A utility customer portal is a place where customers can manage their entire account and interact with their utility provider in one centralized location.

 On-demand customer service has grown exponentially in the last few years, and it’s now a crucial aspect of the customer experience (for utility providers included). On-demand TV and movies are entrenched in the home entertainment industry, online shopping gives consumers the opportunity to purchase products whenever and wherever they are and smart devices connect us to our service providers 24 hours a day, seven days a week.

If it’s not already, the customer experience (CX) should be top-of-mind for any organization in today’s world, especially considering the impact of the pandemic. Because of the changing landscape, companies have had to rethink their approach to establishing a strong customer relationship. Strategic objectives commonly include initiatives that aim to exceed customer expectations, boost customer loyalty, improve satisfaction and promote advocacy. 

Big data has been a huge talking point in the business world for a few years now. It involves organizations generating an inconceivable amount of data and then analyzing that information in an effort to improve customer satisfaction while building more efficient processes.

In fact, according to this infographic from FinancesOnline, businesses that leverage big data can drive profitability by as much as 8 to 10 percent. There’s no surprise that’s the case when 66 percent of customers now expect companies to understand their unique needs and expectations.

Did you know that according to a study from Adobe and Forrester Consulting, customer-focused companies increase their revenue 1.4 times faster than non-customer-focused companies?

In fact, even utility providers who traditionally have no market competition can still boost their profitability by providing an excellent customer experience (CX) and world-class customer engagement. 

Like most industries, the utility landscape is undergoing some changes, and so are the customer expectations. The impact of the pandemic only amplified these expectations; customers want seamless customer experiences, personalization, frictionless customer service, better interactions and self-service options. This presents a huge opportunity for utility providers. 

In the past and still till this day, the utility sector has not been renowned for providing superior customer experiences (CX) to delight their customers. 

In fact, it was often the case that utility providers had little interaction with their customers. With virtually no competition in the industry and no choice for customers, utilities delivered adequate customer service but did not prioritise the customer experience. The only time utility customers interacted with their provider was for billing matters and service calls. Not exactly two conversations that leave the customer feeling delighted with a utility’s service offering.

Two main objectives come to mind when utilities want to improve business -  firstly, they want to improve operational efficiencies so that they can better allocate their internal resources and save costs. Secondly, they want to build better customer experiences and improve customer satisfaction.

Today’s customers want fast, seamless experiences when interacting with brands. The customer experience (CX) is now a vital component of any customer service strategy and is a crucial aspect of driving up customer service ratings.

Today’s consumers are spending an increasing amount of time on their cellphones and other mobile devices. It’s for this reason that an increasing number of utility providers are now investing in eBilling to improve customer satisfaction. 

In fact, the new Billing Industry Benchmarks report from Chartwell found that utilities can save an average of 54 cents per customer each month by distributing online bills rather than paper bills.