NEW YORK-Despite what he called, “one of the greatest brand launches ever and excellent results in brand awareness,” the Cingular Wireless name has “not delivered,” said Stan Sigman, chief executive officer, at last week’s Merrill Lynch & Co. “Communication Conference”.
The top five reasons consumers choose a wireless carrier are price, coverage, trust, service and network, “but the only reasons we’ve given them to buy Cingular Wireless are self-expression and our little orange icon.”
To flex the muscles that SBC Communications Inc. and BellSouth Corp. bring to the joint venture, Cingular Wireless introduced Feb. 17 a new advertising tag line “Cingular fits you best.” The goal is to focus consumer attention on Cingular’s coverage, service, reliability and trustworthiness, Sigman said.
“When we do get a customer in the store, we do a better job of getting them to buy,” he said.
“We have regained our focus on customers, and that will return us to growth. It won’t happen overnight, but we are beginning to see results.”
