Idiro identifies influencers to reduce churn

Social network analysis (SNA) provider Idiro Technologies today introduced an upgrade to its analysis service aimed at helping wireless operators target the customers that pull the most weight amongst their peers. By scouring call logs and creating spidograms, Idiro identifies subscribers on the brink of churning and taking their friends with them.

Called SNA Plus, the service comes with the necessary hardware and software, as well as technical training for the operator, including workshops on how to drive viral marketing campaigns given the data Idiro can provide. Simon Rees, Idiro's head of business development, said that studies have indicated that nearly 24% of all churn was viral, a result of a member of a social group following someone else.

Idiro's social model, or the analytics engine, first predicts influencers who can impact churn, then identifies appropriate subscribers to initiate and maximize word-of-mouth cross- and up-sell campaigns for family and social leaders. Based on all the interrelated calls, Idiro creates a spidogram of the connections and uses them to predict and prevent churn. The company also identifies what it calls spinners, customers who get a new phone number, giving the appearance they've left the social group.

"In a world like ours where everyone who wants a mobile phone has got one, their mobile calls reflect their social links," Rees said.

IBM has similar analytics middleware in its labs, but unlike most other mobile analytics companies, Idiro relies on operator-supplied call logs, text message or instant messaging histories. The technology for mobile is still fairly new, but SNA in terms of the social sciences has been around for generations, said Aberdeen Group analyst Hyoun Park. Idiro extends the idea of understanding how cultures interact with each other to the mobile phone. Essentially, the service separates the influencers from those consumers who may just be big spenders.

"If you are connected to 100 different people within the same network and people use most of their minutes to be in contact with you, you are a really important person in that network," Park said. "The carrier has a vested interest in keeping you in that network, even if you are only a $30 per month customer."