Greek operator Cosmote has given all its mobile customers 15 GB free to use the first week of December. In a similar, seasonally focused offer, Vodafone Greece launched a package with unlimited data for seven days for EUR 2.90 (US $3.06).
In addition, each company is launching extended holiday giveaways. Cosmote customers can get a 20% discount on one food or coffee order through Box, and customers with What’s Up plans can take part in raffles to win trips in Greece and abroad. The offers will continue through the holiday season, with new promotions each week. Vodafone is having a giveaway of iPhone 14 Pro Max 128GB phones. Customers who activate the unlimited data promo are automatically entered into the contest.
Tarifica’s Take
As companies, including telecoms, pull out all the stops for the holiday shopping season, it’s typical for their marketing and promotions to tap into the characteristics associated with the season–joy, cheer, and, most importantly, fun. The holiday promotions from Greek telecoms Cosmote and Vodafone Greece provide an interesting case study of operators doing precisely that in the same market space.
Both operators are offering customers an added data bundle good for one week, but with different conditions. Cosmote’s bundle provides a limited amount of data offered for free, while Vodafone offers unlimited data for a (low) price. Beyond this initial promotion, both companies have announced ongoing competitions and raffles for free international travel (Cosmote) and iPhones (Vodafone) lasting the entire season. For both companies, the strategy appears to be the same: offer customers free or low-priced data as an appetizer, and then incentivize continued engagement with ongoing opportunities for savings and/or prizes.
Given the intense commercial noise of the season, operators need to particularly aggressive in their promotions. However, low prices and free trials are not always enough. Promotions leveraging the entertainment value of the season are often the key to keeping customers engaged with the company for longer than the few minutes it takes to make a purchase.