3 Ways Our CTC Broadband in a Box Has Transformed Our Support Operations

Delivering exceptional service has always been part of our mission at CTC. When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, we had to get creative and proactively find new ways to meet member expectations. The surge in demand plus the need for contactless interactions meant we had to identify a new installation strategy that would eliminate in-home visits—without compromising service.
 

Little did we know that our solution, Broadband in a Box™, would help us do so much more. We didn’t just maintain our existing high service levels—we significantly improved the member experience. Broadband in a Box allows us to set up new members with CTC Complete Wi-Fi service without an in-home technician visit. It’s helped us double new subscriber growth, significantly reduce operational expenses (OPEX), and accelerate expansion. 

 
We Provide a Complete Solution for a Seamless Experience 

We deliver everything members need in one convenient package. We conduct a site survey, then drop-ship a high-performance, pre-provisioned Calix GigaSpire^® BLAST u6 system to the member’s doorstep. We provide a quick-start guide, instructions for downloading our Complete Wi-Fi App (our branded version of Calix CommandIQ^®), and links to helpful resources. And on the back end, Calix Service Cloud (Service Cloud) helps us proactively monitor activation cycles and ensure installations are completed successfully.
 

We’re not exaggerating when we say that Broadband in a Box has transformed our business. We’ve been able to:

• Cut truck rolls by 50 percent and substantially reduce OPEX. Before Broadband in a Box, every install took two truck rolls: one for the site survey and a second for turning up service. We’ve eliminated that second truck roll since members are self-activating. This has dramatically reduced our OPEX and freed up our member service technicians to focus on other priorities.

• Accelerate expansion by connecting 95 percent of new subscribers remotely. Broadband in a Box significantly expedites our expansion efforts while reducing costs. When we moved into Cherry Township, Minnesota, we were able to connect 95 percent of our new members to their service in days—without the extra (costly) truck rolls.

• Elevate member satisfaction and achieve a 69 NPS. The convenience, efficiency, and fast service activation has been a huge hit with our members. They also love the self-service—85 percent of members use our mobile app so they can perform basic troubleshooting without calling support. The proof our members are happy? Our first Net Promoter ScoreSM (NPS^®) was 69—122 percent higher than the industry average. And more than half of our “promoters” cited customer support as the primary reason for their high rating. 

Service Cloud Lets Us Take a Proactive Approach to Subscriber Experience 

We could never have achieved these results without Service Cloud. Starting out, it allows our service assurance technician (SAT) team to monitor the entire activation cycle. They know an install is successful when they see an activation timestamp indicating a live connection.
 

Post-activation, Service Cloud gives our SAT team complete visibility into our members’ experiences, from the WAN to the gateway, Wi-Fi, all connected devices, and apps. They can diagnose and remotely troubleshoot most issues—reducing escalations and truck rolls. Even better, they can proactively identify potential problems before members are even aware of them. Fixing issues before they lead to help desk calls increases member satisfaction, reduces OPEX, and allows us to focus on higher-value support activities. 

Backed by Service Cloud, we’re finding new ways to provide even greater value to our members. We’ve been able to seamlessly launch additional Calix SmartHome™ managed home internet services such as ProtectIQ^® home network security and ExperienceIQ^® advanced parental controls. With the end-to-end Calix platform, we’re delivering a superior member experience that has helped us more than double our annual growth rate to nearly 14 percent.  

Innovating With the Right Partner Makes All the Difference 

To say the pandemic was an incredibly difficult time is a massive understatement. But if there’s one good thing that came out of it here at CTC, it’s that we found new ways to delight our subscribers.
 

Our Broadband in a Box has been a gamechanger. Developing a self-installation strategy forced us to innovate at breakneck speed. By partnering with Calix and focusing on proactive, convenient, and efficient service we knocked it out of the park. 
 

Learn how you can take a proactive approach to delivering an amazing subscriber experience. Watch this demonstration of Calix Service Cloud. 

Net Promoter^®, NPS^®, NPS Prism^®, and the NPS-related emoticons are registered trademarks of Bain & Company, Inc., Satmetrix Systems, Inc., and Fred Reichheld. Net Promoter Score℠ and Net Promoter System℠ are service marks of Bain & Company, Inc., Satmetrix Systems, Inc., and Fred Reichheld.