Tackling the mobile phone repair challenge

VARINDIA- INDIA'S FRONTLINE IT MAGAZINE

After a distressful hour of trying to figure out why the screen on his new smart phone freezes frequently,Ajay Verma steps into the mobile retail shop where he always buys his phones. The retailer is also the authorized dealer for the brand, and since the registered service centre is an hour’s drive away, Mr.Vermais hoping that the store’s technician has a quick and reliable fix! The technician fiddles with the phone for a short while and finally breaks thedistressing news. The phone has to be sent to the handset manufacturer since he is unable to diagnose the problem in-store, and the process will take a week’s time. In an age where technology dictates almost every facet of our lives, Mr. Verma cannot imagine surviving a week without his mobile phone which contains all his personal and business contacts and email, and serves as his infotainment buddy on-the-go! 

The above scenario will most likely end in one way –the mobile retailer incurringwhat is actually an unnecessary expense i.e. thecost for shipping the phone to the manufacturer’s service centre, and who can do little to win back this once-loyal consumer who is disillusioned with the poor quality of service, and might never returnto his store!  

Globally, the sales of smartphones are set to overtake those of traditional feature phones for the first time this year, and smartphones have become the communication, payment and information device of choice for consumers and enterprise users alike.India is set to become the third-largest market for smartphones in four years, according to IDC Research, with phone makers launching more affordable 3G handsets and looking to tap buyers in small cities and towns.While smartphones are packed with more features and capabilities than traditional phones, they are more likely to have operational issues. What this means in an extremely competitive market place is that mobileretailerswho will benefit from this smartphone boom, need to go a step further and equip themselves to provide greater levels of in-store, after-sales services. 

The statistics for mobile phone repairs in a fragmented market like India are not quite clear, let’s look at the UK. Approximately 60,000 mobile phones are reported as ‘faulty’ each month. For mobile retailersand operators this results in an unfavourable cost of £50 per device, plus the loss of revenue from usage as the phone is sent awayto the repair centre to be fixed. But what many operators and retailers fail to realise is that sending customers phones away to the repair centre isn’t always necessary. So why then are many wasting money on shipping away mobile devices?

The expectation issue

The most common mobile faults can be divided into three main categories: battery-related problems, connectivity issues and application or software problems. However, in 60 per cent of cases these issues can be resolved within minutes or, perhaps more surprisingly, are not even faults at all. 

In many cases, the problem is actually down to an expectation issue, rather than a fault with the device itself. When switching from an old feature phone to the latest smartphone, consumers expect the performance of the device to remain the same, but with smartphones now capable of doing a lot more, this expectation is unrealistic. 

For example, one of the most common faults reported with smartphones is that ‘the battery drains too quickly’, but often this is based on a comparison with the performance of old feature phones. Whilst the battery on these phones could easily carry the device for three days without recharging, these phones didn’t have half as many features. 

Another frequently reported problem is that the mobile phone won’t take pictures, when in fact it’s simply that the device is full and won’t save the images. However, without the technology in place in store to analyse the device,many mobile operators and retailers are sending away the smartphone just to find this out. 

Using technology to their advantage 

As many consumers make the switch to the latest devices this year, the pressure on mobile operators and retailers is only going to increase. Whilst around 30 per cent of mobile phone faults are a result of expectation or misuse problems, a further 60 per cent are caused by software or application issues – all of which can be fixed without the need to send the device away.

With the growing number and complexity of ‘smarter’ devices, it is imperative that mobile operators realise that traditional approaches to diagnostics and repair are no longer adequate in coping with the rising number of reported faults and consumers’ dependence on such devices. In a time where revenue is falling and monetisation opportunities are decreasing, mobile operators and their retail counterparts cannot afford to waste money. 

Technology is now available to provide in-store and remote diagnostics and repair. These include devices and software that enable operators to identify and fix a host of problems - from the basic user error, to the more serious mobile malware and malicious applications – all from the comfort of an in-store PC.

These solutions can empower the local mobile retailer to diagnose basic phone problems in-store andprovide a quick, reliable fix! With this, mobile retailerscan generate additional revenues from phone repairs, and also eliminate unnecessary phone shipping charges. And in the long run, this would only ensure scores of customers like Mr. Verma, returning to the store because they know they can rely on their local retailers for reliable, after-sales service......See More