me a deal I could not refuse. They were just happy to answer my questions instead of trying to keep me as a customer.
When a customer’s contract has expired, I think the telcos should treat these customers as potential new customers instead of treating us as people who will always just stay around.
I was fully prepared to pay $398 for the phone but apparently there were discounts from Starhub that I weren’t aware of and I ended up paying only $198 for the phone. w00t.
In a surprisingly shocking parallel, our government treats those they want to attract better than those they already have here.
Note:
Always pay attention to the date your contract expires. Once it does, do not waste time and renegotiate another contract. If you don’t intend to get a new phone, you can almost always get the same plan for cheaper monthly rates.
chinesealbumart | 05-Oct-09 at 5:23 pm | Permalink
I had the same experience as u. I was a M1 subscriber about 13 years ago. Recently my contract finished. They offered me a very pathetic package to stay on… i laughed and move on to Singtel.
Starhub and M1 must learnt that customers are hard to come and even harder to keep
iantimothy | 05-Oct-09 at 6:14 pm | Permalink
Is Singtel any better with their retention?
I have a feeling it is all three telcos – the customers do merry go around every two years.
tattooedbanker | 05-Oct-09 at 6:49 pm | Permalink
for telcos you just have to be very direct. Every 2 years, I will call up starhub a mth or so before my contract expire and ask for vouchers. Thats right, just ask for it. They will say help u apply etc etc no promises but so far i been getting from 100-200 every 2 yrs that I request
iantimothy | 05-Oct-09 at 7:57 pm | Permalink
Hello tattooedbanker – that’s good advice.
The Singapore Daily » Blog Archive » Daily SG: 6 Oct 2009 | 06-Oct-09 at 11:09 am | Permalink
[...] the universe and everything – Ian On The Red Dot: M1’s ‘Terrible’ Customer Retention Scheme – Temasek Hedge: Capitaland looking to palm off retail assets to next greater fool [Thanks Bink] – [...]
lucy | 06-Oct-09 at 11:29 am | Permalink
Isn’t tt the same with the banks? New clients or if u bring in fresh money, they will pay u higher interest. U can roll over yr savings for a million years n they will pay u the lowest of the low.
Ben | 06-Oct-09 at 11:42 am | Permalink
i think the writer had barked at the wrong tree.. the people that they spoke to are customer rep, they are powered with answers to questions BUT not empowered to provide extra (in this case a better deal to keep the customer)
Like what tattooedbanker has said, you have to be straight to the point with the them, if you are a valued customer (clocked hundred in a month bill) you can request for vouchers to off set the handphone purchase.
I am with M1 for years and so far I have not paid a single cent for the few handsets I owned.
Isman @groovygenie | 06-Oct-09 at 11:59 am | Permalink
Hi Ian,
I had the same EXACT experience from M1 early in the year. Like you, I’ve been a customer since ‘97. My contract ended but there were really no attempt to woo me back. I ended up with Singtel, merely for the simple fact that I wanted a Nokia E66 which M1 wasn’t carrying. But I would have found a way to stay if M1 had bothered to dangle a compelling offer for an ol’ time customer to stick around.
They need a customer-culture turnaround within M1. They are simply too blase with existing customers.
iantimothy | 06-Oct-09 at 12:51 pm | Permalink
Hello Ben, you are right that the customer reps probably have little power to provide extra. I’m wondering why the telcos don’t have provisions that empower these reps. But you are right, they (the reps) aren’t the ones at fault here.
Hello Ismam, I think all the telcos need a turnaround in policies.
The Singapore Daily » Blog Archive » Weekly Roundup: Week 41 | 10-Oct-09 at 10:50 am | Permalink
[...] hidden heartland – a story you can’t read in the Lion City [Thanks Ben] – Ian On The Red Dot: M1’s ‘Terrible’ Customer Retention Scheme – Temasek Hedge: Capitaland looking to palm off retail assets to next greater fool [Thanks Bink] – [...]