No one enjoys waiting on hold.
With Tucson Electric Power’s new call back system, customers don’t need to be tethered to the phone to receive assistance from customer service. Instead, they can hang up and have a customer service representative call them when it’s their turn to talk.
“We knew we could do more to increase the customer experience. We care about our customer’s time and convenience, so we want them to live their lives instead of waiting,” said Edgar Jones, Manager of Customer Automation, Analytics and Digital Solutions.
Virtual hold technology helps identify the reason for a call and estimates how long a customer may wait to speak with a representative with that particular expertise. Customers are welcome to wait on hold, but they also may ask to hold their place in line. When they receive a call back, a representative is already on the line.
More than 60 percent of our customers choose to get a call back when it is offered.
The new option makes service more convenient for customers. “It’s our goal to continue working to be as responsive and efficient as possible to improve our customer’s satisfaction,” Jones said.
TEP has been recognized nationally as a customer service leader. We recently earned an industry award for the use of seasonal staffing to reduce hold times for customers who call during busy times of the year, including monsoon storm season and when we have more winter visitors. The extra staffing reduced average on-hold times by more than 25 percent.
We also received industry recognition for updated bills that help customers more easily understand their energy usage and charges. The team that redesigned the bill asked customers about their preferences and researched best practices at other energy providers. The result? A colorful, easy-to-read bill that provides usage information over time and shares account features that might be worth exploring.
“We do this work to improve the experience we deliver to our customers, but it is an honor to be recognized at a national level for the strategies we’ve worked so hard to implement,” said Denise Richerson, Director of Customer Service and Programs.
