Note 55: Self Service Portal

Posted: 03 August 2008

Internet Portal

Billing information can be displayed directly from the biller's systems to customers across the internet. Registered customers can sign-in and view their bill's detail, and, since the information is not fixed on paper or burnt to a DVD, the detail can be presented in a variety of ways selected by the customer.

The internet poses challenges not present in physical distribution channels. A physical bill is sent to a named recipient at a physical address with the greatest hazard being that the mail is stolen from the customer's mailbox. In contrast, the internet is accessible by anyone around the world generating both a risk (unauthorised access and actions) and a benefit (larger customer base) to the biller. Registration is required to reduce the risk by identifying the customer explicitly, and issue them with authentication tools and security tokens (e.g. username/password, digital certificates) that are used when signing-in to the biller's systems.

The collective term for this approach is EBPP (Electronic Bill Presentment and Payment). Examples of the diverse choices that may be offered through a portal include:

Language: Billing information may be presented in a customer's choice of language. The languages offered online may be different (and broader) than those offered on a paper bill.
Format: The biller may offer a choice of presentation formats selectable by the customer. The options might vary the level of detail provided per charge, or the manner in which it is presented.
Sections: Additional sections may be generated from the same bill information. For example, if the customer is interested in a section that only listed charges over a five dollar threshold then this section can be dynamically selected, generated and displayed.
Sort order / Totaling: The customer might re-order their charges based on alternative sorting criteria to analyse their purchasing patterns. Alternative totaling can then be performed on the re-order data. e.g. by service number, vehicle, call destination, time of day, tollway journeys per day
Detailed information: Customers may drill-down on charges to see more detailed information about the chargeable event, the rate-plan that was used or the rate-periods (e.g. 'off-peak') that applied. The details would be limited to the information stored by the biller, but other information could include non-customer details of items such as rate and discount plans.
Reporting / Graphs: The customer may analyse the charges on their current bill, or their spending over the last year using reports and/or graphs. This can provide the customer with information not easily obtained from paper-based billing. Pre-configured reports may be used to reduce the learning effort required of customers. Some reports might assess whether the biller offered a better (cheaper) rate plan than the customer's current selection based on the customer's specific bill details.
User Printed Bills: The customer can print a physical copy of their bill on their own printer. This facility saves the biller the corresponding printing and distribution costs. Using formats such as PDF, the biller's preferred bill format can be preserved, or the customer might print a format they have selected themselves. Each customer the biller can encourage to both print their bill locally using their own printer and stop their paper bill reduces the biller's end-to-end distribution costs.
Data downloads: The biller may provide the customer's billing details in a format that can be downloaded to the customer's computer. This is an 'all digital' alternative to sending the customer a DVD containing their billing data. Since the costs to perform digital data downloads are expected to be lower than physical distribution, the facility can be offered to a wider selection, or possibly all, customers. However, there may be operational and functional differences in the solutions developed for mass market (e.g. residential) customers and those developed for large corporate customers.
Payment options: As they view and manipulate their bill, customers can be offered the opportunity to pay their bills immediately. Alternatively, customers can provide details of their bank account or credit card for an automated payment option for current and future bills. These options can improve the speed with which bills are paid to the benefit of the biller's cash flow.
Cross-selling: The internet portal can provide the customer with opportunities to make additional purchases that complement or supplement their existing services. Appropriate purchase suggestions can be located beside the customer's bill sections. Based on the customer's bill details, possibly assessed by a comparison report, the customer might be offered a different rate/discount plan that retains their business and/or makes them less susceptible to purchasing elsewhere. The customer might be offered the opportunity for immediate connection, or allowed to perform changes to existing services.
Advertising: As they review their bill, the biller might make the customer aware of new services and special offers. These offers may be general in nature (e.g. calls at Christmas), or be tailored based on the customer's bill (e.g. specials on calls to Hong Kong).

The options provided for internet portals need to be tailored by customer segments. Options such as reports, bill formats, languages, payment methods and product offerings may be restricted for some segments. For example, payment using credit cards may be disallowed for bills over (say) $10,000.

Along with presentation options, online functionality can also require differentiation by market segment. For example, a 'show all billable services' screen may be suitable for a small, residential customer, but be unsuitable for a corporate or wholesale customer with tens of thousands of services. Corporate customers accessing an internet portal may also segment which staff can make new purchases or maintain service details, and limit which sections of the corporate bill staff can look at.

Billers who provide an internet portal must also address issues of security and the costs of maintaining an 'always on' infrastructure. These issues are not present for bills sent on paper by mail.

Email

Simple bills can be presented in the body of an email. The bill's details can be outlined in plain text, or use HTML to enhance the presentation. Email can be a customer-friendly channel for smaller bills, but larger or more detailed bills are unlikely to convey the bill's presentation appropriately. Larger bills may also be too large for customers to download. An alternative to text or HTML is a bill presented in a PDF file, but details associated with logos and other presentation embellishments may generate files that are unsociably large for common usage.

Before the biller can send an email-based bill, the customer must provide their email address. Customers may be uneasy to do this fearing that revealing their details will subject them to unwanted marketing and / or 'spam'.

Electronic File

The biller may supply the customer's bill details in the form of a digital file sent electronically (rather than on DVD). When ready, the file can be transmitted by the biller to a defined location on the customer's system, or be downloaded at a convenient time by the customer from the biller's billing system. Aspects that can influence the design and operations of an electronic file distribution channel include:

Volume: Files are usually only provided for a small number of larger customers that generate sufficient financial benefits to outweigh the additional costs.
Infrastructure requirements: Both ends of the interface (biller and recipient) must build technical infrastructure to transmit, process and store the files involved.
Security: The security needs of electronic files are similar to those of an internet portal, but the number of customers involved is likely to be smaller.
Timing: The frequency with which files are sent can influence the sophistication of the interface. An interface that sends multiple files at different times each day will require a more sophisticated solution than one that exchanges a single file at a defined time each month.
Data interpretation: The information sent from the biller across the interface must be interpreted and translated into formats and values useable by the customer's / recipient's systems. The biller is unlikely to modify each interface when they provide many customers with a standardised format due to the costs and complexity that would be involved.
New products and services: When first established, electronic files are likely to cater for the existing products and services known to the biller and customers. However, some thought should be given to how new products and services (and their different data/field requirements) can be added to the existing file format. For example, an interface that catered for electrical charges might need to be extended for gas and water consumption, or an interface for fixed phone charges may need to be extended for mobile phones, content and internet-based services.
Version control: Once established, interface formats are usually slow to change. However they will change, and some thought should be given on how to execute change with low customer and systems impact. This process becomes harder the larger the installed customer base becomes. Interface changes will require modifications and testing be performed by both the customer and biller. The biller may not be able to dictate when an interface change will be performed due to the customer's IT commitments, industry regulation, or other (higher priority) business changes being performed by the customer. Interface version control may be required across multiple file versions supplied across multiple customers.