Simple Mobile has won the Wave7 Research 1st quarter 2023 independent multi-carrier prepaid dealer survey. The provider has won every single quarterly survey ever performed by the firm. This was the 33rd survey. However, compared to previous surveys, fewer dealers responded with Simple Mobile as being their top seller, and more reported it as being their number two seller. Verizon Prepaid was a big mover climbing over several brands and overtaking AT&T Prepaid to take the number two spot.
1Q23 Prepaid Dealer Survey Results
Note: The "number of dealers" column indicates the number of dealers out of 30 selling the brand. The "1st place" column denotes the number of dealers reporting the brand as their top seller, while "2nd place" etc., means the number of dealers reporting that as their second best-selling brand.
| Provider | Number of Dealers | 1st Place | 2nd Place | 3rd Place | Also-Ran |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Simple Mobile | 24 | 10 | 9 | 4 | 1 |
| Verizon Prepaid | 18 | 7 | 2 | 4 | 5 |
| AT&T Prepaid | 15 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 8 |
| H2O Wireless | 15 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 5 |
| Ultra Mobile | 13 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 4 |
| Gen Mobile | 9 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 8 |
| Boost Mobile | 9 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 1 |
| T-Mobile Prepaid | 6 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 1 |
| Lycamobile | 5 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Cricket Wireless | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| Selectel | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| UScellular | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red Pocket | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Aside from Simple Mobile, for obvious reasons, Wave7 Research named Verizon Prepaid as one of its survey winners. It took the number two spot away from AT&T Prepaid with 18 dealers now mentioning that they carry the brand. That number is up from 13 in the 4Q22 dealer survey. Verizon Prepaid was the number-one selling brand for seven stores, up from two in the previous survey. AT&T Prepaid and H2O Wireless tied for third in the survey with 15 stores carrying each brand. However, H2O Wireless was a top three seller in ten stores whereas AT&T Prepaid was a top three seller in seven.
Wave7 Research Quarterly Prepaid Brand Momentum Award
Not surprisingly, Wave7 Research gave its momentum award to Verizon Prepaid for climbing up to the number two spot in the survey. Store reps mentioned a couple of different reasons for the climb. Some told Wave7 Research that offers were part of the reason for the solid performance. Towards the end of last year, Verizon Prepaid largely improved its plans. Starting prices for plans were lowered, hotspot was added to the cheapest unlimited plan, and premium priority data was added to the most expensive unlimited plan. Loyalty and autopay discounts were also changed so that customers with autopay could get the best pricing possible in month two instead of having to wait nine months for full loyalty discounts to kick in. Dealers were also given the ability to offer an instant $10/month discount to customers on unlimited plans without the need for enabling autopay.
Another reason Verizon Prepaid may have climbed further up in the survey is due to dealers pushing the brand more. One dealer reported to Wave7 Research that compensation for selling the brand has recently gotten better.
Survey Loser
Wave7 Research named Lycamobile its survey loser. Interestingly, in the last survey, it was named a winner when ten dealers reported carrying the brand up from six in the survey before. But now Lycamobile has given up those gains as only five stores carried the brand in the 1Q23 survey. It is not clear why the downturn in the most recent survey. Perhaps Lycamobile has been more focused on its online channel where some very aggressive promos have run over the last several months including this free trial offer.
“Simple Mobile wins the survey again, as always. Verizon Prepaid did well in this survey, taking second, and H2O Wireless, AT&T Prepaid, and Ultra Mobile also did well in the survey, with Lycamobile sliding.” – Jeff Moore, Principal of Wave7 Research