AT&T Inc. (NYSE:T) and the Council of Better Business Bureaus today announced that AT&T has earned Accredited Business or Member status for its wireless services in more than 100 local Better Business Bureaus (BBBs) nationwide. AT&T is the first and only carrier in the wireless industry to earn the distinction in this many locations.
BBB announced its Accredited Business program in October 2007, and its community-based BBBs award accreditation to companies that meet BBB business standards. These standards involve a commitment to key actions that foster trust in business and handling customer inquiries and complaints in a timely and thorough manner, among other criteria.
BBB standards are set centrally, and evaluations are conducted and applied locally. More than 80 BBBs have transitioned to an accreditation-based system, and some continue to grant membership to businesses meeting BBB standards. According to the Council of Better Business Bureaus, by the end of 2008, all BBBs will have transitioned to accreditation-based evaluations.
"We work hard to build trust," said Paul Roth, president of Marketing and Sales for AT&T's wireless unit. "In support of our commitment to our customers and the public, we are proud to be affiliated with an organization that stands for integrity in business practices."
The honor follows more than three years of AT&T's steady efforts to not only connect previously separate networks, systems and services but also to enhance customer satisfaction and retention. After the merger of Cingular Wireless and AT&T Wireless in late 2004, AT&T began integrating its networks and services to form the largest nationwide wireless provider in the U.S. Since then, the overall complaint rate for its combined wireless operations has dropped 87 percent, and its churn rate is down more than 35 percent, both the lowest levels in the company's history.
"AT&T is a superb example of how a large company works with its customers and Better Business Bureaus to build trust in the marketplace," said Steve Cox, vice president of Communications for the Council of Better Business Bureaus. "AT&T has become a terrific partner with us. It has reduced customer complaints significantly and has worked with individual BBBs in more than a hundred communities across the U.S. to encourage fair and honest business practices."
According to BBB research, seven of 10 consumers say they are more likely to buy from a company designated as a BBB Accredited Business. As a BBB Accredited Business, AT&T commits to promptly resolving complaints, adhering to a BBB's high standards of truthful advertising and sales practices and promoting voluntary self-regulation in the wireless industry.
In addition to its active efforts with local BBBs across the U.S., AT&T was recently named America's Most Admired Telecommunications Company by Fortune magazine and was named Company of the Year by Forbes magazine in 2007. AT&T won the 2007 CIO 100 award, and Frost & Sullivan selected it as the 2007 U.S. CXOs' Choice Award for Overall Best Wireless Service Provider. Gartner Inc. placed the company in the Leaders Quadrant of the 2007 "Magic Quadrant for U.S. Wireless Service Providers" report.1
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