 combinations of discounted handsets and lower rates per minute and can be quite effective in convincing customers to switch. As with channel churn, the only good defense against promotion churn is a happy customer. Internet/Alternative Channels Customers can also be drawn away through the use of alternative sales channels such as the Internet, trade shows, or other unconventional customer touchpoint activities. These alternative channels can function in much the same way as promotions do, providing customers with new inputs and new options. CHURN TAXONOMY CONCLUSION In this chapter we spent much time considering the reasons customers give for churning and some of the implications and insights that those reasons can give us. It should be obvious at this point that churn is in fact a very large, complex, and multidimensional problem. In the chapters that follow, we will explore the various means available to managing the vast assortment of churn criteria. eXcellence in Telecommunications The Telco Churn Handbook Chapter 5 CHAPTER 5 CONSUMER SHOPPING CYCLES FOR TELECOM The telecommunications industry has revolutionized the world as we know it. It has made modern society and the global economy a reality. No single industry has fostered more change, innovation, and growth than telecommunications. No business, no person, no government has been untouched. And yet somehow we naively assume that the change created in the wake of this telecommunications revolution in all of its forms (long distance, wireless, Internet, etc.) will somehow not have any impact on the consumers who use that technology on a day-to-day basis. The belief that everything that is touched by telecommunications changes, except for telecommunications itself, is seriously flawed. To understand the customer's loyalty to the telco and to know what churn really means you must first recognize how consumers' attitudes are changing about the role telephone service plays in their lives and about how they make their service provider selections. So far, we hav