New TFCC Tools Help Utilities Interact with Customers

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
May 21, 2010

New Utility Solutions Greatly Accelerate Cash Flow and Improve Customer Service

Columbus, Ohio, May 21, 2010: With the advent of the Smart Grid and other advancements, utilities will need to engage in an unprecedented level of interaction with their customers. Two new automated solutions from Twenty First Century Communications allow utilities to contact and interact with customers in a fraction of the time and cost of traditional methods.

Utilities will be able to accelerate their cash flow with Multi-Channel Interactive Collections, an automated collection method of contacting delinquent customers. Automated collection messages are sent to land lines, cell phones, email and fax. This multi-channel message delivery approach ensures the message is received and customers can respond at a convenient time. Customers can then choose from several immediate payment options.

According to Bently Collier, TFCC vice president of sales, “With Multi-Channel Interactive Collections, more people are contacted and more payments are made, allowing utility agents to be reassigned to higher value opportunities.” What sets this solution apart is TFCC’s unique ability to provide a secure direct connection into the utility’s Customer Information System (CIS). “This direct connection means utilities see real-time results instead of waiting for batch update at the end of the day,” said Collier. “Utilities love this because it limits unnecessary collection efforts,” Collier concluded.

Automated Customer Survey is an interactive messaging solution to survey and collect customer feedback using any touchtone telephone. Collier said, “Automated Customer Survey provides a fast, inexpensive and secure way to survey customers. It can be used to gauge customer satisfaction, gather feedback on new products, verify service delivery, conduct market research, measure program success and more.”