Severn Trent Water (STW), a FTSE 100 company and one of the UK’s largest utility businesses, asked bpi. to develop a brand new app to help to dramatically improve their customer service.
The use of mobile channels, as part of STW’s digital comms mix, was identified during the strategy work carried out by bpi. during the last quarter of 2011. The strategy highlighted the need to provide customers with information across multiple channels (An anytime, anyplace approach). bpi.’s recommendation was to steer clear of native, downloadable apps and provide a responsive mobile web app that could be displayed across most modern devices regardless of display size.
During the winter season STW, as with any water company, have a higher volume of reported leaks and related problems to their call centres. Reducing water wastage through leaks is one of STW’s key imperatives and this app will allow customers who spot leaks to report them in a timely way increasing STW’s response times and reducing water loss.
The mobile web app uses JavaScript to identify the device and delivers ‘responsive’ content matched to the display. This works well across most modern web enabled devices and does not require any plug-ins or downloads (older Blackberry devices need to have JavaScript enabled).
STW’s multi-channel approach will continue unabated and their aim is to deliver more content and customer-centric applications in the future.
Rachel Groves, media and customer engagement manager said “Severn Trent is continually looking for new ways to improve the customer experience. The new app gives members of the community a quick and easy way to report leaks and bursts and helps our teams to accurately locate and fix problems. ”
James Edwards, CEO and founder of bpi, said “Our philosophy has always been to create a great user experience first and find a solution that supports this. The strategy piece, we carried out last year with STW, clearly identified the need to provide content via channels more suited to the needs of the customer. This simple app does this really well; customers can report leaks and bursts through multiple channels when it suits them and STW can provide an excellent service whilst at the same time reducing water wastage by improving their operational effectiveness”.
Severn Trent Plc is a leading FTSE 100 company. Its focus is on the provision, removal and treatment of water in the UK providing high quality water and sewerage services to over 3.7 million households and businesses across the Midlands and mid Wales . Severn Trent Water Services are one of the world’s leading suppliers of water and waste water treatment solutions.
www.stwater.co.uk www.severntrent.com
bpi. was founded in 1995 and specialises in User Centred Design (UCD) and User Experience (UX). Clients include E.ON, Zurich Insurance, Wesleyan Assurance, DirectGov, Silver Cross, HarperCollins, Hachette UK.
For more information contact :
bpi.: 00 44 1926 422002 or email nicolak@bpiagency.com