Five lessons when building a digital MVNO

The promise versus the reality of eSIM

With eSIM, connecting to mobile networks has, in theory, never been easier. Just download an app, sign up, click to download your eSIM, and you’re ready to go. It’s simpler than switching a physical SIM… right? Well, maybe not for everyone.

In my view, eSIM is more straightforward (but I have worked with eSIM for nearly ten years). The reality for many is that it’s only more straightforward if you understand that your SIM card is now a digital download. For many users, especially those purchasing domestic mobile services, the lack of a physical SIM can still be confusing. Research from GSMA Intelligence shows that many people are still unfamiliar with eSIM — as of the last research, only around 35% have heard of it.

When I’ve walked friends — especially those who travel for work — through buying and installing an eSIM in just a few minutes, they’re amazed. To them, it feels almost magical, especially for those who’ve always relied on plastic SIMs. But that is with me guiding them through the process; there would be more of a barrier if they did it alone, for the first time.

It’s not that simple for everyone

The eSIM process is still not that simple for everyone. For travel-related eSIMs, where users are actively aware of eSIM and they set out to buy one, the barrier is lower. But for domestic mobile services, when customers are swapping devices or changing networks, the lack of familiarity with eSIM and clunky eSIM implementations (think eSIM QR codes in password-protected PDFs) can be frustrating.

Two areas can make a significant difference in eSIM adoption:

• Improving how mobile operators educate customers and implement their eSIM products.
• Enhancing the eSIM experience on the device itself (controlled by Apple, Google and friends).

Embrace a fully digital vision

At Mindszi, we focus on the first point. My colleague Michael Moorfield and I are passionate about helping mobile operators enhance their eSIM experience. In the past, we built consumer, enterprise and IoT eSIM solutions, often ahead of their time. However, we always felt constrained — the shorter or simpler customer experience we wanted on the front end was directly proportional to a more complex enabling ecosystem on the backend. Often, this constrained our speed to market.

It’s a problem worth solving. Building an easy-to-use digital experience makes it far easier for new customers to switch to your mobile network or, through a great customer support experience, be motivated to stay. Winning new domestic customers and retaining existing customers is worth it — a one or two percent capture of new customers can be worth hundreds of millions a year in top-line revenue.

That’s why we built the Mindszi platform — a SaaS solution that dramatically simplifies the sales, distribution and support of eSIM services. It is designed to stand alone or easily feed data to and from existing telecom APIs and ecosystems. It enables MNOs and MVNOs to move quickly to create sales, acquisition, IoT or support experiences — without slow and costly projects — and covers enterprises working directly with eSIMs for their employees or connected devices.

Building a fully digital MVNO: Slice Mobile’s eSIM-only journey

Recently, we helped Slice Mobile launch an eSIM-only network in the UK. Mindszi provided the eSIM orchestration platform, while Planes Studio designed the user experience and mobile apps. Here are five key takeaways from how Slice built a top-tier eSIM experience:

• App-only vision — Slice’s approach is fully digital: no physical SIM, no contracts, no phone support, no credit checks. The app offers a seamless experience, including live chat support, and you can start with a free trial in minutes.
• Offering something different — Slice treats customers like owners by getting them involved in initiatives to create a better network. In return, customers are rewarded with things they want.
• User experience — Slice invested in a top-notch UX designed for people who want to manage things through an app. It was app first, not the website. Customers can switch to Slice and get live on the network in about two minutes.
• Automation — Mindszi guided Slice through the complexities of building an eSIM-only network, managing all service enablement, network provisioning and payment processing behind the scenes.
• Extensibility — Mindszi’s event-based platform lets Slice integrate external SaaS tools with a few clicks. Everything is real time, so gone are the days of mega integration projects for new third-party services.

eSIM is here to stay, but it requires innovation

eSIM can make buying or switching mobile connectivity simpler, but not everyone is aware of or ready to use eSIM today. The real game-changer for adoption is not to replicate, like for like, the processes of the physical SIM world — make the eSIM sales and support experience more digital and guided.

Build real-time eSIM data into your support processes, and make sure your eSIM orchestration platform gives you the flexibility to enable different sales journeys for a broad customer base.