Case study: Business Consulting How A Leading Asian Mobile Operator Got Back On A Track To Revenue Growth After A Devastating 80% Drop In Average Price

A case study showing how our Consultants helped a Leading Asian Mobile Operator steady their pricing again after a devastating 80 percent drop in their average price per minute in a single year as a result of hypercompetitive marketing environment.

A leading Asian mobile operator who had observed a devastating 80 percent drop in their average price per minute in just a single year as the result of a hypercompetitive marketing environment. We were asked to develop a strategy that would steady pricing and put the carrier on a track to revenue growth. As a result of in-depth consumer exploration, an evaluation of the pricing environment and competitive strategy, and our understanding of the fundamental mechanisms of price wars, we made the following recommendations -

  • Expand revenue by moving from uniform pricing to targeted pricing based on customer segment, region, and competitive pressure. Identical pricing meant that the carrier was giving away revenue when it didn’t have to; targeted pricing, driven by economic modelling and use of data analytics that instantly showed the impact of changes in pricing, changed the behavior of their business.
  • Develop pioneering campaigns and incentives that didn’t involve lowering prices but provided value-added services such as to augment the carrier’s perception as a brand that offered real value-for-money.
  • Become a best-practices leader in technology and analytics, which included the development of new implementation dashboards that gave management real-time insight into everything from the impact of pricing moves and tariff variations, to efficiency on a store-by-store level. This great performance transparency helped management to focus on the distribution hotspots. Rewards and incentives could be tied to performance like never before.

Impact

The amalgamation of these recommendations reversed the downward spiral; revenue growth was restored within 12 months, the company’s position as the country’s leading brand was fortified, and the brand became so much more appealing to retailers and distributors that their number increased by more than 20 percent.