Why the CSP App Shouldn't Wait for Customers to Show Up

Yet for all the money that goes into this platform, most CSP apps still behave the way they always have: waiting. Customers open them to solve a problem or complete a transaction, and once that task is done, the app goes quiet again. This passive posture comes at a real cost, since 70 percent of consumers report holding a more favorable view of brands that reach out to them proactively, before a problem or need arises. The gap between how much CSPs invest in their apps and how proactively those apps actually behave is worth a closer look.

A high-traffic channel that mostly sits idle

The core issue is that the app, despite being one of the most frequently used channels a CSP owns, is still built primarily as a reactive tool. Fifty to sixty percent of customers open their provider's app at least once a week, putting this channel in near-constant contact with the base, a level of engagement hard to come by anywhere else in the business. Yet most of that contact is spent on billing lookups or payments and connectivity fixes rather than any deliberate two-way conversation.

Each visit is a moment when the CSP could reinforce the relationship, offer something relevant, or simply remind the customer that the brand is looking out for them. Instead, the app largely sits idle between visits and reacts only when summoned. This leaves a meaningful amount of value on the table in both customer sentiment and commercial opportunity, since value added services and products rarely get marketed through a channel that only opens when asked.

Giving the app a reason to speak first

One way to close this gap is by giving the app a more active role, which AI is well suited to. Rather than waiting for customers to initiate contact, an AI agent can engage them periodically, on a cadence that feels considerate rather than intrusive, keeping the brand top of mind between service moments. This effectively turns the app into an always-on relationship and service hub, one that can check in on a customer's experience, flag something useful, or surface an offer at a time when it is likely to matter.

The value of this approach comes from giving the app a genuine reason to initiate contact, something beyond a routine notification. Outreach grounded in something the customer actually cares about tends to be received quite differently than a generic promotional nudge, and that grounding appears to be where the real opportunity sits.

What a TELUS-MCE pilot showed

MCE tested this approach with TELUS’s retail brand Mobile Klinik, and the results suggest the idea holds up in practice. When customers were proactively approached through the app, they engaged with it roughly four times more often than before, which was based on self-discovery entirely. When that outreach initiation centered on something customers clearly valued – conversing and checking the health of their device – they were twice as likely to open the app and engage. This also led to three times more likely to act on the promotional offer presented to them in that same moment.

A key factor behind these results appears to be the reason for reaching out, rather than the technology used to do it or the CSP’s quarterly business objectives. A mobile device health and experience-based strategy gave the outreach a genuine, care driven purpose, such as checking in on battery health or flagging a performance issue, rather than presenting an arbitrary sales pitch. That context earned enough attention and trust to make the follow-on offer worth considering.

For CSPs sitting on similar telemetry and app infrastructure, it may be worth asking whether that same combination, a valuable reason for the customer to engage with the CSP paired with a relevant offer, could work for their own customers too. See how MCE’s solutions can be custom tailored to your business and CX objectives.