It was not surprising this week to have received a number of comments about Carphonewherehouse trialling salary pay instead of commissions for sales.  It has always in any industry been one of those things that if you get commission for selling certain items you get the best commissions.  Its no different in the mobile industry really, in fact it is probably a good thing for the consumer, because the temptation to sell the mobile with the better commission regardless of the customers needs will be gone, and the customer can then get the mobile and plan that really fits his requirements instead of that which the salesman wants better commission on.  So well done CarPhone wherehouse, as long as the staff is happy with an increase in salary, it can only benefit both.

I had an interesting call early this week from a dealer in Huntingdon who said he thought it was to quote “About b***dy time that someone put up the prices” Intrigued I enquired who? To which he replied that O2 was increasing prices on high end handsets, so you could not get one on a cheap tariff.  “Why about time?” I asked?  “If all networks were to do that AND we went back to making the customer pay for the damn things like it used to be, now we have got rid of cashback, the quality and retention would come back cos I am sick of keep getting clawed back because some berk got a high end handset on a stupid £15 tariff, then they don’t pay or miss paying and I lose out on the b***dy handset.

He had got a point, these days consumers especially the young generation are now so used to getting practically everything for almost nothing, they almost think it’s a god given right.  If they had to pay towards the handset, then there is a commitment from them that they are serious, and less likely to default especially if they had to pay a high price to get the handset.  I seem to remember Paul Marks from Fonefiners/Mfonex saying something similar some time ago.

Perhaps the price increase by O2 may mean the beginning of the end for the consumer getting expensive equipment for nothing, and it might in the end mean better a better quality of customer, only time will tell, but you can be sure of one thing, the consumer is not going to accept it without kicking and screaming in the short term until they get used to it, but then what do you think?  Should we go back to the old days when customers had to pay toward a handset?  Has the mobile industry gone to far now and created a culture of getting something for nothing?  If you have an answer then write to us.