The obvious winner in any eBilling scenario is the biller. Costs are reduced, days sales outstanding (DSO) is reduced, and their reputation is enhanced by their investment in the environment. All good reasons for the biller to go the eBilling root.
What about the end user? While organizations incentivize adoption of their eBilling initiatives, to maximize their benefits, their customers will continue to ask, “What’s in it for me? Why must I help you reduce your costs?” The examples below indicate how organizations believe they should reward the customer:
Go Green
By signing up for eBilling you are helping to save the environment for your children and their children. You are eliminating the need for paper and hence, the destruction of trees. By you turning off paper, you are ultimately assisting in the prevention of global warming.
This form of persuasion / marketing works. It works for those people who are aware of the effects of industry on the environment and who appreciate the arguments of the doomsayers. It won't work for those who don't care, or are yet to be persuaded.
Money
We will pay you to switch from paper to electronic bills. You will get a rebate, a discount but you will pay more if you don't!
Organizations provide a financial incentive or punishment to get their customers to convert to eBilling. This includes providing customers with a discount, when they sign up for eBilling, or charging them for still wanting paper bills.
Convenience
There is a third category! I sit in front of my computer all day everyday. I receive email, I read it, I process it, and I file it – delete it when necessary. I don't have to go to the mailbox; I don't need to open envelopes; I don’t need to punch paper; I don’t need lever arch files.
I can sort the data; I can export the data; I can manipulate the data to check the trends. It is so much easier!
Even within the realm of the convenient, there are two further distinctions. The somewhat confusing 'push' versus 'pull' debate. An eBill that is 'pushed' to you consists of an email with a secure attachment – the attachment is your eBill. A 'pull' eBill consists of an email notifying you that your eBill is ready for viewing at an online portal.
Which is more convenient? Well, as I have my inbox open all day everyday, I would say the ‘push’ eBill. It is available when I am not connected to the internet. It is storable. It is distributable. It is convenient. The ‘pull’ version requires authentication on a website. A username and password is required. I can download it and store it, but then it becomes vulnerable.
Convenience is the number one reason why people will change the way they do things. Fast food, email, aeroplanes, online shopping, convenience stores, cellular telephones. These things make it easier for people to do what they want to do. I think eBilling should be the same. So, if convenience is the primary advantage of eBilling then financial incentives and greener industry, as great as they are, are the side effects.
The advantages of eBilling are great – for the environment, the biller and the customer. They are more apparent for the biller, and obviously for the environment; but the customer still needs to be convinced.
No comments:
Post a Comment