While the demand for fast and reliable Wi-Fi is consistently growing, service providers are still vulnerable to churn. Competition in the home Wi-Fi market is forcing service providers to get creative with their service offerings to stand out. To secure a successful future, service providers have to go beyond connectivity by offering personalized digital services that are both smarter and more user friendly. By prioritizing intelligent Wi-Fi strategies and leveraging API’s, service providers can address subscriber pain points, establish loyalty, and seamlessly integrate smart technology into service offerings.

Opportunity of Value Added Services

Internet-only service adoption rates have grown significantly over the last three years, from 34% in 2017 to 42% in 2020, according to research from Parks Associates. The study found that nearly one-half of US broadband households receive at least one value-added service from their provider, but that service is often included at no additional cost. Commonly adopted value-added services include support, antivirus, streaming video, and Wi-Fi services. While Internet only service adoptions have grown, as a whole, broadband growth has plateaued. To mitigate stagnant revenue streams from broadband growth, service providers can turn to value added services and intelligent Wi-Fi to attract and gain subscribers, resulting in new revenue streams.

Current trends show that subscribers are primarily concerned with their Internet speeds and IoT devices. Service providers can implement strategies and tools via APIs to address both speeds and IoT device functionality on the network. Leveraging APIs makes it easier for service providers to develop valuable partnerships with other growing services like video streaming services, online platforms (social media, messaging, online shopping), and IoT device integration and seamlessly offer these services to their subscribers. For example, there is a 31% growth rate of smart homes in the US. Service providers that are already established in subscriber homes have the unique opportunity to reach both IoT early adopters and new smart home consumers by offering IoT specific services.

Service providers can create an end-to-end networking experience for their customers by adapting their current service offerings to include IoT device installation and maintenance assistance, network security tools, and real-time network and device monitoring in addition to their existing Internet services. Customer satisfaction is notably driven by excellent customer support, user friendly interfaces, and how easy it is to use a device.

3 Service Strategies to Reduce Operating Costs and Drive Revenues

1. Optimizing the home network with future and legacy CPEs – CPEs should be considered an important asset to service providers. Rather than trying to drive down the cost of hardware, service providers need to invest in service upgrades that can be seamlessly deployed to both future and legacy CPEs via APIs.
2. Use cloud-based management software – Cloud-based platforms offer flexibility, scalability and easy integration to collect and store network data to help service providers address advanced networking issues, security concerns, and view current and historical metrics on CPEs, subscriber devices, and traffic.
3. Use AI and big data analytics to manage IoT – AI, machine learning and big data are the future of home networking. These components offer valuable insight into subscriber trends, usage patterns, and pain points. Research from Accenture shows that 75% of customers said they would be more likely to buy from a company that recognizes them by name, knows their purchase history, and can recommend products based on their past purchases. The same study found that 60% customers are comfortable having their data used by businesses to deliver relevant content. 58% said they would be comfortable with companies using data since they believe they will receive a better overall experience. Implementing intelligent Wi-Fi solutions that are powered by AI and big data allows service providers to address these key areas that subscribers show interest in.

Intelligent Wi-Fi with Optim

Optim Managed Assurance Platform leverages API’s to customize service offerings, making it easy to integrate updated services across all networks and devices, even across third party hardware. Launching a large-scale digital transformation project across the entire network is typically a challenge, but Optim makes the transition seamless by offering three key features:

• Scalability – As Wi-Fi continues to evolve and grows more complex, it’s important for Wi-Fi management solutions to be agile. Cloud-based Wi-Fi management has the flexibility to adapt to changing subscriber needs while also keeping legacy CPEs relevant for longer.
• Efficient Collaboration – Cloud-based managed Wi-Fi makes sharing network information between the subscriber and service providers easy and efficient. Optim’s advanced analytics and real-time data management makes advanced troubleshooting quick and painless for both the subscriber and the service provider, establishing subscriber trust and loyalty.
• Intelligent Wi-Fi Automation – Network components and configurations need updates. Cloud-based Wi-Fi management allows service providers to regularly review the network and deploy up-to date versions of the latest technology with no downtime for the subscriber. With Optim, the process of updating software and enhancing value-added services that previously took months can be implemented and deployed in days across the entire subscriber network.

Optim makes subscriber Wi-Fi smarter, easier to manage, and more efficient than ever. 67% of customers cite “convenience of managing through a single app” a top feature when selecting smart home devices. Optim takes that convenience a step farther by offering complete home Wi-Fi management with a single app. Optim managed Wi-Fi gives customers all the tools they need to manage their home network and all the devices connected to it via an intuitive dashboard that is accessible from a smart phone or computer. From the dashboard, subscribers can enjoy value-adding services like advanced security features, easy-to-use troubleshooting tools, parental controls, and IoT management tools. Optim was designed with IoT in mind, using APIs to integrate smart home management features for set up, troubleshooting, and IoT specific security.

The demand for efficient and reliable Wi-Fi is on the rise. By taking an active role in subscriber home networking, service providers can address subscriber pain points their subscriber ratings, build loyalty, and reduce operational costs. In addition, Optim offers value-added services that create new revenue streams by delivering features that subscribers want. Ultimately, Optim helps service providers strengthen their positions within subscriber homes, allowing them to play a central role in the digital home now and into the future.

To learn more about what Optim can do for your business and customers, contact our Actiontec Team directly or check out the Optim website.