Successful Paperless Billing Strategies CS Week Conference 39
Representing Dominion Virginia Power Maxine Jones Manager of Customer Business Solutions One of the nation's largest producers and transporters of energy Portfolio of about 23,600 megawatts of generation Operates one of the nation s largest natural gas storage systems Serves retail energy customers in 10 states 2
Agenda Where we are What is ebill Current state 5-year view How we ve grown How we increased adoption Marketing strategies What we learned Lessons learned Best practices Next steps Expanding enrollment 3
Our paperless billing program: ebill Benefits of ebill Email notifications to view/pay bill Free same-day payments Email payment reminder three days before due date 12 months of bill history 4
Thousands Where we are Current state 915K+ enrolled 37% adoption 52% enrollment increase since 2010 900 800 700 600 500 400 300 200 100 0 591K Total ebill Enrollments 751K 670K 42.5% residential Total: 205,043 Avg. call time: 11 min 837K 915K 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 5
How we increased ebill adoption - 1 Consistent promotions via multiple low-cost channels ebill 2012 2013 2014 Adoption rate 31% 34% 37% Total promotions Prize campaigns/ Sweepstakes Channels 6 25 35 3 12 14 Web, bills, intranet, events, envelopes, Social media, online ads, email, website, envelopes, bill messages, bill inserts, customer newsletter, employee newsletter, phone system 6
How we increased ebill adoption - 2 Partnership with Corporate Communications Three-part strategy Relationship-building Retention Re-enrollments 7
Strategy 1: Relationship-building Profile of an ebill customer Binary logistic regression analysis Two-way conversations Engagement through social media Targeting new audiences Small commercial accounts Regions Second page of bill letter Enrollment Options Choose self service portal or financial institution Small Commercial Email 8
Strategy 2: Retention ebill: Retention & New Enrollments Sweepstakes: Vacation giveaway Research: Trips motivate customers 12% increase in total enrollments from 2012-2013 Both new and existing ebill customers eligible Customer Appreciation Online self-service portal Social media 9
Strategy 3: Re-enrollments ebill: Re-enrollments Drops 87% of drops final accounts Opportunity to re-enroll: 13% Encourage Re-enrollments Every other month: Re-enroll and win email campaigns (1-4% lift) Sweepstakes increase urgency Analysis Customers tend to drop between 6-9 months 6-month thank-you email emphasizes benefits of ebill Re-enroll and Win Email 10
Effective Email Campaigns: 3 Examples Customers who recently optedout of ebill could re-enroll for a chance to win one of two $100 gift cards. Response rate: 6.6% Customers who enrolled in ebill received a $5 gift card to the restaurant of their choice. Response rate: 14% Encouraged customers to enroll in ebill for a chance to win several summer cookout prizes Response rate: 2.2% 11
The Fast, Easy, Done Sweepstakes The Fast, Easy, Done vacation promotion ran from July to Dec. 2013. Result: 10% increase in enrollments from same time period the year prior. Email Postcard 12
Jumpstart Your Holiday Shopping Promo In November 2014, the ebill promotion focused on giving customers a jumpstart on the holidays. All available channels were utilized, including direct mail, email, social media, web, etc. Postcard 13
Bill letter: Big returns, low cost Using page 2 of the paper bill to target specific customer segments resulted in consistent lift at a low cost. Survey of new ebill customers: bill is the second-most common channel they hear about ebill, after the company website. Effective use of the bill letter: 1. Diminishing returns: Customers should only receive the bill letter once every three months, not every month. 2. Metrics and baselines: Establish a baseline first to effectively measure metrics and tailor marketing efforts. 3. Targeted sends: Targeting segments or specific regions reveals most effective areas to market the program. 14
Overview: Lessons Learned Most effective marketing strategies: Continual promotions with fresh content Short-term, seasonal campaigns better than longer Prize promotions create urgency Utilize all available channels (mass email, website, social media, bill) Customer-centric social media posts and messaging (questions, surveys) 15
Overview: Best Practices Customer surveys Using feedback to redesign ebill and address problems Three data points: amount, due date, account number Payment reminder 3 days before due date Evaluate campaigns with metrics Clear focus: Avoid mixed messaging 16
Next steps Next steps Goal: 1 million enrollments Expand eligibility for enrollments Simplify enrollment at turn-on 17
Contact information Maxine Jones 804.771.3995 maxine.jones@dom.com Dominion Virginia Power @DomVApower www.dom.com 18
Dakota Electric Association Successful Paperless Billing Presented by Sherie Wutschke CIS/Billing Manager Dakota Electric Association
About Dakota Electric Association Not-for-profit electric distribution cooperative 103,035 members 1.9 billion kwh sold annually $194 million in revenue 2 nd largest cooperative for size in MN Top 25 cooperatives for size nationally Growth: 27% in 15 years 20
Best Practices in Promoting Paperless Billing Telephone I would also like to mention that Dakota Electric offers online billing to help simplify your life. Is this something you would be interested in today? Thank you for calling and inquiring about Dakota Electric s QuikPay program I would be very happy to assist you with signing up for our online billing option. 21
Best Practices in Promoting Paperless Billing Bill Messages Tired of getting all that unwanted mail? Wish all the paper on your counter would go away? Simplify your life visit dakotaelectric.com and sign up for QuikPay online billing today! Check out Dakota Electric s newly updated website at dakotaelectric.com, where you can view and pay your bill online, schedule various services, get information on valuable rebates and more. Visit dakotaelectric.com for online chat, social media links, QuikPay online billing, outage information, the daily conservation gauge and more. And announcing a new mobile version for your convenience! 22
Best Practices in Promoting Paperless Billing Bill Inserts 23
Best Practices in Promoting Paperless Billing www.dakotaelectric.com 24
Best Practices in Promoting Paperless Billing 25
Promoting Paperless Billing Remittance Envelope 26
About Our Membership 103,035 Members Not a Typical Rural Electric Cooperative Suburban Mid-Upper Class Professional Educated Environmentally Friendly Member demographics have changed significantly over the last 20 to 30 years. 27
Incentives Cash Prize Drawing o Targeted Audience Current EFT Participants Current Budget Billing participants Letter Sign up for online billing $100 cash prize awarded SUCCESS! 28
Incentives Ease of Use o Listen to the Member Member driven changes Easy access to log in Hyperlinks in body of email Easy print options 29
Incentives Ease of Use o Listen to the Member Member driven changes Easy access to log in Hyperlinks in body of email Easy print options 30
Incentives Choices o Notification & Reminder Options o Relationship with 3 rd Party Consolidators o Mobile Launched in August 2014 31
Incentives Choices o Notification & Reminder Options o Relationship with 3 rd Party Consolidators o Mobile Launched in August 2014 32
Incentives Incentive Program for Employees o $1 for Every Online Billing Sign Up Incentive only offered to MSRs CIS Tracks Sales Contact good for 1 year o Incentive Disbursement Monthly Top Earner $175 It all adds up! 33
Incentives Online Billing Sales Made by MSRs o Sales Made Originated from a Telephone Contact 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 New 4700 4775MSRs 4698 5325 6621 Enrollments Average % Sold By 67% 70% 70% 73% of all 74% MSR Sales 69% It all adds up! Year Sales Made Top Earnings 2002 923 $197 2003 1077 $344 2004 1472 $386 2005 2328 $573 2006 2665 $645 2007 2476 $505 2008 2340 $252 2009 3884 $318 2010 3131 $347 2011 3359 $337 2012 3413 $367 2013 3938 $421 2014 4578 $447 34
Proven Success Online Billing o 103,035 Members o Over 26,000 Members Currently Participating QuikPay Only o 26% Adoption Rate o Additional 9,000 through Consolidator 35
Proven Success Rolled Out to Members March 2002 o Tracking Started 2006 Year # Participating 2006 15,777 2007 19,086 2008 22,736 2009 26,817 2010 31,233 2011 35,621 2012 41,872 2013 47,173 2014 53,049 Average Over 4,500 New Enrollments Per Year 60000 50000 40000 30000 20000 10000 0 2006 2008 2010 2012 2014 36
Proven Success Push and Pull o DEA Offered Online Billing Before Demand DEA rolled out the QuikPay program before it was the norm in the utility industry in MN o QuikPay Offered on Every Call Taken by MSR Coaching Incentive Lead Tracking 37
Proven Success Survey Results obilling Options Important to Member Satisfaction odea Offers a Wide Variety of Billing Options Online Billing (QuikPay) No fee to participate Provides a choice to the member of how they stay in contact with us 38
Proven Success Mobile o Rolled Out August 2014 o Average 385 Mobile Payments Per Month Payments Made with a Mobile Device Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Jan Feb 361 346 403 384 350 416 440 2,700 39
Dakota Electric Association Sherie Wutschke CIS/Billing Manager Dakota Electric Association
GOING PAPERLESS! Nova Scotia Power s strategy for electronic bill adoption
Total number of customers The evolution of e-bill at NS Power Historical Growth 160000 144,400 148,674 35.0% 140000 120000 99,660 120,905 29.0% 30.0% 30.0% 25.0% 100000 80000 67,243 80,647 21.0% 25.0% 20.0% Customer Enrolled 60000 50,503 14.0% 17.0% 15.0% % Ebill Customers 40000 11.0% 10.0% 20000 0 5.0% 0 0.0% 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 0.0% 42
Key strategies for adoption success 1. Start with a platform you can build from 2. Make the switch easy and offer more features 3. Build customer confidence in it s capabilities 4. Ensure it s easy to use and hassle free 5. Increase adoption through an integrated e-bill & payment solution 6. Leverage your customer service team & employees at your Utility 7. It s an evolving strategy keep it relevant & ongoing 43
What worked for us? Bill messages & newsletters Website promotion & tutorial videos Customer incentives contest draws, go green Call Center contests, incentives & aligned KPI s Sign up of internal employees Changed the default from paper to electronic Targeted campaigns to convert customers Integrate experience into MyAccount/self service Offer enhanced features only to electronic customers 44
Where do we go next? Continue to focus on it - don t stop Evolve your platforms using customer feedback Integrate sign up with all customer touch points (Outage portals, Customer satisfaction surveys ) Charge for paper or discount for e-bill transactions 45