Today’s electric utility customers expect more insight into their energy usage, as well as a service experience on par with that of industry leaders such as Amazon, Google, Netflix, and Uber. Changing tools for engagement, such as online, mobile, and social networks, are helping utilities to meet those expectations in the face of the most competitive environment that the electric power industry has ever experienced. Click to tweet: According to a new report from Navigant Research, global customer engagement spending is expected to grow from approximately $3.6 billion in 2017 to over $5.2 billion in 2026.
“Engaging customers used to entail sending a monthly energy bill, dealing with high bill complaints, and finding resolutions for customers experiencing power outages,” said Michael Kelly, research analyst with Navigant Research. “Today, utilities must work to engage customers proactively through multiple channels—and for multiple purposes.”
Websites with sophisticated self-service capabilities, mobile applications, and online chat support are just a few of the engagement channels now considered standard, according to the report. Investment and support from senior utility leadership is growing as utilities adapt to evolving customer expectations and explore new technologies aimed at improving the customer experience.
The report, Customer Management and Experience Technologies, examines the drivers and challenges related to customer engagement solutions. The study focuses on four key segments for applications and technologies aimed at improving the customer experience: web, call center, billing, and outage notification. Global market forecasts, segmented by region, technology segment, type, and category, extend through 2026. The report also provides in-depth profiles of key vendors in the customer engagement market and examines several utility deployment case studies.
