Let Customers Quickly Report Utility Issues

Industries

Tools

Marketing Automation Software: SimplyCast 360

The Challenge

Simplify the Outage Report Process

Simplify the process of reporting issues (outages, downed power lines, fallen trees obstructing a line, non-functioning street lights), reduce phone wait times and increase customer satisfaction.

The Solution

Use SMS to Make the Reporting Process Faster and Easier

Using SMS short codes optimizes the issue reporting process. The SMS reporting process reduces the time support staff spend on the phone. Customers can quickly text a shortcode to the power company and a technician will follow up about the issue.

The steps to success

Set up simple reporting process in minutes

Create an SMS short code process for each issue using drag and drop. Issues in this case are represented by the keywords OUTAGE, TREE, POLE and LIGHT. You can send a different response message to each customer based on their SMS response.
Capture issue information quickly

A customer texts a specific keyword, such as POLE, to a short code. 550055 is the short code for the U.S. 770077 is the short code for Canada.
Respond immediately to customer

A thank you message is sent back to the customer letting them know that their issue has been registered and providing them with an estimated response time. The message that the customer receives in response depends on what keyword they text in.
Get instant issue notifications so you can follow up

The issue is registered in the system based on the keyword. A notification is sent to the customer service team so they may contact the customer if more information is needed.
Personally follow up with customer

If more information is required about the issue, the customer service representative calls the customer. They may then notify a technician about the issue. The SMS process simplifies reporting and reduces phone wait times.