Android News
T-Mobile USA earns highest satisfaction ratings…so why can’t they attract more customers?
March 4, 2010 | by Andrew Kameka
Featured post, T-Mobile
T-Mobile USA has received the highest ranking in the J.D. Power and Associates 2010 Wireless Retail Sales Satisfaction Study – Volume 1. T-Mobile earned the highest score for customer satisfaction among U.S. carriers, the 8th time in 11 volumes that Magenta has come out on top.
If T-Mobile is so great, what’s causing them to continuously lose out in the customer race to AT&T and Verizon? Despite earning the highest marks for a competent sales staff and favorable prices, T-Mobile ranks last among the four major carriers when it comes to subscriber totals. The company did increase to 33.8 million customers in 2009, up from 32.8 million a year ago, but much of that comes from prepaid customers. T-Mobile actually lost 117,000 net contract customers in the last three months of 2009.
One would think that having the most satisfied customers would lead to a better position in the cellular phone market; however, T-Mobile has three major problems holding them back
- Carrier awareness and lack of advertising
- Lack of easily-accessible, next-generation smartphones
- There’s a Map for them, too
Carrier awareness and lack of advertising
I can’t turn on my TV without seeing Owen Wilson peddling AT&T or Verizon advertising their latest phone and telling everyone they have a superior network. I can count the number of times I’ve seen a T-Mobile commercial in the past week on one hand. When you have two networks bombing the airwaves touting their virtues, it creates a brand recognition and enticement that T-Mobile simply can’t match. It’s tougher for them to draw new customers when faced with this situation.
Lack of easily-accessible, next generation smartphones
T-Mobile has done an incredible job of embracing Android, but they’ve moved backwards. They keep running back to the myTouch well and bringing on phones that are already out-dated before they even hit the store shelves. When it’s time for someone to pick a new smartphone, the CLIQ XT or Behold II simply cannot stand up to the iPhone or Droid if you’re looking for one of the most powerful devices on the market.
The Nexus One might help T-Mobile attract some new customers, but it will be hard to hold on to some current subscribers because many aren’t eligible for an upgrade. T-Mobile told me I can get an early upgrade but they won’t let me apply it to the N1, which costs more than $500 when purchased by itself. It would actually be cheaper for me to just wait on the Supersonic/Desire/Incredible and pay the higher costs of 2 years on a Verizon contract.
There’s a Map for them, too
While it’s easy to laugh at AT&T’s spotty 3G coverage, T-Mobile hasn’t had any 3G coverage in several places for quite some time. I didn’t get 3G in Miami until late 2008, and there are many places in the US that still lack coverage or have data speeds that cannot compete with the other companies. Is there truth to you get what you pay for? Perhaps. Maybe the HSPA+ upgrade will make T-Mobile more attractive and faster than its competitors.
Conclusion
I have been with T-Mobile since 2007 and it’s been the best contract experience I’ve had. The prices have always been the best, I have 3G in my home market and most cities I travel, and I’ve been relatively happy with my G1 for most of that time. However, I’m not sure if I will be on T-Mobile’s subscriber rolls come 2011. The company won’t let me use my upgrade towards a Nexus One and it doesn’t seem like they will get a legit Android superphone other than the unique Nexus One. Data speeds are also inferior to Sprint and Verizon in my market.
Customer service and fair prices go a long way, but day-to-day advantages will always trump that (at least for me). A speedy HSPA+ rollout in my city might convince me to stick around and renew my contract, but nice sales people isn’t going to keep me loyal to T-Mobile. Quarterly reports and T-Mo’s stellar performance in J.D. Power and Associates’ surveys show that I’m not the only one who feels that way.
Andrew,
You are dead-on about the myTouch. Why they are not doing any TV/Radio marketing around the Nexus One is beyond me. I'm already sick of these Clapton Fender/myTouch commericals. Who cares, that is like a 2nd-gen android phone and we're on like the 4th generation as I see it. They need more Android phones (T-Mobile: especially with physical keyboards!) and they need to come out and tell people that they can do everything an iPhone can for less money.
I agree, I'm on Tmobile and I make good money. I'm willing to shell out $300 for a nice android phone but instead they want me to pay $150 for a 528mhz phone that's borderline obsolete. What's the point?!?
I think perhaps we're missing the point here fellas. The whole idea of the Android platform and indeed the Nexus One was to separate the devices from carriers. While I would agree that the reason for T-mobile not picking up customers is probably partly due to a lack of handsets, carrying more expensive devices and locking people in for 2 years just isn't a forward looking approach. I work in retail for T-mobile and my experience is that people actually aren't so turned off by the concept of paying full retail for their phones when they know they can have more control over their experience with the carrier.
From a business perspective why wouldn't T-mo want to dramatically reduce the cost of acquiring customers and engender loyalty among its users by not using coercive tactics to earn their business. The key for T-mobile, I think, is to really push the 'carrier-independent-handsets' -model through a big advertising push. Let people know that they can get coverage that, for all practical purposes, is just as good as any of the other carriers, for less money, with no contract. That's an appealing narrative And like Mike said, T-mo needs to let people know that the Android OS offers as much power and a great deal more flexibility when compared to an iPhone.
I am of a mixed mind about your comment John and not because you are wrong but more because I am just not sure I agree :->. I do agree that the idea of offering handsets independent from a contract is appealing for a lot of people. It is the way much of the world works in the cell phone industry. It would be nice to see Tmo make that option clear when purchasing handsets. I have been with them since they were Voicestream, going on 10 years, and I agree 100% about their customer service and, living n Seattle which is their home marker, I find the coverage excellent. I also appreciate their push to drive costs lower, I stayed with them when the G1 came out rather than switching to an iPhone (even though I am an Apple fan) because the data cost was so much better.
All that being said, I would still like to see a higher number of high quality handsets offered with the contract option. I do not feel constrained by the contract issue specifically because I am happy with the service. I have not intention of jumping from provider to provider, I just want a good phone at a better price, $530 for the Nexus is more than I want to spend, plus, it can be hard to find the phones you want in an unlocked form (note the iPhone and the Droid).
In short, can't they offer both? Until America is ready to accept wholesale the unlocked phone method, they need to make a bigger push for good handsets.
John that is very appealing, but the carrier-independent approach would dishonest. You can technically switch to AT&T, but you'll be paying more money for less service since you're unable to get 3G. My issue with that is phones in the U.S. are locked down to one carrier. It's one thing to purchase a phone at full retail price for $500+ dollars, but I don't want to do that if I'm forced into using that phone on one network and essentially still in a "contract" of sorts since I have no choice but to stick with T-Mobile.
The Desire is going to be on contract at every carrier in the UK, but that will never happen in the U.S. because of spectrums and carriers fighting so hard to get exclusivity. If I knew that I could take my Nexus One and get 3G on Sprint, Verizon, or AT&T, it would be easier to reconcile that high purchase price. But current conditions don't allow that.
The lack of 3G coverage is very frustrating. I live in Wyoming, so I've come to expect that we're going to be way behind the more populous areas. However, the fact that Verizon and Sprint are offering 3G and I'm still stuck with EDGE is really starting to annoy. I've been very happy with the service that T-Mobile has provided me with over the years, but if they continue to ignore their customers out here I'll seriously consider switching companies. (Although I'll never go back to Verizon. Screw those guys.)
No data-only for android handsets got me to cancel my contract. ATT was happy to be of service.
Are you using VOIP on a data only plan? If so would you be willing to talk about your experience? Shoot me an email if so!
I did paid the price for the Nexus One and glad I did. Tmobile has been so much better than the other providers when it comes to help for their customers. I can also use the WiFi for so much of what do instead of 3g since our town and home internet service is great, but I would really like to see a data rate plan for use in other countries that is reasonable. The other US wireless services are not the best in so many other areas of the world. But it is so frustrating to have to turn off all of the great features of this smart phone if I go out of the US since the data plans are so expensive and this is where I think Tmobile could pick up a lot of new subscribers.
If Google, or T-Mobile were that concerned with the total volume of hones sold, the Nexus One would not have had ridiculous restrictions turning their backs on family plans, and unlimited plans. i have been with them 8 years, and have had the G1 since it was released. My G1 recently died, and it was a joke in that store looking at what my options were to upgrade. I ended up just getting another G1. You have to realize that with the immense power of Google, and the T-mobile, they really do not see these issues as important. So they may lose massive amounts of loyal customers to the others, but they will convince a massive amount of people to sign up for Nexus One through Google. Look at the bright side…at least we all know how Google really feels about those of us with G1's that helped them test a brand new OS.
You will see some really good Androids coming out of T-Mobile this year. And really good experience. Not sure why people even talk about Droid.. a crappy Motorola phone… You will also see the HD2 in March, in the mean time. Expect good Android before June.
I was looking at applying my early upgrade to a N1 as well. I logged into my tmobile account and it will let me upgrade to any other smartphone for a regular new contract price but I cant upgrade to a N1.
Owned a T-Mo phone but wasn't very satisfied at all… I think this survey was rigged or something. Everybody I know who had T-Mo contracts have switched already or are thinking of switching.
I get much more joy from my NET10 prepaid phone, and ended up paying less per month.
Ive Been With T-Mobile Since Early 2003. I Was Always Happy With Them Till Last Summer. Been Noticing Are Network Is Getting Worse But Yet They Keep Saying Its Better. Seriously, Why Would T-Mobile Be Focusing On 4G Now When Our 3G Network Trying To Keep Up With All These Other Companies When All Their Doing Is Not Focusing On The Real Problems. My Service Has Been Getting Worse Every Season And I Am Not Renewing My Contract.
I was with T-Mobile for 10 years and canceled my account about six weeks ago. They were good for the first 8 years and then they took a nose dive and now I think they have the worst customer service of any company that I have ever done business with. And their coverage is not as good as either AT&T or Verizon.