LIME Jamaica Sweet yah Now

LIME Sweet yah now, this remarkable move to lower rates to 2.99 changes everything. Within minutes Digicel customers began to hurl insults and complaints via the Digicel Fan page, Digicel did not respond for quite a while (well, only to clarify the price of a phone) until they posted that something big is coming, later  at news time I heard that Digicel was seeking to take legal actions as to why the LIME rate could go so low, because of this, the bad publicity increased in fury as customers once again began their typed assaults. In this day and age companies should know that Facebook can make or break you. Anyway, at 12 midnight they posted their new rates 2.89 which of course Digicel marketing took some time to drum up. I bet they sat and thought, "how can we seem competitive but not be?" Hence the new plan they presented. I'm glad that customers are becoming more vocal, I'm glad Jamaican are now thinking.

Quick Post: LIME's Customer Service, Good.

For the past two weeks a team of over 65 individuals conducted a survey of LIME customers at several locations island-wide. The survey was to see the improvements in LIME customer service (if any) and to understand the areas at which needed help. All customers had called LIME's customer service office with several matters within the last two weeks. They were asked only three questions. These questions are as follows.

• Was your call to LIME's customer service office a pleasant one?

Over 96% of callers stated that the call was pleasant and the customer service representative was patient and handled the call professionally.

• Did you get a solution to the problem you called with?

Remarkably, 98.9% of customers surveyed stated that they had gotten a satisfying solution to their respective issues.

• If you had a choice between FLOW and LIME would you stay with LIME?

Much higher than I thought 61% stated that they would stay with LIME.

Remember, these questions were posed to the customers  for them to answer based on their last 3 customer service calls. A more detailed breakdown will be posted shortly.

LIME, A Sinking Ship! Maybe Not...

Jump ship! Ok, maybe not yet but LIME is now operating on fumes as I have been told by an insider close to management. The company is scrambling to find ways to boost its income and to regain a dominant enough foothold to sustain itself, but as you all can see, this isn't working out too well.

The Sour Taste of LIME

It would appear that there is still somewhat of a bitter taste in the minds of most people who find it hard to forget the monopolistic carrier that raped us all financially, you know, similar to what JPS is doing now. In addition, the slow pace at which LIME moves to implement new technologies is another thing that causes it to seem so unappealing. Next is the flawed marketing and business intelligence LIME seems to pull out of the air. LIME, if you are launching a new service do not launch it for the corporate area alone, in this business environment that is simply not good enough, better you wait until you can cover at least 60-70% of the population (which includes all major cities and towns) and then you launch.

LIME's parent company describes Jamaica as a difficult market, but this really isn't true. Anyone old enough can recall the tyranny that was provisioned to us by TOJ / Cable & Wireless (Now LIME) when Digicel came along almost immediately everything as far as telecoms is concerned began getter better. LIME is suffering from consumer negation syndrome. Ok I just made that up, but subconsciously most who consume telecoms services try, sometimes without even knowing it, to avoid LIME.

So what is LIME to do?


This would require a two pronged approach. 

To survive, LIME must eliminate these negative notions from the minds of the Jamaican population, easier said than done but it is possible. Start focusing sensible marketing efforts towards the young teenage crowd, those who weren't born or too young to recall the monopolistic days. Engage them with cheap phones that look great and have features sufficient for that age group, mp3 player etc. Ride the $8.99 wave that Digicel currently offers, same price no matter where you call. Appeal to the parents of these kids, after all a parent will think about the well being of his or her child over company brands. Utilize the same talk packages but put them forward in a different light, as in, "make sure your child gets in safe, want to talk to her the entire trip home?" stuff like that, highlight cell coverage, if possible, a way to track your child via his or her cell phone. Also, encourage education, partner with schools and PTAs, create online work havens for collaboration via desktop or phone specific to our Jamaican education climate. Diversify by selling advertising as well through these newly implemented mediums.

Next, be a step ahead of the competition, research new technologies and implement tactfully and sensibly.  These technologies must support the major target market, as discussed above. 

Ok, that's it, Oh, and stop blaming others for what is happening to the company, man up and learn from your competition.

LIME Kingston's fastest 3G Network

I'm not one who believes in false advertising or misleading the public in any way. LIME has marketed themselves for some time now as Jamaica's fastest 3G network, while that may seem true to those living in Kingston and St Andrew, the opposite is the reality to the rest of the island.

Truly, LIME is not Jamaica's fastest 3G network as their 3G technology is not throughout Jamaica therefore it is false to state that it is Jamaica's fastest 3G network when it only works in segments of eastern Jamaica.

My take is this, say what it is, not what it isn't.

Lime Late Again

LIME/C&W is late with everything. Late to provide you with residential service, late in regards to innovation that stands out, and now late with 3G.

So, LIME is 3G ready in Kingston and St. Andrew while Claro with is late entry in the market has 3G island wide. The part the bugs me the most is that LIME is always glorifying it's so called successes through the media, while at the same time speaking of other companies that utilize the media in a worthwhile fashion.

LIME needs to take chances that are calculated and thoroughly thought through. That's all I got to say for now....

Tips for LIME

In this post I'll attempt to provide a working guide for the management of LIME.  Now over the years, C&W has been to most an under performer in that they are most times late with new developments and have proven on countless occasions that their marketing team is comprised of individuals obviously out of touch with the realities of today. 

With that said, let me hasten to say that I do believe C&W/LIME can regain their glory as in the times when they had no competition by adhering to the following:

Extensive Research - this is extremely important and saves a lot of money down the road. I think most people can agree that C&W/LIME should have had their own fibre optic network throughout Jamaica before Flow. Back in the day, these guys on a quarterly basis reported mega profits, non of which (in my opinion) was used for research or the introduction of new technologies. They were downright lazy and did not seek to improve anything, why? no competition. After the liberalization of the telecoms sector C&W/LIME still didn't get it and continued to offer mediocre service, today they are still trying to play catch up and losing plenty of cash in the process. Tip Here - Be Proactive. 

Sensible Advertising - mentioning the name of your competition within your ads is to me free advertising for the competition. In addition every couple of months C&W/LIME seems to be conveying a different message, their slogans change so rapidly I sometimes wonder if its the same company. Maintaining one central message that is repeatedly displayed to customers is key to building a strong and profitable brand. Tip Here -  Maintain one Simple Message. 

Wear the customer's shoes - an intimate knowledge is most times needed in order to make more informed decisions. Stand outside the market, look at the picture from the eyes of the consumer. Is my company really better than the competition? if yes, how best can I relate the differences to the people who need to know? What are the strengths and weaknesses between all competing companies? how is all this viewed by the consumer? Tip Here - Be Neutral. 

It is possible for LIME to take the lead within their competing markets, it will take time, it will take work and possibly a new R&D and Marketing team.