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Energy suppliers and their service providers find new customers primarily via comparison portals and social media. (Image: Deutsche Energie-Agentur)
Düsseldorf (energate) - Artificial intelligence (AI) is gaining importance in the sales of municipal utilities. This is the result of a recent survey of 43 small, medium-sized and large energy suppliers and their service providers by the consulting firm Fourmanagement. In addition to AI, the study participants name chatbots and 360-degree portal solutions as the most important technologies for digitising their interface with customers.According to the study, in addition to direct contact, utilities primarily use social media and comparison portals to acquire new customers. 86 percent of service providers do this, 63 percent of energy suppliers.
Both the utilities and the service providers have room for improvement in digitalisation. More than 40 percent of the service providers' interface to the customer is digitally supported by all participants. In addition, some suppliers state that they have digitally supported less than 15 percent of the customer interfaces. The quality or satisfaction of the customers with the customer interface from the participants is predominantly rated by the respondents as satisfactory to high (72%). About one third of the participants rate the share of digital customer communication at less than 15 percent. Customer satisfaction with current customer communication is rated predominantly satisfactory to high (53%).
24/7 solutions "inevitable"
"The results show that energy supply companies are not yet living processes efficiently, especially on the IT side. In addition to increasing cost pressure in the industry, the price differentiation factor will affect the profitability of energy supply companies in the future," the study states. In addition, customers' demands for accessibility and simplicity of the customer interface would put existing business models to the test and reveal great potential for digitalisation. A new strategic orientation with customer-centred, innovative, and digitalised 24/7 solutions would become inevitable for customers, utilities as well as for the product offerings of the service providers. /df
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