Nth Dimension Corp. this month launched a Web site designed to assist consumers in selecting wireless products and services.
The site, Wireless Dimension, provides information for the 25 largest U.S. markets, including rate plans updated each day, said the company.
The site offers separate guides for consumers looking for specific service plans or handsets, as well as a guide for the wireless beginner that asks the customer questions and makes recommendations based on the customer’s responses. Questions include how often the customer intends to use a wireless phone, how much he is willing to spend each month and whether he is willing to sign a contract.
Once the list of potential service plans is pared down to a few, customers can view the features of the plan side-by-side, including all relevant fees, included minutes, which technology the systems use and which features are available. Customers also can compare handsets side-by-side.
Customers then either can save the selected information for a future visit to the site, purchase a phone or service online or view a list of retailers within a 100-mile radius.
Nth Dimension said the ability to allow customers to do this type of comparison shopping is the key differentiator between its site and other wireless shopping sites. Other features of the site include a glossary of wireless terms and articles about the industry.
Nth Dimension offers the site free to consumers through its Dimension Select online advertising system. Carriers and manufacturers are charged a fee each time a customer looks at pages containing their information. They also are charged a transaction fee should a customer decide to purchase a handset or service online.
Derrick Chasan, Nth Dimension’s vice president of marketing, said the fees are designed to be about 30 percent less than the average cost per gross addition, which Bear, Stearns & Co. figures to be more than $300 per customer. The “pay-per-view” type of fee allows carriers and manufacturers to provide extremely targeted advertising to an audience it knows is interested in its service or product.
Nth Dimension also tracks the behavior of visitors to its site, identifying their interests by watching which articles and pages get the most hits. The identity of the customer, however, remains anonymous.
AirTouch Cellular is Nth Dimension’s first carrier partner, which allows it to attach a logo and provide text for pages containing information about its service plans.
Online shopping is a growing trend, with revenues reaching $2.6 billion last year, Nth Dimension said. That figure is expected to double by the end of this year.
The company last year launched its first online customer electronics shopping guide, called sharpshopper, which included wireless, home and car audio and home theater components. The company chose to discontinue that site in favor of several different sites focused on specific product areas, beginning with wireless.
The site is located at www.wirelessdimension.com.
