iPhones for Everyone, eBilling for the Masses

No sooner have I blogged about Apple being a model of innovation and so focused on the consumer, than their latest (and greatest?) product, the iPhone 4 is hit by "Antenna-gate". I personally believe that this minor blip on the radar will have little effect on consumers' desire to own an iPhone. In my mind, the biggest limitation on iPhone sales is their decision to restrict the number of wireless providers that offer it. In the US, AT&T has the only license.

Why all the barriers?

Owning an iPhone sounds great, but switching mobile phone carriers requires a fair amount of effort and is often met with considerable resistance.

• There is a perception that switching means a whole lot of work – everything is going to change.


• There is risk – what if I don't love the service? Can I switch back?


• You may have had a bad experience with AT&T in the past.


• "I just worked out how to understand my current bill and now everything is going to change".

What does any of this have to do with eBilling?

Getting rid of paper bills sounds great, but switching to eBilling has traditionally required a fair amount of effort from the consumer and as a result, has been met with resistance.

• In most instances, the old online billing model requires a whole lot of work. You have to proactively log-on to the biller's website, find out where and how to sign-up, choose and remember a username and password, as well as provide a whole lot of other information in order to make the switch to paperless billing.


• There is a degree of risk. It's often not clear how you can switch back if you hate their eBilling service.


• You may have had a bad experience with eBilling in the past – forgotten your username / password, or used an online billing portal with so many steps that it was more hassle than what it was worth.


• Very often, the online bill looks nothing like the paper version and it's difficult to print or download a copy for your records.

eBilling is probably nowhere near as sexy as using an iPhone, but there is certainly appeal as more and more "technology savvy" consumers adopt the solution each day.

Meet your consumers WHERE THEY ARE.

If all wireless carriers offered the iPhone, there is no doubt in my mind that the stocks of all other phone manufacturers would plummet. More importantly, by making it more accessible, the number of iPhone users would go through the roof.

In eBilling terms, the key to maximizing adoption is to meet consumers in their comfort zone - their email inbox.

Why force consumers to come to your portal – and then make them go through a complex sign-up process, just so that they can replace their paper bill with an electronic copy?

Receiving an encrypted PDF bill in your inbox that looks exactly like the paper version and that also has a secure PAY NOW button in it, is so much easier than receiving a paper copy and then heading to internet banking to pay or writing out a cheque. But the most critical factor is not to force consumers to switch everything they do in order to adopt this (not so new) technology.

Striata's proven no-registration methodology means eBilling is accessible to everyone with an email address, not just the technology savvy consumers that are prepared to jump through all the hoops to make the switch.

Are you ready to make the switch?

Barrie Arnold
VP of Sales, America
www.striata.com