utilities, customers & sms rudi leitner

24
Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

Upload: jenifer-nelson

Post on 30-Dec-2015

41 views

Category:

Documents


6 download

DESCRIPTION

Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner. Who in this room has a mobile phone? Who in this room has ever sent a text (SMS) message?. 1.52 billion global mobile phone users Global SMS – 3Q2004 : 135 billion (1 million SMS / minute) Global monthly SMS : 36/user. - PowerPoint PPT Presentation

TRANSCRIPT

Page 1: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

Utilities, Customers & SMS

Rudi Leitner

Page 2: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

•Who in this room has a mobile phone?

•Who in this room has ever sent a text (SMS) message?

Page 3: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

•1.52 billion global mobile phone users

•Global SMS – 3Q2004 : 135 billion (1 million SMS / minute)

•Global monthly SMS : 36/user

Page 4: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

So why does this matter to me as a utility?

Customers and utilities need to interact -they do so using

• Post• Phone• In person• Fax• Internet

Page 5: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

But they don’t really use the potential of texting (SMS) …

Page 6: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

Potential?

The mobile phone, using SMS is…

• An on-line data terminal• Widely available

– Much more accessible than the web• It is portable• It is secure• It is low cost• Much faster than most other ways of interaction

– Much, much faster than mail– Faster than in-person contact– Faster than voice

• Enables near real-time interaction between you and your customer• And, it is owned (and loved) by your customer & is fully

maintained by them

Page 7: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

But what about voice?

Voice and SMS offer customers different ways of interacting with utilities, but…– SMS can be faster (no need to hold in a call

center queue, or speak to multiple people to achieve the desired response)

– SMS is impersonal (some people dislike speaking to CC operators)

– SMS is much cheaper– SMS allows for automation of processes – for

example: directly accessing databases, logging responses etc.

Page 8: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

Characteristics of SMS - Summary

• Accepted and understood by most users

• Accessible

• Low cost – in some cases free

• Quick and easy to use

• Secure, each user identifiable

• Time and date stamped

• Data processed and stored in real time

• Network manages data delivery

Page 9: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

Outage reporting & management

Customer self read

Community field service

Utility field service

Billing query support

Information server

Market research/service measurement

Prepaid vending solutions

????

Some examples of using SMS in the interaction between customer and utility

Page 10: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

Some examples of how this can work…

Page 11: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

Customer material

•depends on type of SMS services deployed Examples

• Mail outs with the bill

• Meter sticker

• Fridge magnet

• Poster / Handouts at utility offices

• Adverts in media

• Posted/Knock & Drop communications

• multiple services on one card/magnet/mail-out/sticker

Interface with the customer

Page 12: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

Utility Solutions - Self Meter Read

• Low cost per meter read

• Instantaneous and real time collection of data (reads and check reads)

• Supplements existing methods of read collection

• Reads can be checked and corrected

• Reads can be scheduled with reminders at the customer convenience

• Communication channel to the customer

• Rapid deployment

• Integrates with billing systems

“…managing the future”

Page 13: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

Self Meter Reading Customer reads

questionnaire

Read typed into Customers cell phone

SMS/e-mail sent to required person / call centre

Reports generated

Data fed through to utility database

Appropriate response Sent back according to

customer input

Server in hosted environment

Page 14: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

Customer Server

Database

1

4

SMS

3

Email/direct database entry

1 – request sent to customer for self reading

2 – customer reads and sends in result

3 – reading sent to database for checking, if correct store

4 – if incorrect ask customer to try again

5 – customer tries again6 – If still incorrect send request

to meter reader7 – Field agent visits meter and

checks operation 8 – Field agent send in correct

reading or follow up if tampered or damaged

Data incorrect

2 SMS

Data incorrect – try again

4

Second attempt5

Visit Meter

Field agent

7

6 8

ESP Self Meter Reading

Page 15: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

Who wants to do an example?

– Acc No: 567891234986– Meter reading A: 102– Meter reading D: 203

Please SMS +27 83 308 1062

567891234986 A102 D203

Page 16: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

Utility Solutions - Outage Management

• Instant knowledge of outages

• Immediate communication to customers on the state of an outage

• Reduce load on call centers

• Low cost of communication

• Rapid Deployment

• Improve customer relationship

• Integrates with existing Outage Management Systems

“…managing the future”

Page 17: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

Outage Management Customer reports outage

Information on outage sent back to customer

SMS/e-mail sent to required person / call centre

Field reporting

Data fed through to utility database – Compare with known outages

Server in hosted environment

Further updates sent back to customer

Page 18: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

ESP Outage Management

Customer ESPServer

Call Centre

SMS, e-mailor database

access

TechnicalCentre

14

2

SMS

5 SMS/e-mail

Step 1 – outage not known

Customer Server

1

2

SMS

Step 2 – outage known

5

3

Page 19: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

ESP Outage Management

Customer ESPServer

Call Centre

SMS, e-mailor database

access

TechnicalCentre

2 SMS/e-maill

Step 3 – more time needed

Step 3 – fault fixed -reset

SMS

31

Page 20: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

• Empower communities to provide first line customer support

• Automatically manage the above process

• Reduce cost

• Improve customer service levels

Community Based Field Service

Page 21: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

Customer ESPServer

UtilityField agent

Phone / visit

1

4

2

SMS

SMS

3

Timed event 1 to 3, response required from community contact to server, closing customer request

email

5SMS/email

61 – customer sends a request2 – message sent to community

person3 – community person visits

customer4 – reports problem found,

resolves problem or indicates whether additional utility support required

5 – if additional utility support required, utility visit scheduled

6 – field agent visits7 –job closed

Communitycontact

SMS

visit

CallCentre

5 7

ESP Community Based Field Service

Page 22: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

• Think how SMS based systems can fit into your customer management systems

• Think about your customer

• Give your customer more choices

• Improve service levels

• Increase customer loyalty

• Improve the image of the utility

• Measure and analyse key utility processes

• Reduce costs

• Increase accuracy of data

• Open new communications and marketing channels

Some comments

Page 23: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner

For further information

please contact

Rudi Leitner ([email protected])

Thank you

Page 24: Utilities, Customers & SMS Rudi Leitner