iPhone activation, custom rate plans?
updated 06:00 pm EDT, Mon July 9, 2007
iPhone activation, plans
The recent launch of Apple's iPhone at its own retail stores and AT&T outlets across the U.S. has brought widespread recognition to a new way of handling customer interaction. Apple and AT&T are allowing iPhone buyers to activate their phones online without the need to visit a store and speak with sales representatives through a company called Synchronoss, according to IDC Link. Allowing users to activate their phones from home over the internet rather than visiting retail outlets saves both Apple and AT&T time as well as money, and could pave the way for wireless carriers to offer individualized rate plans to cellular customers on an on-demand basis without the need for lengthy explanations or discussions with sales reps.
Fresh-Faced Recruit
Joined: Dec 2005
Simply smarter business
DIY phone activation: Less need for people to explain specifics to you; No need to keep a store staffed; No need for a brick&mortar store;
Possibility of selling phones over the internet only incurring costs of shipping and warehouse storage:
We don't need mommy Bell to hold our collective hand when we start up a new phone.
In time, this might be as simple as signing up for DSL where you can take care of all the hardware stuff (besides the lines that are already in place) without having extra charges for the above listed incidentals. Perhaps cell phones will go the way of the computer - you can buy it in the store if you want, or you can custom order it online, or have it shipped.
I can't tell you how often I cringe when I see yet ANOTHER bank on a corner or network provider spot in a strip mall. If businesses move this way, they could save their customers a lot of money. That, or continue the current slightly-gouging rates and take a greater profit. I can see the ad campaigns now...