Top Ten e-Billing Trends: Evolving Technologies and Predictions on Business and Customer Response

Solutions for Enabling Lifetime Customer Relationships. Care. Solutions for Customer Intelligence, Communications and Top Ten e-Billing Trends Evolving Technologies and Predictions on Business and Customer Response W H I T E PA P E R : CUSTOMER COMMUNICATION MANAGEMENT Raymond Grant • Product Manager, Customer Communication Management, Pitney Bowes Business Insight WHITE PAPER: CUSTOMER COMMUNICATION MANAGEMENT Top Ten e-Billing Trends Evolving Technologies and Predictions on Business and Customer Response 2 ABSTRACT THE BUTTERFLY EFFECT HAS GONE DIGITAL. THE FANCIFUL NOTION THAT AN INSECT FLAPPING ITS WINGS IN ONE HEMISPHERE CAN TRIGGER A TORNADO IN ANOTHER CAN NOW BE APPLIED TO MOUSE CLICKS AND THEIR IMPACT ON GLOBAL BUSINESS. BUSINESSES HAVE SEEN HOW SOCIAL NETWORKING CAN DRIVE EXPLOSIVE, VIRAL ADOPTION OR REJECTION OF A PRODUCT OR SERVICE. THESE “TECH TRENDS” HAVE ENORMOUS IMPLICATIONS, AND TODAY’S BUSINESS LEADERS MUST BE MINDFUL OF THEM—ALWAYS ALERT TO STAY AHEAD OF THE CURVE. STAYING AHEAD OF THE CURVE IS ESPECIALLY IMPORTANT IN SUCH EVOLVING TECHNOLOGIES AS E-BILLING. THIS PITNEY BOWES BUSINESS INSIGHT WHITE PAPER LOOKS AT THE TOP TRENDS IMPACTING E-BILLING. LEARN ABOUT THE CHALLENGES AND OPPORTUNITIES THAT THESE TRENDS PRESENT. READ OUR PREDICTIONS ABOUT WHERE THESE TRENDS MAY LEAD AND HOW BUSINESSES AND CUSTOMERS MAY RESPOND. www.pbinsight.com MEASUREMENTS SUCH AS NET PROMOTER SCORE ARE CAUSING BUSINESSES TO LOOK AT THEMSELVES THROUGH THE EYES OF THEIR CUSTOMERS. 1. Customer Analytics Goes Big Time! 3. Information Privacy Goes Global with 3 Cloud Computing Knowing your customer is the golden rule. Billers are beginning to recognize the power that applied The movement to cloud computing and storage raises customer intelligence brings to customer relationships. serious information privacy concerns. With cloud By capitalizing on the powerful one-two punch of computing, information can be stored and managed internet analytics and customer billing intelligence, anywhere, crossing physical and governmental borders. billers can engage their customers with fresh, dynamic, That information in the cloud requires protection. behavioral-driven online experiences that improve both loyalty and top-line sales. Today, information privacy laws are the jurisdiction of governmental agencies and therefore geographic in enforcement. In 1998 the European Commission TREND PREDICTION: An ever-increasing number of billers recognized a need for standardization across the EU, will embrace customer behavioral information and creating the Directive on Data Protection, harmonizing data analytics. these laws across all EU countries. In response, the U.S. Department of Commerce created the U.S.-European 2. Internet Leapfrog Makes Mobile an Safe Harbor Framework, allowing U.S. companies to Important Billing Channel certify compliance with European standards. But in 2010, safe harbor suffered a shot across the bow, as serious Sometimes there’s an advantage in being late to the game. criticism emerged from Australia, citing the failure of In many Eastern and Southern regions of Europe, and some companies to comply, and Germany, calling for an across much of Asia and Africa, the now classic terrestrial immediate end to safe harbor. broadband internet never made that last mile to the home. As the world becomes separated by milliseconds, there’s a As a result, Internet usage has lagged substantially over need for a global process. countries with a large fixed infrastructure. But mobile networks have taken off, and the worldwide rollout of 3G broadband is the juggernaut destroying the Internet status TREND PREDICTION: The conversation starts. EU and U.S., quo. In countries as far flung as Hungary and Indonesia along with India (where many U.S. health records are where few have high-speed Internet at home, many have already stored) become important participants in that near gigabit speeds on their phones. conversation—a process that may take years and result in a powerful worldwide cooperative. TREND PREDICTION: 3G Internet and the small screen emerge as the dominant part of online customer care in some of the most unexpected places. WHITE PAPER: CUSTOMER COMMUNICATION MANAGEMENT Top Ten e-Billing Trends Evolving Technologies and Predictions on Business and Customer Response 4 4. Lean, Mean and Green 6. Bill Clarity Rules The recession has forced both large and small companies Companies will continue to focus on reducing costs. to become lean and mean, and we’re already seeing According to J.D. Power and Associates, about 30 percent businesses leverage green initiatives to drive cost savings. of inbound calls are related to billing. Companies will focus Well-thought-out e-billing, e-payment and online on reducing their call-center calls by offering simple and customer care consistently demonstrate huge cost-savings consistent bills to reduce those calls. for companies while being eco-friendly. TREND PREDICTION: Online billing and payment services SaaS based e-billing is an important movement that allows smaller billers to move from print to online. with detailed line item explanations and superior clarity and consistency will become an important tool in the arsenal of weapons that companies use to reduce costs. TREND PREDICTION: Look for a renewed interest in e-billing and e-payment, particularly among billers 7. Customers as Fans that couldn’t afford to engage an online solution before. Measurements such as net promoter score are causing 5. It’s Not Just About Green, It’s Also businesses to look at themselves through the eyes of About Clutter their customers. And this includes their online presence. While simple PDF bills and payment channels sufficed Studies have shown that among 20 to 30 year olds, the in the past, customers expect much more from their billers. key reason for moving to e-billing is not about helping Great online customer care can be a key ingredient in the environment, but about reducing life’s clutter. making customers into fans and it shouldn’t be overlooked. And the clutter just isn’t paper, but includes remembering to make payments, organizing finances, and having the TREND PREDICTION: Leading companies will review and ability to get at account information anytime and anywhere. This new consumer generation is the future and they’re revamp their online customer care with the sole objective comfortable with the Internet. of turning customers into fans. They’ll embrace Web 2.0 concepts, social marketing and other media in this quest. TREND PREDICTION: e-bill marketing will turn from just a green initiative, to appeal to target customer segments by need as a way to improve adoption. www.pbinsight.com YOUR CUSTOMERS NOW EXPECT MORE, THEY EXPECT AN EVER-CHANGING AND EVER-IMPROVING EXPERIENCE. 8. Fans as Social Leaders 5 TREND PREDICTION: Billers will stop perceiving the When customers become fans, they promote your billing event and e-bill as a commodity that drives cost company among their social group. The group talks about savings, and start leveraging online customer care as a your products and often makes buying decisions and differentiating and transformational part of their total recommendations together. They tweet, they mention you product offering. on Facebook, on YouTube. Each fan group can represent a catalyst for business growth or an inflection point for 10. Embrace Change and Continuous business demise.