Balesh Sharma | Good things should last forever

In recent years, Smartphones have truly taken off in the local market. How would you describe this trend, and the current level of Smartphone usage among local consumers?

Smartphone penetration is increasing and people understand more than ever the benefits that Smartphones bring. However, we strongly believe that there is potential for more customers to move onto Smartphones. This is the way forward. People want all the possible information available at their fingertips.

Being the home of the smartphone is not only about high headline download speeds. Our customers are today going beyond requesting high headline download speeds, they are telling us that they require to be confidently connected with a reliable connection whenever, wherever they happen to be.

When it comes to coverage, I'm really proud to say that we provide the best coverage on the Islands. In order to keep on refining customer user experience we are constantly improving our indoor and outdoor mobile coverage in a number of specific locations.

We pride ourselves in having what I believe to be the best technical team on the Island working relentlessly to continuously keep our upgrading and improving network in order to be sure to really remain the home of the smartphone.

How many consumers make regular use of mobile internet services, and what does this represent for us as a country?

We are seeing a marked increase in the use of mobile Internet and given the right environment more people will start using mobile on their internet. It is pretty evident that people want to be connected all the time, wherever they are and whomever they are with. Internet on your mobile provides you with this opportunity hassle-free.

We make sure to provide our customers what they ultimately want. Advances in technology are helping us provide our customers the possibility of enjoying their mobile devices' capability to a maximum. Hence, our commitment to continue providing the most reliable connection at the fastest speeds whenever, wherever on the Islands.

How is Vodafone adapting to these trends, and catering for the demands that are being created?

Of course providing a reliable connection is one of the essentials that our customers are asking for, another is to always have the best expert support. Again here we pride ourselves in providing the best in customer support.

Last year we launched a suite of services that are provided through our Smartphone crew. The first benefit is to provide free transfer of contact list when a customer changes their phone. I think most have been there. You buy a new Smartphone and you have to see how to transfer that precious list of contacts. Well now it's as easy as going to one of our retail stores and have this transferred for free.

Another comment that smartphone customers have passed is that not everyone is familiar with all the benefits of owning a smartphone. Again, we have set up training classes that help our customers make the most of their Smartphone.

Last but not least customers are daunted when they have a problem with their phone, setting up email or not managing to connect. Again we have devised a service that enables our trained agents to remotely access the phone, diagnose the problem and solve it without the need for customers to leave the comfort of their home. All this is done through a step-by-step process, with our customers' consent.

During the coming year we will be continuing to innovate in the field of customer support in order to ensure that we continue to provide our customers with a truly unmatched customer experience.

Vodafone is launching three new tariffs. What can you tell us about them? Why should consumers be interested?

Of course, a great network proving reliable connectivity and an unmatched customer experience are fundamental elements of a value proposition and these are brought together with our new Vodafone RED plan.

With our Vodafone RED we are now also innovating in the area of proposition. All our customers have become used to having bundles of minutes and SMSs included in their plans. These bundles always need to be used on the customer's own network. This means that before making that contact with a friend one would usually ask himself or herself whether their friend is on the same network.

Those days are over now thanks to Vodafone RED. Vodafone RED provides our customers with 3,000 minutes and 3,000 SMSs to any network. Customers won't need to worry whether their friend at the other end of the call is a GO or Melita customer, mobile or fixed. The minutes and SMSs provided can be used to anyone on any network.

Vodafone RED will have a special introductory offer retailing at €60 a month which also comes with a 1.5GB data allowance and a free phone when subscribing to the plan.

However, subscribing to the Vodafone RED plan also gives our customers priority access to our expert support. When calling our call centre on 247, Vodafone RED customers are passed through a separate queue in order to minimise waiting time on the phone.

And of course, we are providing all of this on our great network.

We are also launching Vodafone RED Premium. The Vodafone RED Premium plan is retailing at a special introductory access of €99.99 a month.

This top end plan gives our customers unlimited calls and SMSs to all networks. There will be no limits on this plan and Vodafone customers can call and SMS anyone on any local network. This is coupled with a further 3GB of data.

In the Premium plan we also included a bundle of minutes, SMSs and data to be used whilst roaming. Again this is an innovative idea. We have listened to our customers and extended the worry-free concept to those times that our customers are either on holiday or on business abroad. Premium comes with 100 minutes calling to home country, 100 SMSs and 50 MB monthly that can be used while abroad.

We really wanted our premium customers to get that special treatment. Each customer will have an account executive who will assist them in whatever they might require and need.

Another innovation in the Vodafone RED Premium plan is our extended warranty care pack. This provides customers an extension on the normal warranty, covering some issues that are not usually covered by warranty.  Our extended warranty care pack entitles our customers to a free repair or a free replacement in case of an out-of-warranty malfunction during the 24-month duration of the contract

We have also introduced Vodafone RED basic, which as the name implies is the basic proposition of this suite. At €35 a month a customer is entitled to 2,000 minutes and SMSs to all Vodafone customers, 60 minutes and 60 SMSs to any network and 750MB of data. This plan is an ideal introductory plan for the first time customer.

What can you tell us about Vodafone's Global Initiative that promotes a worry-free concept for all Vodafone customers? What is the ethos of this campaign?

Vodafone RED is all about providing a worry-free concept to our customers. After all, 'good things should last forever'. This is the philosophy behind our new tariffs. We want people to call their loved ones irrelevant of which mobile operator they are registered to, without having to worry about incurring high bills. What we are offering people is a unique proposition on the market.

Vodafone RED is for everyone. It is for both new and existing customers. Through Vodafone RED we are saying yes to endless talk and text and never having to say goodbye. We are saying yes to unrestricted usage. We are saying yes to reliable data and total confidence. We are saying yes to the latest handset or yes to keeping that old handset you know and love. We are saying yes to crystal clear coverage everywhere. We are saying yes to the good things in life.

Through Vodafone RED we are removing all the negative things that limit people with their mobiles today. We are clearing away all the complexities associated with mobile plans by providing certainty. This means a simple price every month and transparency about what you're getting.

How does this campaign set Vodafone apart from its competitors with regards to the services it provides?

This proposition addresses all the current market trends. We will continue providing the best network on the Islands, because only the best network can provide a superior data experience to all our customers.

We will also continue to provide an unmatched customer experience, whilst innovating with the provision of more services that simplify our customers' lives.

I honestly believe that Vodafone RED will continue differentiating us from our competitors in the market, because this is an offer modelled around what people want and need. Thanks to Vodafone RED we are delivering clear and unique customers benefits whilst radically simplifying our proposition making it easier for all our customers to choose the good things their Smartphone can provide.