Verizon has rolled out AI customer experiences and is betting that the move will win accounts in a hotly contested wireless services market. The company announced a partnership with Google Cloud in April to deliver AI experiences with Gemini models and Verizon went live June 24.
Hans Vestberg, CEO of Verizon, said the company was leveraging AI to make customer experiences "simpler, faster and more rewarding." The June rollout includes a personalized expert for complex issues using Google Cloud and Gemini. A new Customer Champion will make sure issues are resolved.
Verizon also launched 24/7 live support and infused the new My Verizon app with an AI-powered Verizon Assistant and Savings Boost.
When Verizon announced better-than-expected second quarter earnings, Vestberg and CFO Anthony Skiadas were asked about returns on those Google Cloud investments.
"The wireless market remains competitive, and we continue to take a strategic and segmented approach, maintaining our financial discipline," said Vestberg. "As expected, postpaid phone churn remained elevated this quarter, reflecting the lingering effects of our pricing actions and ongoing pressure from federal government accounts. We're actively focused on improving retention by strengthening our value propositions, and leveraging our AI-powered customer experience innovations."
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In the second quarter, consumer wireless retail postpaid churn was 1.12% and wireless churn overall was 0.90%. A year ago, retail postpaid phone churn was 0.85%. A year ago, Verizon didn't split out its metrics for business and consumer. Verizon reported adjusted earnings of $1.22 a share on revenue of $34.5 billion, up 5.2%, in the second quarter.
Vestberg said Verizon has seen upgrades down in year-over-year comparisons for 8 out of the last 9 quarters. Verizon did see an uptick in the second quarter and it is combining customer wireless plans with fixed wireless access and fiber broadband. Fixed wireless access accounts now have topped the 5 million subscriber mark.
Skiadas said Verizon is focused on keeping customers and courting new ones while preserving profits. "Volume growth is only valuable when aligned with our disciplined financial framework," he said. "We have taken a series of actions to address our elevated churn. On June 24, we launched initiatives designed to improve the customer experience, including leveraging AI for more personalized support. In addition, we continue to enhance our value proposition and build customer loyalty through the best value guarantee. We provide exclusive access to the best events and experiences and our refresh app helps customers maximize the value of their plans."
Vestberg emphasized that Verizon isn't going to sacrifice financials to acquire customers. He added that Verizon will turn up promotions when there are opportunities to acquire high-quality customers and let others go. With churn, Vestberg said he is optimistic about AI-driven experiences and "very encouraged about what the team is doing and how they are working on the loyalty and retention of our customers."
Verizon was also clear that retaining customers was paramount. Vestberg noted the following:
- AI tools are critical, but Verizon has also retooled customer care processes. "When it comes to the process, we now will have a customer care employees following any request or a complaint from our customers all the way. So we actually finish it out with the same person starting and ending and also having uptake," said Vestberg.
- 24/7 customer service is also enabled by AI. "We're giving our customer care employees, an AI tool, so they can treat our customer better and know their problems better because this could be stressful," he said.
- Stores matter. Vestberg said 93% of the population in the US has a Verizon store within 30 minutes.
