How Unitymedia used WhatsApp to automate outage alerts – and reduce hotline stress
Key points of the project
- Industry: Telecommunications
- Use Case Type: Real-world implementation
- Channel: WhatsApp
- Primary Goal: Reduce call center load during internet outages through proactive, automated messaging
The Challenge
Whenever regional or national internet outages occurred, Unitymedia’s call centers were flooded with the same question over and over again: “Is my internet down?” – “When will it work again?”
There was little room for proactive communication, and customers were left waiting for answers – often frustrated, and always with the same issue. The challenge was clear: reduce repetitive hotline requests and improve the customer experience through smarter, automated communication.
The Approach
In 2019, Memacon partnered with MessengerPeople to launch an official WhatsApp Business solution that turned outage alerts into a proactive service.
Once a user’s cable connection was identified as affected, they automatically received a WhatsApp message with the current status and another when the issue was resolved. The process was fully automated, scalable, and GDPR-compliant.
Instead of asking “Is something wrong?”, customers simply received the answer.
The Result
The number of incoming support calls during outages dropped significantly – while customer satisfaction increased. The WhatsApp outage bot became a valuable service tool, improving Net Promoter Score and strengthening Unitymedia’s image as a digital-first, customer-oriented provider.
- Significantly fewer hotline calls during outages
- Increased customer satisfaction and improved NPS
- Strong positioning as a digital service innovator in telecom
What You Can Learn From This
If your support team is overwhelmed by repetitive requests, messaging automation can transform these pain points into real opportunities. By proactively informing customers instead of only reacting, organizations can significantly reduce stress in their service teams. At the same time, helpful and visible technology improves brand perception and strengthens customer trust.
