Brand Reputation Series - Issue 3: Which Brands Are Winning In The Telecoms Sector?

Our aim in this research blog series is to understand which brands are coming top in each sector across Brand Reputation metrics, such as trust and likeability, in order to predict their future performance based on consumer behaviour. 

We have been tracking the UK’s perception of brands across the Telecoms sector. From the beginning of April, when we started to track brand reputation, there has been an overall, steady decline in the number of people who believe the sector has responded well to Coronavirus.

The telecommunications sector has suffered a drop of 8% for this factor. This is despite people using platforms such as Zoom in droves during the pandemic, for quizzes, family reunions and socialising from their sofas (Source: The Drum). 

We also asked UK shoppers about the likeability of different telecommunications brands. Between April and August, almost every brand witnessed a decrease in likeability levels. However, after an initial decrease from April to May, that decline has stabilised somewhat. 

O2 

O2 remained the most liked brand of all mobile networks we studied during the first months of the pandemic. However, the amount of people reporting that they liked O2 dropped from 46% in April to 36% by the end of August. One reason for this may be that it recently announced it would be decreasing family plan discounts from 30% and 40% to just 20% (Source: Ispreview). It is important to note that changing tariffs may reduce loyalty as shoppers turn to other networks for better deals. 

Vodafone

Despite likeability towards Vodafone dropping to just 25% by mid-August, the network may have redeemed itself, winning best 5G industry deployment for its ongoing collaboration with Ford (Source: 5G.co.uk). We expect likeability towards Vodafone to improve in the coming weeks. 

GiffGaff

GiffGaff started off in April with 34% of people reporting that they liked the brand. This declined to 22% at the beginning of June, then increased to 28% in mid-June. This may be due to GiffGaff introducing an initiative to deliver phones to the isolated elderly in the UK (Source: Mobile News). Likeability then decreased to 25% by the end of August, suggesting more initiatives may help to increase the network’s likeability. 

Virgin Mobile

In April, 33% of people reported liking Virgin Mobile; this dropped to 25% by the end of August. This may in part be a result of the issue of invalid SIM cards supplied by the company, with many customers getting error messages on their devices (Source: Ispreview). Increasing customer satisfaction may be one of the ways Virgin Mobile can improve likeability.

THREE

Three saw the greatest decrease in likeability (down 13% overall). A potential cause is consumer champion Which? finding that even when phone contracts ended, 43% of customers did not see a reduction in price so were still paying for a handset that had already been paid off (Source: Express). Overcharging customers - especially during a recession and global pandemic - are obvious causes of a drop in likeability. 

Source: Rare: Consulting. UK adults 18+. Data collected between 7th April and 31st August 2020 (N=8,167). Those aware of the brand: O2 (N=6,038), Vodafone (N=6,081), Virgin Mobile (N=5,901), Three (N=5,391), GiffGaff (N=5,284), EE (N=5,886). Full data tables available from www.rare.consulting.

Towards the end of the initial lockdown, we saw a spike in likability with Vodafone who recently partnered with Disney to launch a children's smart watch, (Source: Mobile News) pairing with brands outside of the telecommunications industry may be beneficial for increasing likeability. 

Three has probably paid the overcharging of consumers. It is important that consumers contracts are clear from the beginning and overcharging consumers may lead to a decrease in loyalty and likeability. 

Overall, brands in this sector have seen a constant fluctuation in likeability, with O2 remained stable and was the most liked brand throughout the Coronavirus pandemic. Drops in April might be due to negative associations with 5G and possibly following protestors from Liverpool, Belfast and Birmingham set alight telecommunication masts (most of which were not 5G enabled) in April (Source: The Drum). Some brands recovered quicker than others but the early April levels are far from being matched.

Keep an eye out for our other sector specific blogs, including deeper dives on the Retail and Banking sectors! 

For more information on the data gathered, email hello@rare.consulting.