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Top : Customer Service - Utilities: Utilities, gas, electricity companies are not known for their customer service, perhaps in part because they operate as virtual monopolies. In this section we'll look at customer service in the utilities industry.
Articles:
How to talk to a customer, if you have to | Intelligent Utility - by Phil CarsonA few, seemingly contradictory trends abound in the power industry which make customer engagement a generational challenge for utilities. Surveys show that the general public doesn't have a fixed notion of what "smart grid" means, which may or may not reflect the fact that individual utilities approach that grab-bag phrase in disparate ways. Yet a very small cadre of metering opponents have managed to affix the adjective "controversial" to that elusive term, "smart meter," a trend that grabs media attention. Interval meters obviously have a variety of potential uses and whether they serve the utility or the customer or both often remains an open question even after installation, though regulators are catching up to demand tangible value for the ratepayers who foot the bill. (Added: 2-Apr-2012 Hits: 3 )
Customer analytics = customer value | Intelligent Utility - by Mike Smith
Utilities are operating in an era when their customers are surrounded by new levels of engagement everywhere they turn, as other industries leverage analytics to improve efficiency, customer service metrics and bottom line performance. Fortunately, many utility leaders are proving to be just as agile in adopting new processes and technologies that enable them to also show measurable improvements in their internal customer operations as well as engagement with external customers. (Added: 2-Apr-2012 Hits: 3 )
Today's electric utilities are using new tools - Social Media and Customers - by Kate Rowland
While the most obvious use case for social media in the utility industry is during power outages or other events that affect customer service, many electric utilities are finding other positive uses for social media, too. Twitter, Facebook and even LinkedIn are finding their way into savvy utilities' communication toolboxes, and being used to positive effect in building new and better customer relationships. Last year, E Source published its "Utility Social Media Survey," which included questions about social media business drivers, tools, staffing and governance. At the time of its release, Matthew Burks, senior manager of E Source Mass-Market Services, noted: "The most successful utilities see the long-term implications of this channel and are investing the time, staff and infrastructure to integrate it into their daily operations." (Added: 2-Apr-2012 Hits: 5 )
Improving the Customer Experience - Utilities Use Twitter, Facebook During Crisis - by John Johnson
While the event was a major test for NES' infrastructure and its repair teams, it was also the first major test for the social media programs that Nashville Electric deployed in early 2009. Unable to reach the utility's emergency response phone line, customers flocked to its Twitter account, seeking information about the time frame for power restoration. Following the paralyzing flood, NES relied heavily on Twitter and Facebook to relay important information to customers and to answer the 24/7 influx of questions about outages. (Added: 2-Apr-2012 Hits: 3 )
Customer engagement and utilities: three things you gotta know - by Phil Carson
A webcast we held last week on "Lessons in Smart Customer Engagement," offered up some insights into how three leading utilities are going about this task. Here are some highlights. (Slide decks and the audio replay are available by clicking on the title above.) I queried the panel on three basic questions and a fourth was touched upon in passing (Added: 2-Apr-2012 Hits: 3 )
Customer satisfaction with energy suppliers plummets - by Staff
A year of price rises, million pound fines and investigations into the energy industry have taken their toll with consumers, according to the latest independent Customer Satisfaction Report published by uSwitch.com. Despite reaching a record high last year customer satisfaction has plummeted again, from 73% of customers satisfied last year to 62% this year - an 11% drop. (Added: 18-Nov-2011 Hits: 92 )
Telecommunications Engages Its Customers | G-CEM - by Paul Greenberg
Three years ago, if you talked about telecommunications customer experience you pretty much were talking about customer service and churn rates - and that remains a valid concern today. But, with the incredible growth of the mobile market, and the incredible variety of services both mobile and otherwise (e.g. VOIP) being offered, both consumer and enterprise, the conversation about telecommunications customer experience gets far more complex. For example, just with mobile alone, you now have to talk about user interfaces on the mobile devices, the speed to access internet capabilities and applications on the devices, the "coolness" factor of the devices themselves and the "other" features and functions that the device provides. All part of the user experience. (Added: 6-Dec-2010 Hits: 248 )
Best Practices at Duke Energy Call Centers: A Mix of Tech and Touch - by Dennis Gowan
Although a call center typically hums with technology, it is the humanity that makes it sing. Best practices in training, response and delivery, are therefore, as much about touch as they are about tech. Call centers must constantly balance efficiency with genuine customer care and concern. That means taking the time to invest in people skills, helping supervisors understand their own personality styles and how they interact with diverse people and personalities, bringing in guest speakers that make %u201Cbook%u201D lessons come to life, and developing regular feedback procedures for customer service reps to help them continuously improve. Our new hires get one-on-one training with an experienced specialist as well as several weeks of phone lab, where they handle calls in a closely supervised environment. Here%u2019s how we do it at Duke Energy (Added: 26-Nov-2011 Hits: 101 )
Turning On The Lights For Customer Service Appointments | Intelligent Utility - by Jennifer Friedman
Some electric utilities are beginning to realize that the service a customer receives around appointments in their own home can have a huge impact on customer retention. According to research by Greenfield Online and Datamonitor/Ovum analysts, utilities in competitive regions lose $1.75 billion in annual revenue due to poor customer service. That number is the cost of customer churn/defections -- it doesn't take into account the wasted operational expenditures poor service creates. (Added: 2-Apr-2012 Hits: 3 )
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