Vodafone
Task 3
EXTERNAL CORPORATE COMMUNICATION AUDIT
3.1 Plan
External communications plays a very crucial part in any competitive industry and the telecommunication industry in the UK is quite competitive. Therefore external communication is an integral part of Vodafone operations but this does not mean that its communication systems are perfect. For the audit to be effective there is need to analyze the recipients of Vodafone’s external communication which are customers, competitors, the government and other stakeholders. However more emphasis needs to be put on the analysis of the customers since they are the main focus of most if not all of the company’s communications. The audit therefore will be classified into; customers audit and other stakeholders audit. This will ensure that the audit will capture all the crucial formative and evaluative data that may be essential for the growth of the company.
The data will be collected using questionnaires, focus groups, document reviews, online surveys and online interviews. The application of these methods in the audit is important since it gives both an internal view and external view in that it captures what the employees thinks of their external communications indicate and what the public and the results from sales and other statistics indicate. The audit will involve the identification of critical strategic communications practices, identification of possible levels of practice which can either be ad hoc, planned, institutionalized, evaluated or optimized, followed by assessment of the current performance and capacity, identification of areas of improvement and finally refining practice and repetition of the process if needed (Coffman, 2004). These steps will provide information about the impact of each of the external communication channel that Vodafone has applied in its bid to foster its relationship with its stakeholders.
3.2 Actual Audit
As indicated earlier, customers are a very crucial part of the company’s success and therefore its no surprise that it puts a lot of emphasis is strengthening the relationship between the company and its clients. The company is guided by one of its ten principles which states that the company will communicate openly and transparently with all of our stakeholders within the bounds of commercial confidentiality. This is a principle that all the employees or partners of the company put into consideration in their communication with the customers. Being a telecommunication company, Vodafone has the privilege of communication directly with their clients through short messages and calls without using a third party or referring to databases to find contact information. The company uses this platform to ensure that information regarding promotions and sales material, awareness and information and explanation and guidance reach each of their clients. However with this privilege
Vodafone do also value other verbal and non-verbal communication channels whose main aim is to foster customer loyalty. In verbal communication employees play a very crucial part since the direct contact with clients provides the company with an opportunity to create a personal relationship with clients as well as vital feedback. The application of the verbal communication can be said to be institutionalized as the employees are trained on how to talk to customers on all issues and get all the feedback that is needed. Non-verbal communication on the other hand is usually one way and involves little or no feedback but is an institutionalized form of communication since all the information given is consistent with the company strategies and programs and aims at promoting the brand. The company however the challenge of communicating openly and transparently using this method since it has to pass all the information, opinions and arguments in short understandable statements.
Other than the customers, other stakeholders are important to Vodafone and it applies the principle of openness and transparency in communication. Interviews with employees and questionnaires were quite handy in getting information on these communication strategies since they mostly happen in boardrooms behind closed doors. Most of the communication with the other stakeholders is usually direct and is usually two ways. Consultations are a common feature especially with the key stakeholders and other groups which may have crucial issues to discuss (Clutterbuck and Hirst, 2002). These stakeholders are however very crucial in obtaining feedback which is an essential part of the communication process as well as the relationship between the company and the customers. This is mainly through focus groups where customers give their views and opinions regarding the company’s services and strategies. It is however important to note that its strategy of openness and transparency is usually a catalyst to obtaining feedback.
3.1 Evaluation of the Effectiveness of Communication Practices
Information sourced from the documents recording the company’s growth indicates that the company’s communication strategies have been quite effective. The strategies have proved quite effective in emerging markets in Africa and Asia where it has been quite successful in all its ventures. Faced with the challenge of language and cultural barriers the company fared quite well in putting its message across to the customers thus ensuring success. Feedback from employees and focus groups obtained through questionnaires and interviews indicated that the transparency of the company has been crucial in striking partnership with various stakeholders. Moreover it has been crucial in fostering a close relationship with their partners. Information from the focus groups also indicated that the aggressiveness of the company in social media has been pivotal in its growth since it creates a buzz which translates to more clients especially in the emerging markets where the competition for the new market is quite high.
Task 4
DEVELOPMENT OF A CORPORATE COMMUNICATION STRATEGY
http://smallbusiness.chron.com/business-corporate-communications-strategy-2855.html
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