In our 2.0 world, active consumers are taking
control of customer relationships. They are searching
for products on the web, asking opinion from peer
groups, and carefully comparing prices. To compete,
telecoms and mobile networks must adjust to this
new reality. They can no longer simply broadcast
their sales messages to consumers—they must live
with consumers and consumer communities in an
interactive relationship.

So what does it take to succeed in this new
world? One key component is greater customer

understanding. Companies must help people
find offers that are relevant to them by better
understanding consumer preferences and peer-topeer
networks and influence. We call this customer
intelligence 2.0 or “Social Intelligence”.
Mobile Carriers and Mobile Service or Apps providers
are realizing they already possess a valuable
asset—customer data. In fact, telecoms and mobile
networks will no doubt grow in importance because
of the tremendous volume of data they capture.
Mobile Carriers and Mobile Service or Apps providers
are realizing they already possess a valuable
asset—customer data. In fact, telecoms and mobile
networks will no doubt grow in importance because
of the tremendous volume of data they capture.
The real question for the telecom and mobile
industry is what can they do with all this
intelligence? Can they utilize this asset to play an
important role in the ecosystem in the future, or
is a dump bit pipe their destiny?
Traditional telecom companies, such as carriers, can
use Social Intelligence to improve their customer
loyalty, up-sell and cross-sell programs. All of these
activities are strongly linked to sales. Here are just
a few applications:
1. Churn management: Sell a new contract to
existing customers and target customers who
have high influence in their peer group,
2. New customer acquisition: Launch memberget-
member type sales campaigns
3. Product sales: Sell new products and services
to customers and at the same time maximize
viral influence
4. Customer valuation: Focus sales activities to
high potential/high profit customers, including
social revenue value.
“Alpha User” concept – sell to influential customers
As the name implies, Alpha users are the most
influential people in a social network. By selling
products and services to them and letting them
spread the word to their peers, far less marketing/
sales to other users is required. Targeting the Alpha
users benefits also them, since Alphas tend to be
very interested in new products and enjoy informing
others about them.Generally, Alpha users have strong

links to their many friends and hold a central position in

the social network. Being an Alpha user does not
necessarily mean being an early adopter— their role
is primarily that of an influencer. However, Alpha
users are often among the first in their social circle
to recommend the products to others — assuming
they are interested in that product or service.
While it may seem counter intuitive, Alpha users
do not necessarily communicate more than other
customers. There is a correlation between Alphas
and larger volumes of communication, but it’s the
nature of the communication and their position
in the social network that matters more. Different
products and services have their own Alpha users.
That is, people have a specific area of expertise in
which they are key influences

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