AWS for Industries
How utility executives elevate the customer experience with Amazon Connect
Utility executives share common benchmark success metrics when reporting to stakeholders including customers, regulators, elected officials, and investors. Regulated investor-owned utilities focus on long-term metrics such regulated rates of return (ROR) and service reliability benchmarks such as Customer Average Interruption Duration Index (CAIDI). Energy retail executives focus closely on customer satisfaction (CSAT) scores and customer churn rates, which drive underlying margins.
To dive deeper on this topic, the AWS Power and Utilities team recently hosted a webinar featuring two AWS utility customers that have deployed Amazon Connect to improve customer and associate satisfaction. Adam Crapp, customer experience design director from Origin Energy in Australia, shared his utilities proof of value (POV) results. René Kulschewski, chief information officer from German retail energy company lekker Energie in Germany, relayed how Amazon Connect supports customer service associates working from home. Stream this webinar now on demand.
Increasingly, utility executives across regulated and competitive retail markets share a common focus on increasing CSAT scores. Regulated utility executives understand the positive correlation between higher CSAT scores and improved regulator treatment during periodic rate cases. Leading competitive energy retailers recognize that higher CSAT scores are directly related to lower customer churn rates.
In its 2019 utility customer satisfaction study, JD Power reported increases in CSAT scores across utility categories. However, the report highlighted a growing gap between utility CSAT leaders and followers: “The gap between the highest- and lowest-performing individual utility has increased to a 13-year high of 192 points.”
Leaders are widening this gap by creating frictionless, digital customer experiences that allow customers to self-serve, when, where, and how they chose, be it via web, mobile, text, or phone call. Additionally, retail utilities are now leveraging artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ML) capabilities to predict customer needs and personalize interactions. With AI/ML, retail utilities can present “next best offers” to grow new revenue from value-added services. These services can be tailored to individual consumer usage patterns, pricing plans, clean energy preferences, and site-specific reliability needs. The combination of natural language voice response systems, AI chat bots, and data-driven call routing can provide this while efficiently helping customers and increasing “one-and-done” rates.
Watch the recorded webinar replay to learn from lekker Energie and Origin Energy executives on how they are able to better engage and service customers with Amazon Connect.
Related viewing and reading
Blog: How lekker Energie improves customer service productivity and accessibility with Amazon Connect
Video: Origin Energy – putting the power in consumer’s hands