If you’re already talking, why not make it more worthwhile?

To be honest, I never really saw the point of blogging. Writing random pieces to relate a topic back to my everyday life was a notion I didn't buy into at first. But our website stats and the feedback that we've received from our partners, customers and prospects in response to our regular blog posts has proven me wrong.

Pushing the blog has increased readership

The fact is that everyone in Striata and on our mailing list has a common interest – electronic document delivery – and this type of regular, informal communication helps to build a stronger relationship between us. Each week some new ideas or a different perspective on accepted views are put out there to hopefully get people thinking and maybe inspire changes to the way things are done. But mainly, it lets everyone know that we're passionate about what we do, that we have opinions and ideas and that we are keen to share our passion with our clients, partners and other contacts. Plus of course "pushing" our blogs out to you dramatically increases the readership. I mean, you're not going to visit striata.com every week just for fun to check and see if I've written something interesting/witty/useful, are you?

This all got me thinking about other companies' regular communications with their customers. We often hear that the bill is the only regular touch-point between a company and the customer. But, standing alone is it a good customer touch-point? Does it add value to the relationship? Generally, the best you can hope for is that the customer isn't upset at the amount due of their bill. No-one will ever look forward to receiving their bill.

What if your eBill could add value to the relationship?

So, why not use this regular communication to expand the relationship to something that isn't just money-focused? Why not include a blog or newsletter with each eBill? It may be obvious, but every company has something in common with their customers. It shouldn't take much to come up with something to tell your customers each month that will show you're interested in more than their money. Depending on the type of company, there are all sorts of things you can discuss. Product reviews eg. the iPhone vs. the latest Samsung smartphone. Tech/green updates like the latest scrubbers in your power-station chimneys or femto-cell roll-out to boost mobile coverage. Or perhaps even charitable work your company or employees are taking part in? Anything that shows your customers that you're more than just a faceless corporation only interested in the bottom line.

Of course, with paper-based billing, the cost of this sort of newsletter/blog sent with each bill would be prohibitive. But with eBilling, the cost of an additional page is negligible if anything at all. And of course you can also include a call-to-action such as a link to your website to pre-order the iPhone 5 or whatever else works for you. It's about giving your customer informative, unbiased and engaging information or offers. Just a thought, chew on it!

Keith Russell
Sales Director, Asia Pacific
www.striata.com