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The use of texting has boosted the ability of Massachusetts public power utility South Hadley Electric Light to connect with its customers.
South Hadley Electric Light first implemented a texting program in December 2020 during the COVID pandemic, seeking ways to contact customers who were at home and using their phones more often.
“A lot of people during that time were utilizing cell phones more than in the past,” said Kelly Frazier, Manager of Marketing, Customer Service and Technical Support Compliance at South Hadley Electric Light. “Texting them took off. It was helpful to be able to communicate instantaneously with customers,” she said.
The utility, which has 8,000 electric and 5,000 internet customers, previously communicated using emails and individual phone calls. Texting through the Arcos TextPower platform allowed the utility to communicate with groups rather than contacting each customer individually.
That was a big time saver, she said.
It makes sense to use texting to reach customers, given that they’re so reliant on their phones. Ninety-eight percent of Americans now own a cellphone, and 91% have smartphones, according to Pew Research.
About 16% of US adults own a smartphone that they use to access the internet, and these people don’t subscribe to a home broadband service, Pew Research found.
In addition, about 91% of mobile phone users keep their phones within reach 24/7, according to WiFiTalents. What’s more, people check their phones an average of 58 times per day,
For South Hadley Electric Light, these statistics point to the advantages of using texting not only to reach customers more efficiently. The utility also uses texting for its “Beat The Peak” program, which helps all customers save money.
In the program, the utility texts customers asking them to voluntarily lower their electricity use during periods of peak demand, in an effort to reduce overall electricity usage to keep costs low and consistent..
One text from South Hadley to customers said, “Keep costs low by reducing your electric usage this afternoon between 5 pm and 9 pm. If we all take part in reducing our usage during the above peak times today…it will help decrease our costs and keep rates low and stable for all of South Hadley!”
When a heat wave or cold snap is predicted, the utility sends out these types of texts. They remind customers of an upcoming peak and ask them to turn off or reduce the use of washers, dryers, pool filters or dishwashers during that period.
“When everyone does a little bit, it really does help us bring our peak to the lowest it can be,” Frazier said.
SHELD currently offers incentives that are enrolled in their Connected Homes program. In this program, customers that have eligible electric vehicles, electric hot water heaters, mini-split controllers or Wi-Fi thermostats can earn quarterly bill credits for reducing consumption during peak events.
“If customers get a credit on their bill, then they understand that the program affects everybody,” she said.
A number of Arcos TextPower’s other utility customers use texting to inform customers of peak shaving events, said Dee Glander, Implementation Manager, Arcos.
One irrigation customer assigned a separate number solely for receiving peak-time alerts. Another utility shuts down water heaters during peak hours but sends texts to inform customers of the peak event. And another irrigator sends daily text messages telling customers when there’s a low likelihood of critical peak pricing that day, Glander said.
In addition to texting for its Beat The Peak program, South Hadley Electric Light texts customers when their bill payments are late and the customers are slated for termination.
Customers are more likely to respond to texts rather than phone calls. For nonpayment issues, South Hadley Electric Light can text customers a payment link so they can respond quickly and avoid termination, Frazier said.
“This has decreased the number of terminations that we do on a monthly basis,” she said. “And a lot of people, once those notifications are sent out, will make a payment right away.”
Because the Arcos TextPower system is two-way, customers can text the utility and say, “I already sent the payment” or “Can you call me?” Frazier said.
In fact, customers can text the utility’s customer service department about any
issue.
For example, customers can text South Hadley Electric Light Department if their power is out or if they want to know the status of an outage.
Two-way texting allows for a more streamlined way for the utility to communicate with customers about power outages, restoration timelines, peak day/time notifications and other issues, the utility notes on its website.
As a small public utility, South Hadley Electric Light doesn’t have an outage management system (OMS). Without an OMS, utility personnel must manually initiate outage messages to customers, Glander explained, while we have other customers who leverage our integrations with OMS platforms to automate those notifications.
While South Hadley doesn’t rely on Arcos TextPower for unplanned outage notifications, it does use the platform for planned outages, Frazier said.
“If our crews are going to be doing some work somewhere, and we know it's going to cause an outage, we will send customers a notification about the outage information, the date, the time and how long it's expected to last,” she said.
The utility also texts internet customers when there’s an internet outage.
Texting has not only helped shave South Hadley Electric Light’s peak usage. It has improved efficiency overall, she said. Utilities can benefit from texting because it helps increase efficiency and allows for diplomatic outreach to customers who aren’t making payments.
“For some of those customers, having those conversations can be embarrassing to them, or it can be something that they're not comfortable talking on the phone about,” she said. “But getting a text message, they can do what they need to do without discussing this on the phone. And it also helps us get the message out about peak events, which are so important to our bottom line and to all of our ratepayers.”
Arcos TextPower customers often start by using the platform for a specific program within one department, Glander said. As new communication needs emerge, they expand the platform to additional use cases.
For example, a utility might begin with outage notifications, then add billing reminders, disconnect notices, or peak-demand alerts. she said.
“Other departments often come in and say, ‘I want to use texting, too,’” Glander said.
For additional details about Arcos communication solutions, go to the company’s website.
