How Utility Providers Can Use Technology to Improve Operations and Save Money

September 28, 2018

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For utility providers of all sizes, digital technology offers a powerful tool to improve business processes, increase automation, offer a better customer experience to clients, and update your customer service strategy.

Customers in the modern world demand answers, seek information and want far more engagement from utilities than ever before. Adopting the right technology is now more important for the long-term strategy of any utility provider. 

Despite these needs, utility providers have been comparatively slow to adopt new technology due to a lack of competition in the marketplace. Utility customers, however, expect the same level of customer experience from utility providers as they would from customer-centric companies such as Netflix and Amazon – and utility providers are recognizing this.

According to a recent study from McKinsey & Company, utility providers that transform their operations and systems with digital technologies can reduce operating expenses by up to 25 percent and can boost customer satisfaction levels by up to 40 percent.

Smart Forms software is helping utility providers automate the way they look at the customer experience, empowering them to offer a better service that focuses on customer engagement and self-service.

What are Smart Forms?

Smart Forms are an electronic form with capabilities beyond a traditional paper form, such as electronic completion, dynamic sections, database calls and electronic submission. Smart Forms can also include workflow software, a module available in the silverblaze Customer Portal. Smart Forms ensure utility customers are able to send and receive the information they need quickly and conveniently through an easy-to-navigate and seamless customer experience.

The data entered into these Smart Forms by customers helps to automate the manual processes associated with customer service, and, in turn, lowers operating costs, boosts customer satisfaction, and improves data collection and tracking.

Through the use of Smart Forms, your utility customers will no longer have to deal with the inefficient processes of the past.

Automated workflows provide your customers with a self-service platform, meaning your customer service department is freed up to work on more complex customer support queries that can deliver higher valued support to clients.

Automation improves efficiency and saves you money

The results and benefits of automating your workflow can transform your utility company and the customer experience that you provide. Inefficiencies in your customer service department will only result in wasted time, unhappy customers and additional expenditure on your bottom line.

An automated approach will help utility providers ensure that customer issues are dealt with quickly, empower them to go above and beyond traditional customer service approaches of the past and introduce innovative new tools such as ebilling, outage notifications and other self-service tools.

Benefits of workflow automation include:

  • Increasing the speed and efficiency of your customer service department.
  • Creating self-serving customers who can help themselves when it comes to easier issues.
  • Save money on manual processes and better allocate your utility’s resources.
  • Maximizing your resources to save employee time and free them up to work on more complex customer issues.
  • And much more.

The silverblaze Customer Portal can seamlessly integrate into your existing business processes, empowering your company’s service department to be significantly more efficient, helping you to save money – all, while improving your customer experience.

To learn more about our Smart Forms and Workflow module, contact us today.

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It’s time to stop worrying about all the issues that come with low customer engagement, and instead, transform your operations to become the leading utility company in your area.

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