‘From One Day to One Minute.’
Transforming Customer Notifications
with advanced Geo-productivity .
OVERVIEW: Revolutionising Customer Communication in the Utility Sector
Industry: Utilities
Solution: Maptaskr for Dynamics 365
Solution Area: Customer Service and Marketing
Region: Australia
Background
A major utility provider in Australia faced the challenge of streamlining customer communications during planned service outages. Responsible for delivering electricity to millions of residential, commercial, and industrial customers across a vast area, the company sought to improve its customer notification process to ensure timely, accurate communication. Previously, notifying customers of scheduled outages was a manual, time-consuming process that took up to a full day. This led to delays in notifications, negatively impacting customer satisfaction and operational efficiency.
The Challenge: Time-Consuming Customer Notification Process
The utility company needed a faster, more reliable way to notify customers of planned power outages. The existing system required manually identifying affected customers using geographical data, taking up to 24 hours to send notifications. This process was not only labour-intensive but also caused delays that affected the company’s ability to keep customers informed, potentially diminishing trust and satisfaction.
Key objectives:
Streamlining customer identification: Reduce the time to identify and notify affected customers from 24 hours to minutes.
Enhancing communication efficiency: Enable fast, accurate notifications through automated SMS and email alerts.
Improving customer satisfaction: Provide timely updates to customers, minimising disruption and keeping them well-informed.
Boosting operational efficiency: Integrate GIS capabilities with customer service operations to optimise outage management.
The Solution: A Powerful CRM and GIS-Based Integration
To overcome these challenges, the utility provider implemented a comprehensive solution combining Maptaskr’s mapping technology with Microsoft Dynamics 365. Leveraging tools such as Proximity Search for locating nearby customers, Territory Management for service area mapping, and Advanced Reporting for performance insights, the new system transformed customer notifications.
With the solution hosted on Microsoft Azure, the system achieved both reliability and scalability, allowing the utility provider to rapidly identify affected customers and send notifications via SMS or email. This integration reduced notification time from a full day (1,440 minutes) to just one minute, representing a 99.93% decrease in processing time.
Key Features of the Solution:
Proximity search: Enabled quick identification of customers within affected areas.
Automated notifications: Provided seamless SMS and email alerts to affected customers.
Advanced reporting: Delivered insights into notification performance, helping refine communication strategies.
The Outcome: From One Day to One Minute
The integration of mapping tools with Microsoft Dynamics 365 drastically improved the utility provider’s customer notification process. By reducing notification time from a full day to just one minute, the company achieved a 144,000% increase in efficiency. This improvement has not only enhanced operational performance but has also elevated the customer experience, reinforcing the company’s commitment to reliability and service excellence.
Quantifying the impact:
Notification speed: Reduced from 1,440 minutes to 1 minute.
Efficiency gain: 144,000% improvement in processing time.
Customer satisfaction: Improved by ensuring timely, reliable notifications during planned outages.
The implementation of GIS-enabled tools with Microsoft Dynamics 365 transformed the utility provider’s approach to customer notifications, achieving remarkable operational efficiencies and enhancing the customer experience. By going from "one day to one minute" for customer notifications, the company not only streamlined its internal processes but also strengthened its customer relationships through reliable, real-time communication.
Is your organisation ready for a productivity boost? Learn more about how advanced CRM and mapping integrations can streamline your operations and elevate your team’s performance.