Cell C: A fresh start

ADSL South Africa (Broadband South Africa), 16 August 2010

Cell C has unveiled new branding and a new strategy that clearly indicate their desire for a fresh start. ADSL South Africa (Broadband South Africa) sees it as a step in the right direction, especially considering the fact they have publicly acknowledged that they have messed up and that things need to change for the better. This is despite the barrage of criticism their “Tell Trevor” media stunt has unleashed.

Let’s not beat around the bush…

Let’s be frank about it, Cell C’s latest ad campaign featuring South African comedian Trevor Noah as Cell C’s newly appointed CEO (‘consumer experience officer’) is nothing but a media stunt. However, despite the wide criticism they have drawn upon themselves as a direct result of the media stunt, one should look at the bigger picture and not forget that Cell C has at least publicly acknowledged that they have messed up and that things need to change for the better.

Given the above, whether Cell C will succeed in winning back the hearts and minds of the Average Joes remain a mystery, but it seems that CEO Lars Reichelt is serious about changing Cell C for the better. In fact, ADSL South Africa (Broadband South Africa) is of the opinion that Reichelt and his team had no choice but to set a different course from the one Cell C has been on. The company is for example still facing serious debt problems, but they’ve made good progress in restructuring the debt to at least lessen the risk of default. It’s clear that Reichelt has blown new life into Cell C, and although progress is not always as fast as one expects, making progress one step at a time is better than making no progress at all.

Needless to say, ADSL South Africa (Broadband South Africa) places a very high premium on the fact that Cell C has now publicly admitted that mistakes were made despite the publicity or media stunt. It’s no secret that we have in many instances advised service providers to rather come clean and admit mistakes, than to refuse to acknowledge mistakes and allow the survival of a failed status quo which totally underestimate the intelligence of customers or clients. We all make mistakes, but it’s the way we deal with those mistakes and the outcome of those mistakes that ultimately counts, especially when it comes to a clear acknowledgement of mistakes made. Cell C has heed our advice, if not directly at least indirectly, and this will work for them if they don’t start to beat around the bush again.

In other words, the “Tell Trevor” campaign or whatever you want to call it is a publicity or media stunt, but don’t fail to miss the bigger picture: Cell C has publicly acknowledged that they have messed up and that things need to change for the better.

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