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Edition #44: 6 NLP Principles Every Telco Salesperson Should Know (But Almost None Are Taught)

Newsletter
Thought-Leadership
April 28, 2026

f you’ve missed NLP totally - it is the study of how people think, communicate, and make decisions. In business, it helps salespeople build rapport, ask better questions, and influence outcomes. By understanding behaviour and language patterns, NLP enables more effective conversations, stronger trust, and higher conversion in complex, customer-led sales environments.

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AI for Telcos: 6 High-ROI Use Cases That Actually Work

Thought-Leadership
April 20, 2026

AI expert, Damien Clothier, reveals how AI can move the needle in telecoms, and gives a practical guide on how to implement it, select vendors, and prove its ROI.

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Edition #40: The Great Will-dini Returns? Grading My 2025 Telco Predictions

Newsletter
All-Blogs
Thought-Leadership
December 1, 2025

I love making predictions. As a telco consultant, it’s important I know where the industry is going, and how to keep my clients at the fore. One year ago, I released my annual predictions for the future of our industry in 10 Big Ideas That Will Shape the Telco Industry in 2025. Now twelve months later, it’s time to evaluate if I can retain my moniker of ‘The Great ‘Will-dini’. In this edition of Telco Talk, I score my predictions – what came true, what didn’t, and what this all means for 2026 going forward. Let’s dive in!

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Edition #39: Top 7 Inventory Problems Telcos Are Facing In 2025

Newsletter
Thought-Leadership
November 25, 2025

In this edition of Telco Talk, we break down the most common inventory challenges facing telco retailers in 2025 and highlight practical ways to regain control, maximize sales, and keep customers coming back.

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Why Retail is Moving from Transactional to Magical – And What That Means for Telcos

Thought-Leadership
October 31, 2025

EE’s new experience stores show what happens when retail stops chasing transactions and starts designing for emotion, dwell time, and loyalty.

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Edition #38: Why Ordering Telco Should Be As Easy As Pizza & Chips

Newsletter
Thought-Leadership
October 28, 2025

In this edition of Telco Talk, we’ll look at some lessons from other industries, and how they can help telcos finally close the sales experience gap.

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Edition #37: Top 10 Things To Invest In As You Determine Your 2026 Budget

Newsletter
Thought-Leadership
September 23, 2025

In this edition of Telco Talk, we’ve outlined 10 priorities you should consider for next year. We’ve broken these into three buckets: Revenue Accelerators, Margin Protectors, and Strategic Bets. Think of it as a framework to balance your short-term wins with your long-term positioning. Let’s dive in!

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Edition #36: 4 Ways Generative AI Is Transforming Telco Sales & Support

Newsletter
Thought-Leadership
August 26, 2025

In this edition of Telco Talk, we’ll explore how generative AI is supercharging selling and customer support and examine which carriers are successfully using these strategies today.

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Edition #35: The Make-or-Break Moment: Why MVNOs Can’t Afford A Bad Customer Experience

Maplewave-Culture
Thought-Leadership
July 29, 2025

In this edition of Telco Talk, we’re diving into how poor customer experience contributes to 80% of MVNOs failing, and what you can do about it.

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Edition #34: Stop Leaving Money On The Table: How Telcos Can Maximize Their Dealer Channels

Thought-Leadership
Newsletter
June 24, 2025

Telecom operators are rapidly shifting how they use dealer networks. Whether it’s franchise-heavy Italy, the corporate-dominated UK, or mixed-model markets like the U.S., getting your dealer channel right is critical. Screw this up, and you’ll hemorrhage customers, cash, and credibility. Get it right, and you're laughing all the way to the bank.

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Edition #32: The Telco Retail Experience Gets a Makeover: How AI is Leading the Way

Newsletter
Thought-Leadership
April 29, 2025

In this edition of Telco Talk, we explore how Etisalat and Verizon are reimagining the telco store with bold, AI-first innovations that are truly transforming the customer experience.

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Edition #31: The Lost Millions: Why Telcos Are Failing at Direct Sales

Newsletter
Thought-Leadership
March 25, 2025

Every year, telcos leave millions in untapped revenue on the table. The reason? They’re overlooking one of their most powerful sales tools: direct sales.

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Telco’s! Stop the Profit Leak: How Neglecting Retail Training is Costing You Big Time

Thought-Leadership
February 10, 2025

Every day, retailers are leaving wads of cash on the table, and the culprit might be hiding in plain sight: undertrained employees. Think of it like a slow leak in your profit pipeline. You might not see it immediately, but over time, it’s draining your revenue and eroding your brand’s reputation.

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Edition #24: 4 Ways AI Could Disrupt The Telco Industry – And How To Prepare

Newsletter
Thought-Leadership
August 27, 2024

In this newsletter, I’ll share a few of my musings on how AI could change telco in 3, 5 or 10-years’ time. Things are moving FAST! This could be next year!

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Edition #23: Who Tops the UK Telco Retail Rankings: EE, Vodafone, O2, or Three?

Newsletter
Thought-Leadership
July 30, 2024

You may have gathered from the title that this time, I’m actually keeping my evaluation close to home – The United Kingdom! I was a big part of the telco industry in the UK some time ago. It feels like it’s been a lifetime, but I certainly have walked the walk in this market. In this edition of Telco Talk, I evaluate how EE, Vodafone, O2 and Three stack up, and where I think they have improvements to make.

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Edition #22: How To Leverage Furniture and Sensory Engagement for Superior Customer Experiences

All-Blogs
Newsletter
Thought-Leadership
June 25, 2024

In this edition of Telco Talk, I’ll explore how high-value retail businesses can benefit from such investments and provide examples from various industries that have successfully adopted this strategy.

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Edition #21: From Oil Barrels To Apps: The Evolution Of The Telco Indirect Channel

Thought-Leadership
Newsletter
May 28, 2024

In this article, Will Gibson reflects on how the indirect channel has evolved beyond its manual roots in favour of a fully digital sales and channel management process.

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Edition #20: Telco Contract Management in 2024: Four Key Trends You Can't Miss

Newsletter
Thought-Leadership
April 30, 2024

Telcos are under enormous pressure to remain competitive while being cost-efficient, innovative, and sustainable. Digital contract management is smart, customer-friendly, fast, and secure - and we can't recommend it enough. In this article, we will explore four key digital contract trends in the telco industry that you must leverage in 2024 and what they mean for your business.

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Edition #19: Perks & Points: 9 Tips To Build Telco Customer Loyalty Through Gamification

Newsletter
Thought-Leadership
March 26, 2024

Digital is now meshed tightly into our lives, but the landscape is constantly shifting. Businesses in every industry are vying for innovative ways to captivate their audience, enhance customer loyalty, and drive sales.

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Edition #17: 2023 Year in Review: TLDR Edition

Newsletter
Thought-Leadership
December 20, 2023

Can you believe 2023 is almost over? If you’re someone who’s in a hurry, here is a quick summary of our Telco Talk editions from the past year.

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Edition #15: 5 Steps That Will Boost Your Reseller Network And Drive Performance

Newsletter
Thought-Leadership
October 31, 2023

The reseller network is an invaluable asset in the telecom industry, particularly in markets dominated by prepaid services. Resellers play a pivotal role by distributing SIM cards, top-ups, and more, effectively extending the reach of telecom companies to thousands of additional touchpoints.

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Edition #11: Beyond Voice & Data: 5 Quick Wins That Elevate Telcos to Tech Leader Status

Thought-Leadership
June 27, 2023

Telcos have long feared becoming a “dumb pipe” utility provider. After attending Telecoms World Middle East, Will Gibson discovered that telcos are starting to embrace this status and invest in new avenues to drive growth instead. In this blog, we explore 5 tactics that can bring the “techno” strategy within reach.

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Curious About Sustainable Telcos? Here Are The 8 Companies Paving The Way

Thought-Leadership
June 20, 2023

After years of inaction, it finally feels like the sustainability movement is gaining some momentum. While scientists have been leading conversations about climate change and resource depletion for decades, it’s only in the last few years that sustainability has started breaking into business conversations and influencing strategies.

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Edition #10: Sustainable Supply Chain: Are You Implementing These 7 Green Strategies?

Newsletter
Thought-Leadership
May 30, 2023

Often, the hardest part of sustainability is knowing where to start. This is especially true when it comes to supply chains. Maplewave’s Logistics expert, Bradley Lapin, shares some strategies that will help you deliver environmental benefits in this edition of Telco Talk.

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Edition #9: 5 Emerging Trends in Telco Store Design You Can't Miss

Thought-Leadership
Newsletter
April 25, 2023

Once 3G arrived, telcos started to get more complex in their offerings, with texts, picture messages and all sorts of other “science fiction” possibilities. In response, store designs portrayed everything as “the future”, with sleek attributes resembling spaceships and featuring stark white surfaces.

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Edition #8: The 17 Most Interesting Telco Value-Added Services You Need To See.

Newsletter
Thought-Leadership
March 28, 2023

From personalized add-ons to freebies that enhance your everyday life, we've got you covered. Let us know if our list inspired you to take your telco VAS game to the next level!

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Edition #7: Looking for software customization? Here are 4 reasons you need a telco platform.

Newsletter
Thought-Leadership
February 28, 2023

Don't settle for a one-size-fits-all software solution! Discover four reasons why a configurable telco platform is the way to go in our latest newsletter.

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Edition #6: 9 hidden impacts that eSIMs will have on the telco industry

Newsletter
Thought-Leadership
January 31, 2023

eSIM is a game-changer for the telco industry, and those changes are coming fast. So it's time to get ready! Check out our latest newsletter to learn more about the nine hidden impacts of eSIMs.

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Edition #5: 2023 Predictions: What Our Leaders Say Will Drive Success Next Year

Newsletter
Thought-Leadership
December 20, 2022

We sat down with Maplewave’s thought leaders, Adam Baggs, Will Gibson, Grant Carstensen, and Bradley Lapin to get their thoughts on how the telco industry fared in 2022 and what’s in store for 2023.

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Edition #4: Cutting Costs? Don’t Overlook These 3 High ROI Projects In 2023

Newsletter
Thought-Leadership
November 28, 2022

Planning your budget for next year? When you're looking to cut costs, be careful of flashy long-term projects and invest in those that will give you a high ROI within months!

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Edition #3: Takeaway & Telcos: What The Food Delivery Industry Can Teach Telcos About CX

Newsletter
Thought-Leadership
October 25, 2022

What’s the future of telco retail? Ask the food delivery companies. With their new customer-first strategy that blurs the line between the digital and physical, telcos have a lot to learn from their success. Maplewave’s VP of Sales & Marketing, Will Gibson, shares his thoughts in this edition of Telco Talk.

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When Your Heroes Disappoint – A Cautionary Tale for a Telco Giant

Thought-Leadership
June 20, 2022

In this blog, Will Gibson recounts how his brand idol, Vodafone, lost their ‘hero’ status after his recent bad experience at a UK franchise store.

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Q&A: Growing The Indirect Channel & Empowering African Women With Multi-Level Marketing

Thought-Leadership
February 22, 2022

In this blog, Lavindra Gurie explains how he used a multi-level marketing strategy to empower women and boost indirect sales for Vodafone Zambia.

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The Do’s and Don’ts of Telecom Self-Service Solutions

Thought-Leadership
May 21, 2021

Self-service channels have become a huge opportunity for telecoms amid the pandemic! Here’s our list of do’s and don’ts for including these solutions in your channel strategy.

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The Top 8 Benefits of Digital Platforms

Thought-Leadership
May 17, 2021

The telco industry is rife with complex infrastructure and poor customer experiences. In his latest blog, Will Gibson explores the 8 benefits of digital platforms and how they solve telcos’ pain points.

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Part 2: A Supply Chain Q&A with Maplewave’s SVP of Global Development

Q&A
All-Blogs
Thought-Leadership
February 24, 2021

In Part 2, we’ve posed 4 more questions regarding supply chain resilience, the impact of COVID-19, and what the future looks like to Brad Lapin, SVP of Global Business Development at Maplewave. ‍

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6 Things Your Telco Staff Must Do to Enable Incredible Customer Experiences

All-Blogs
Thought-Leadership
July 31, 2020

Unlock the barriers holding back your salespeople from reaching their full potential by ensuring they can accomplish these 6 things.

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How To Optimise Your Telco Channel Strategy

All-Blogs
Thought-Leadership
July 10, 2020

From picking the right channels, to using the right technology, and providing the right training, channel strategies can get complicated - but the return on investment is worth it. ‍It’s time for telcos to optimise and develop channel strategies that drive results and boost the customer experience.

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To Franchise or to Own? A Telco Conundrum

All-Blogs
Thought-Leadership
April 7, 2020

We shop with successful franchises across the globe and across industries .So, why does franchising seem inconceivable for telcos?

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The 3 Tools Your Telco Salespeople Need to Be Successful

All-Blogs
Thought-Leadership
April 7, 2020

Few people would be successful in their jobs if they didn’t have the tools they needed to perform. And the telco retail environment is no exception.

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Telco Staff Training: Nearly Everything You Need to Know

All-Blogs
Thought-Leadership
April 6, 2020

For the telco salesperson, the stakes have never been higher. The quality of their performance impacts how customers feel about the business, how much money they spend, and whether they will return in the future. And one false move can send the customer running to the competition.‍And yet, many telcos fail to prepare their salespeople for their roles. To be successful, telcos need to invest in staff training to ensure peak performance and profitability. ‍

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How to Delight Customers with Store Design and Staff Training

All-Blogs
Thought-Leadership
March 31, 2020

The store environment plays a key role in customer experiences, but even the best-designed stores are a wasted investment if telcos neglect to train their staff on how to use the environment to its full potential.‍

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Telco Retail Needs a New RoboCop

All-Blogs
Thought-Leadership
March 19, 2020

The world is moving to a seamless, channel agnostic future. Telcos – you need a new retail approach.

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A Dream for Telco and Their Customers

All-Blogs
Thought-Leadership
March 19, 2020

In a dream telco world, we can interact and complete transactions with telco providers anytime, anywhere, and via any medium.

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TelcoTalk: Retail is Not Dead

All-Blogs
Thought-Leadership
March 19, 2020

In an age where everything can be ordered online, how do telco retailers stay relevant? And is traditional retail really dead? How networks can come out on top in the digital age?

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TelcoTalk: Four Great Examples Of Digital Retail Tech

All-Blogs
Thought-Leadership
March 19, 2020

Forward-thinking retailers are already using cutting edge technologies to delight and retain loyal customers across highly competitive markets.

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TelcoTalk: Top 10 Telco Retail Mistakes

All-Blogs
Thought-Leadership
March 19, 2020

We love talking tech, telco, retail, digital transformation and people! Here’s some of our favorite reads this week.

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TelcoTalk: Win Your Market in the Next Five Years

All-Blogs
Thought-Leadership
March 19, 2020

The old ways of doing business just don’t cut it anymore. To be competitive in today’s market, telco retailers need to focus on their customer experience.

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TelcoTalk: The Digital Only Retail Store

All-Blogs
Thought-Leadership
March 19, 2020

Brands across the globe are using digital retail experiences to rise above their competition. But it’s not too late for you to implement these experiences, the first step is knowing what you’re up against.

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5 Companies Who are Using Personalization to Change Retail Forever

All-Blogs
Thought-Leadership
March 19, 2020

As Gen Z and Alpha enter the market, they are revolutionizing everything. This is especially apparent when it comes to their desire for personalization.

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How to Turn Every Telco Store Visit into a Sales Opportunity

All-Blogs
Thought-Leadership
March 19, 2020

Opportunity awaits! It's time to retire your hard-sell and take a new approach, a consultative approach. Read this blog and learn the ins and outs of a consultative approach.

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