Republic has been rated #1 in the world – yes, IN THE WORLD – out of the top 1,000 telecoms for quality of customer support through email. Republic was recognized by support platform Netomi as reported by Email Insider. We took the gold with a near perfect 99.8 out of 100, well ahead of the silver and bronze medal winners from Indonesia and Malaysia. This was based on personalization, response time, thoroughness of the answer, as well as showing we care.
(Source: Customer Service Benchmark report by Netomi)
Unfortunately, our fellow American telecoms did not represent the good old USA so well. They averaged only 49.9, and most of them charge a lot more for their service than Republic’s average $20 per month. Republic just works harder to treat our members right.
Email support across the globe was pretty dismal. Only 53% of the 1,000 telecom firms had an email that was easy to find, and, of those, 66% ignored the email request. Only 28% responded about opening a new account, as if they did not want your new business.
Despite the overall performance in this category, email is used by over 4 billion people in the world with over 300 million emails sent per day (The Radicati Group). When it comes to marketing and sales, more people prefer Websites, Phone, and Video. As for customer support, Email has become the preferred form of communication.
When it is done well, email support is superior for many reasons. It works on your time and, therefore, is more convenient. You can send an email, get up and do something else, and check back for a response when it works for you. No one likes to wait on hold for a customer service agent who may or may not have the information you need, and many do not like holding a real-time conversation which can drop or get interrupted. Unlike a call or many live chat platforms, email keeps a record that can be referenced later to save time or verify important information.
At Republic we look at 99.8 and say, “We can do better.” We obsess over treating our members right. That’s why we keep measuring, surveying and listening to our members about how we can improve. 80% of our member support requests are solved with one or two emails, and these resolutions get a 93% satisfaction rating in our member surveys. According to the research from Netomi, only 6% of telecoms cared enough about their email communications to survey their customers’ satisfaction with their efforts.
If you’re currently a Republic member, always let us know how we’re doing, and please join our community. We will continue to obsess about improving our member support, and we’ll continue innovating new ways for you to save money for better things in life than your cell phone service. Our average member pays only $20 per month, and all plans include the award-winning customer support you just read about in this study. You deserve to be treated better than you probably are now and to save a few bucks while you’re at it.
