Taking "Richer Communication" to Retail

Challenge
Vodafone had just launched the new brand positioning strategy, “helping people achieve richer communications,” and needed a partner to help them synchronize that message with their brand experience in their company-owned and authorized dealer retail network in the U.K.

Known for their hardware-centric stores, Vodafone’s retail locations lacked the depth and nuance - the focus on media and information - that a “Richer Communications” position demanded.

Furthermore, Vodafone’s static in-store environments and awkwardly implemented sales and customer service processes presented a pre-existing barrier to an
in-sync transition to their new positioning.

Solution
Starfish assembled a multidisciplinary team of brand strategists, market researchers, and sensory experience consultants to:

• Assess the current in-store experience against the new brand positioning,
  the competition and the indirect channel
• Identify ambient and projective touch-points from customer-centric perspective
• Provide comprehensive analysis of stand-alone Vodafone locations in the UK
• Develop actionable programs for in-store experience optimization
• Identify (and address) the overarching brand issues that would inform Vodafone’s
  strategy for creating sustainable differentiation in the 3G migration

Starfish delivered a program to intuitively align Vodafone’s brand experience
to drive them into the next generation of mobile network providers, establishing unique mind-space amongst their target consumers. The new Vodafone retail identity would be network-focused, simple and accessible, alive with colors, sounds, motion, information and emotion, all while providing customers with more streamlined sales and support.

Results
The new template for an optimized customer experience helped Vodafone successfully integrate “Richer Communications” into their Brand Experience at retail, and set the stage for a new generation of customers. In the year following the project, Vodafone’s customer base grew 9% in the U.K. resulting in a dramatic rise in the demand for 3G data services.