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New Chartwell report reveals how to best serve a variety of special customer needs

New Chartwell report reveals how to best serve a variety of special customer needs

ATLANTA – December 27, 2005 – Utilities need to accommodate all customers in a diverse marketplace. Whether it involves a second language or reaching out to those with special needs, customer care is not a one-size-fits-all business, according to Chartwell’s latest Customer Care Research Series report, Serving Special Customer Segments: Second-language, Critical Care and Special Needs Customers.

 

Utilities must determine how to best reach these customer segments and offer options and programs to assist these customers in communicating with the utility, whether through a bilingual representative, a Braille bill, a notification service for customers on life-saving devices or other value-added services, the report reveals.

 

Respecting the cultural differences in the Spanish-speaking market is imperative, experts reveal, while communicating with these customers in their language of choice is more effective, according to Serving Special Customer Segments: Second-language, Critical Care and Special Needs Customers. To communicate with customers of another language, utilities can begin with the basic touch points such as customer service representatives (CSRs) and mailings, and then move to enhancing its self-service channels such as its Web site and interactive voice response unit (IVR).

 

A simple call from a utility received by a critical care customer could potentially be life-saving. For a customer with a visual or hearing impairment, a Braille bill or special phone line for those using Telecommunications Devices for the Deaf (TDD) may add great ease to conducting business with the utility.

 

Serving Special Customer Segments: Second-language, Critical Care and Special Needs Customers contains industry analysis and three in-depth case studies detailing utility efforts. The report is available to non-Chartwell members for $395, and it is included in Chartwell's Premier and Customer Care Research Series memberships. For information regarding the Customer Care Research Series or Chartwell's Premier membership, contact Bill Grist at (404) 237-9099 or (800) 432-5879. A free table of contents and summary of this report can be downloaded at www.energylibrary.com.

 

Recently released reports include:

  • The Chartwell Report on Captivating and Satisfying the C&I Customer;
  • The Chartwell Report on IVR Applications and Speech Technologies 2005;
  • Transactional Customer Surveys: Listening to the Customer to Improve Service Levels;
  • Web-based Customer Service in the Utility Industry 2005;
  • Chartwell's Guide to Bill Presentment and Payment 2005; and
  • First-Call Resolution in the Utility Industry.

You can purchase and download these reports from Chartwell's Energy Library at www.energylibrary.com.

 

ABOUT CHARTWELL INC.
Chartwell Inc. seeks to provide a better understanding of technologies, issues and management practices in the utility and retail energy services industry through best practices case studies and quantitative research.

 

email: aherdic@chartwellinc.com
phone: 404-237-9099
Web: http://www.chartwellinc.com