Telecom apps were digital replicas of paper bills. We asked: what if the app already knew what you needed before you opened it?
Hero visual
The Tension
Every telecom carrier had a service app. Every one of them was the same: a digital filing cabinet of bills, usage charts, and nested menus. Customers opened the app with a specific question — am I on the right plan? Can I save money? — and were met with a maze of screens designed around the billing database, not around their actual needs. The result: they called the call center instead.
The Insight
The information architecture was the problem. These apps were built to display data tables, not to answer questions. We reframed the brief: the app shouldn't be a self-service tool that the customer navigates. It should be an advisor that already knows the answer when the customer arrives.
Research & strategy
Exploration & iterations
The Strategic Move
We introduced a proactive-first model — the app recommends before the user asks. On launch, it surfaces personalized savings opportunities, plan optimization suggestions, and relevant actions based on usage patterns. No menus required for the most common questions. This was years before AI-powered recommendation engines became standard — we achieved the same outcome through smart information architecture and behavioral design. The concept won an internal competition against established agencies and shipped to production.
Experience Equation
Millions of Partner Communications mobile subscribers
Get answers about their plan, find savings, manage their account — without calling support
Mobile service app — the primary self-service channel
Competitive Israeli telecom market where churn is high and perceived value drives retention
Apps mirrored the billing database structure, not the customer's mental model — information architecture reflected internal systems, not user goals
Final product
Detail
Detail
Detail
What Made This Hard
No reference existed — no telecom company had built a proactive service app before
Proactively suggesting cheaper plans risks reducing revenue — the design had to create value for both customer and business
Telecom customers are inherently skeptical of carrier recommendations — trust had to be earned through radical transparency
Surfacing smart defaults without hiding access to detailed account information
What Changed
Capabilities
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