Now that we have started a brand-new year, there’s no better time to look back on what happened in 2019. The year feels like it has flown by and a lot of things have happened here in the EE Community. I thought it would be nice to share some of these things with you all.
New devices
On the back of the 5G launch we saw many new devices come out on the network through 2019. From foldable tech to new 5G capable handsets, there was something for everyone. As always, there was a lot of talk on the EE Community around new tech and the most commented on device of the first half of the year was the Galaxy S10 range!
Community supported multiple device launches and has always been the place to come to find out what’s new, and chat to others about what might be coming next.
The second half of the year saw the iPhone launch, traditionally this is always a busy time of year in the EE Community. Over 31,000-page visits to the iPhone 11 launch article alone meant that there was a lot of conversation happening and a lot of excitement about the release.
The announcement came as well that the Motorola razr was going to make a comeback, we saw lots of people in community talking excitedly about this icon of a handset returning and reminiscing about its previous incarnation – whether you loved it or hated it, or indeed are too young to remember it at all, it’s worth keeping an eye out for.
Smart home devices really took off too, with more people than ever setting up their connected homes. From doorbells to heating systems available to buy direct from us, even I took the plunge and set up some smart plugs in the house to control my fish tank lighting and a few other things!
Single Sign On
One of the biggest changes of 2019 for the EE Community was the enabling of Single Sign On. Before this happened, there was a lot of confusion around the log in process – customers would have one log in for their My EE account and another for the EE Community and it wasn’t always easy to find how to get logged in to ask questions.
Since Single Sign On was turned on, there is now only one log in required to access both My EE and the EE Community, making the experience far more customer friendly. Instantly we saw big changes with the number of people coming to community to share their knowledge, look for answers and to chat to other EE Customers.
This saw a big jump in new registered users with a rise of 136% from 2018’s figures! As Community Manager, it’s been fantastic to see so many new users coming into the community and seeing more people finding the help that they are looking for.
We also saw a big jump in the number of posts being created, with a 57% increase in 2019 compared to 2018. With all these new posts and questions come solutions. As the community is peer to peer support, we encourage people to mark helpful replies as solutions if they have answered your question or fixed your issues. This helps all the other people who come to community who are looking for the same answers as you – it is a lot easier to see the answer when it has been marked as a solution. In 2019 we had 4,589 replies marked as solutions but a whopping 6,205,114 solution views (where someone has been looking for a specific answer and then viewed an article that has a solution marked)
Feedback sessions
Over the course of 2019 we ran many feedback sessions in the community, getting direct feedback from you, our customers, on things like billing, new products and features and how you would like the community itself to look. We are going to be doing more of the same for 2020, giving more of our internal product owners the chance to speak to all of you, share ideas and get your feedback on the work they have been doing.
Keep your eyes out for new functions coming out and opportunities to take part in these feedback sessions. It’s interesting to be able to get an insight into what happens behind the scenes in the design of new products and to be able to be part of making things even better than they already are.
EE Smart Plans
We launched our new range of plans designed to be more flexible and designed for you. With Swappable Benefits, upgrade anytime, device MOTs and many more features. The plans allow you to really personalise your account. With passes available for music, video, gaming and much more it means that you can now design each plan for each person in the family.
5G
EE was the first UK network to launch 5G in May. We celebrated with a huge party in the centre of London. Coverage started with 5G in London, Cardiff, Edinburgh, Belfast, Birmingham and Manchester. There was huge excitement around the launch and the possibilities it would bring.
By the time 2019 came to an end, 5G was available in 50 towns and cities with a target of more than 70 cities and large towns by March 2020! It’s been an exciting time for the industry with 5G making even more things possible than ever before.
EE Stars and Community Support Team
Special mention and thanks go out to our EE Community Stars. Over the course of 2019, between them they have dedicated 7,230 hours of their own time to help fellow customers find solutions to their questions, keep the community tidy and make it the welcoming place that it is. I’m always on the lookout for new Stars, whether it is those who are great at helping with technical issues or engaging with other. So if you think you have Star quality, feel free to pop me a PM.
The community would also not be what it is today without the EE Community Support Team working in the background answering questions, helping marking solutions and sharing their knowledge with the rest of the community. A huge thank you to all of you from me!
Fun Stuff
Over the year we’ve introduced a few new fun things into the community too. We added six new badges, 5G Launch, 5G Fan, Halloween Helper, Clause for applause 2019, Enjoy and Beta Tester.
We saw the return of the Halloween Competition, where we invited you to share your Halloween costumes with us and we chose a winner from the entries.
We created new boards where you can chat freely about things separate from your account and phone, with topics ranging from TV Series, films, sport and gaming.
We also added a Small Business board for our Small Business customers, adding easy links to community on the corresponding areas of the website where they had not been before.
Thank you
There have been so many great things in 2019 that I could be here all day listing them. But as we look forwards into 2020, I’d like to say a massive thank you to every member of the EE Community, new and established, for making 2019 such a fantastic year and I'm excited to see what 2020 has to bring.
What were your highlights of 2019? We'd love to hear them in the comments below.
Sorcha
