Billing and self-service for a telecom operator

The situation

A telecom operator's customers paid and read their bills, and solved simple problems, online and by phone. Self-service that worked kept those tasks away from the call centre.

What was at stake

Bill questions that reached an agent cost the call centre time, and overdue payments were money the business was still waiting for.

The decision that mattered

Matthaios used the call centre's data on why customers phoned about bills to decide what to fix. The online payment flow lost steps and fields. A new electronic bill presented the bill online. The phone menu gained self-service options that read out bill details and broadband line information without an agent.

What was done

• Used call-reason data to set priorities.
• Cut steps and fields from the online payment flow.
• Introduced a new service for presenting bills online.
• Added phone (IVR) self-service for bill details and broadband line information.
• Specified self-service requirements: registration and customer authorisation, one-click service upgrades, real-time line checks, e-bills and payment with call details, fault tickets, and complaint and order status.
• Compared results before and after launch.
• As Project Manager, planned the work on PMI practice; as Manager, Web Projects, led user acceptance testing and chaired the meetings that weighed implementation options.

Results

• −40%overdue payments, with online invoice payment
• 90%satisfaction with online payment
• +10%use of phone self-service, lowering call-centre cost

• Satisfaction with bill presentation up 95% with the new electronic bill.

What lasts

Self-service with measured results: 90% satisfaction with online payment, overdue payments down 40% and 10% more use of phone self-service.

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