CEM Engagement Research: Lumia 800, iPhone 4S and Samsung Galaxy SII

Posted on February 27, 2012 by Alex Hornborg

New Survey from CEM4Mobile Solutions

How do they rank against each other? Over the past several years CEM4Mobile Solutions, the provider of innovative Customer Experience Management (CEM) solutions and services for Mobile Operators and Service Providers, has been monitoring different trends in the mobile market. This time we analysed the flagship smartphone products from Nokia, Apple and Samsung. How equally these ‘ecosystem drivers’ engage their owners in content services?

The research included sample data from 1 December 2011 to 19 February 2012 comprising 24.9 million transactions from 1.8 million users who executed 8.4 million visits with mobile optimised services in the Nordic countries.

We wanted particularly to understand how equally the devices and their operating systems, Windows Phone, Android and iOS, are engaging their users. We selected the following Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) which all enlighten engagement from different angles:

  • Return Rate: the average amount of times user has returned to the service
  • Click Depth: average amount of page views generated within a visit
  • Bounce Rate: percentage of visitors who entered the site and left immediately
  • Average visit length: averageamount of time visitors spent on the site per/ visit

In addition we analysed usage patterns on WiFi versus mobile data usage and possible differences how well the devices are encouraging their owners to access the services through multiple access channels namely WiFi, Internet APN and WAP Gateway.

The Results

Are highlighted in the following table with the best engagement values in bold and underlined:

Apple iPhone 4S Samsung Galaxy S II Nokia Lumia 800
Sample
Transactions 17.111.898 6.392.800 1.363.903
Interactions 6.181.029 1.851.601 371.990
Engagement
Return rate 4,35 7,39 4,56
Click depth 2,77 3,45 3,67
Bounce Rate 44,58 35,67 34,63
Avg. visit length 262 301 318
Access type
WiFi traffic 65 % 49 % 43 %
Mobile Internet traffic 35 % 50 % 56 %
WAP traffic 0 % 1 % 1 %

Source: CEM4Mobile Solutions Ltd

Based on the KPIs the fiercely competing devices reach the following positions on the engagement podium:

Apple iPhone 4S Samsung Galaxy S II Nokia Lumia 800
Return rate 3 1 2
Click depth 3 2 1
Bounce Rate 3 2 1
Avg. visit length 3 2 1

Source: CEM4Mobile Solutions Ltd

Some Conclusions

Results are awesome and encouraging for Nokia. Lumia took the first positions on all the other than the Return Rate where Samsung was able to reach the pole position. Galaxy users are the most loyal towards to the services and returned in average more than 7 times in the analysed ten weeks period.

Results for Apple were surprisingly lame across all the KPIs. In the light of this survey the flagship products from other vendors have been able to bypass iPhone in terms of service engagement. This may have something to do with the fact that Apple decided to postpone the iPhone 5 launch from 2011.

Lumia users possess the greatest in-service figures, where the Lumia users consumed the highest amount of pages within a visit (3,67) and spent the longest time in the service.

iPhone users are the most aggressive WiFi connection users with total of 65% of users visiting services through wireless hotspots. Lumia is likely to please mobile operators because the users seem to use considerably more mobile network as the access point (57%) compared to iPhone (35%) and Galaxy (51%) users.

This survey didn’t seek to measure market shares but the transaction figures show that iPhone is a very popular handset in the Nordic countries. Lumia was released to the market just in December and in the light of the transactions the take up has been good.

Transactions from the mobile applications were not included to this survey because there was not yet statistically sufficient sample available from Windows applications. From the device engagement point of view things look encouraging for Nokia but as highlighted in our earlier research found at: (http://www.cem4mobile.com/blog/posts/key-mobile-market-trends-ii-mobile-apps-vs-mobile-browsing/) mobile applications produce a higher service loyalty than mobile browsing and thus it is crucial for Nokia to get enough appealing applications available to the Windows Marketplace and to the end-users handsets.

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Real-Time Quality of Experience Monitoring in Telecoms

Posted on February 21, 2012 by Alex Hornborg

Over the last couple of months I have had the privilege to partake in a number of very interesting discussions with some of the leading Mobile Operators about their views and plans regarding Customer Experience Management (CEM). A lot of focus today is going into improving processes in current touchpoints with customers. Moreover, an equal amount of thought goes into exploring the possibilities of taking CEM to the next level.

Some of the first above category actions will include fine tuning processes in customer service functions in order to improve service delivery, first call resolution in call centers, retail device sales etc. The second category revolves more around ways to eliminate customer complaints altogether. The consensus seems to be that we need to improve the ability to really measure customer experience as it happens (when the interaction takes place), all the way from the mobile device at the end of a wireless connection to the application or service, wherever in the Internet (or other) cloud that may be.

Current QoE Monitoring Methods

Today e2e QoE (Quality of Experience) measurement and reporting can be (and is) done in a variety of ways. Methods from usage-recording clients in the device to CDR analysis (Call Detail Record) to network performance analysis as well as mobile analytics are used. Another very important aspect of really understanding users is also the ability to effectively collect opinions and values (perceived quality). A major challenge with opinions is still how to present this subjective information in a business relevant way, and also, how to compare yesterday’s information with today’s to be able to see trends and understand development. Is a “bad” experience today the same as it was last week? This could depend (with most of us) on how well we have slept or how things are at home or the office in general etc.

Being able to report relevant information about service usage, user behaviour and opinions is good, but we are still just looking back at events that have already occurred and all we can do is try to analyze the data and try to not repeat our mistakes. Useful? Yes, but not ideal.

The Future: Real-Time Analytics for End-2-End QoE Monitoring

The latest in CEM solution development is coming to the rescue though. Even with today’s high-speed mobile data networks, we now have the ability to take mobile analytics and CEM to the next level, where we monitor not just network performance but actual QoE in real-time. So, mobile analytics goes real-time. What does that mean to the CEM process?

It means for instance, that we can detect and record degradation in quality of experience with specific user-service combinations over given time periods, even when the NW-management system may tell us that all systems are green. Because of the real-time element, we can now the follow the event with an immediate action such as generating alarms, increase in bandwidth or reporting proactively to call centers about potential incoming complaints. The use cases with real-time analytics are endless, and will provide real tools to start focusing on service-user interaction rather than being limited to resolving problems that have already occurred. Personally, I am looking forward to taking on the challenges of adding some real speed to the game.

The product extension will be released in Barcelona on February 27th and available for full scale commercial deployments by the third quarter of 2012.

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CEM4Mobile Joins the Network Intelligence Alliance

Posted on January 19, 2012 by Alex Hornborg

Network Intelligence AllianceHelsinki, Finland and London, UK, 16 January 2012 – CEM4Mobile Solutions Ltd, announced that it has become a member of the Network Intelligence Alliance (NI Alliance, http://www.nialliance.org/member/cem4mobile), an industry organization created for collaboration among the Network Economy’s technology providers.

In today’s Network Economy—a world that now depends and runs on networks—accurate visibility and precise tracking of data crossing networks have become crucial to the availability, performance and security of applications and services. The growing complexity of IP transactions, the explosion of mobile applications, and the mainstream adoption of cloud computing surpass the capabilities of conventional tools to improve how networks operate, expand services, and cope with cybersecurity. Just like Business Intelligence solutions emerged to unlock information hidden in the enterprise, Network Intelligence technology is an emerging category of technology to reveal the critical details of the data locked inside network traffic and transactions.

The NI Data Value Chain provides real-time visibility into data across networks. NI members develop, integrate or apply Network Intelligence. The goal of NI is to optimize data transport, secure data during transport, track data for regulatory and business purposes, and monetize data through new service offerings. Network solution requirements can vary greatly between organizations but a few common use cases may include:

  • Billing & Charging
  • Cyber Security
  • Market Research
  • Financial Transaction Monitoring
  • Lawful Interception
  • Service Assurance (ie. QoS & QoE)
  • Traffic Optimization

“We’re delighted to join the NI Alliance,” said Janne Aalto, CEO of CEM4Mobile Solutions. “The mobile services market has witnessed phenomenal growth and is changing the nature of the mobile industry. Gaining insight into the behaviour of wireless users in this environment is not easy and yet more business critical than ever. By co-operating with other Alliance members, we can ensure that our customers benefit from world-class technology, leading innovation and unmatched accuracy of the data provided”.

“CEM4Mobile Solutions is a valuable addition to the NI Alliance and we welcome their participation,” said Erik Larsson, Chairman of the NI Alliance. “The NI Alliance is about collaborative innovation with companies like CEM4Mobile Solutions who plays a leadership role in mobile analytics-driven Customer Experience Management. Working with other NI Alliance members, CEM4Mobile Solution’s customers will be able to more effectively leverage Network Intelligence to better manage, protect and profit from their data networks.”

 

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