Mandee Fish, Jacob Roberson, and Tim Cole of MPX join Brian Cohen, ADD Systems Multimedia Specialist and host of ADDcast, to discuss why print and digital fulfillment isn’t more of a hot topic in the industry; why budget statements trigger so many customer calls; the issue of price plans fluctuating over time; what a fulfillment vendor can do to support a smooth acquisition integration and how outside vendors can support changing market initiatives.
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Brian Cohen: Welcome to ADDcast. I’m Multimedia Specialist Brian Cohen, and I’m joined today by Mandee Fish, Jacob Roberson, and Tim Cole of MPX. MPX is a gold sponsor for the 2023 BTC, which takes place May 8 through May 12, 2023, at Disney’s Yacht and Beach Club in Orlando, Florida. Welcome, everyone.
Jacob Roberson: Hey. It’s good to be here.
Mandee Fish: Thanks, Brian. It’s good to be here, too.
Tim Cole: Thanks, Brian. Appreciate it.
Brian: Excellent. Jacob, let’s start with you. Print and digital fulfillment, unfortunately, isn’t always a top priority for energy marketers. Is there a reason that it’s not more of a hot topic in the industry?
Jacob: Yeah, that’s a really good question. It’s definitely not a sexy topic for a lot of folks. You know, I think for a lot of them, statements and invoices are often seen as basic transactional tools to deliver account information or amounts due out to their customer. It’s kind of a necessary evil. Billing documents, the templates are also really commonly constrained in format and design. And, you know, whether it’s from your bank, or a doctor’s office, or maybe your fuel company, we’ve all seen these antiquated invoices and statements that are cause for a lot of questions, probably more so than answers. And, ultimately, these end up being frustrating customer touchpoints, rather than interactions that inspire loyalty.
Brian: So, I guess a follow-up to that would be, why should it be an area that leadership should maybe pay more attention to?
Jacob: I mean, it’s pretty simple. These are touch points that are showing up either in your customers’ inboxes or mailboxes 12 or more times a year. And meanwhile, your competition is also in front of your customers, at really every juncture. And, in reality, modern fulfillment companies are very specialized in design, in digital correspondence, in core software integration, and really just making way for these billing documents to become powerful retention, and marketing tools rather than these necessary evils. A few ways that we’ve seen energy marketers build loyalty is by using like messaging areas, and inserts to promote service plans, budget plans, auto payments, even rebates and products like heat pumps, and, you know, better thoughtful document design. It also just means fewer phone calls to your customer service reps. And so, you know, with good design, people know what to pay, and why. And they’re not calling in with those questions.
Brian: Excellent. Mandy, I’d like to turn to you now. Budget statements seem to be an area that’s ripe for customer confusion, which in turn leads to more phone calls. Why do budget statements trigger so many calls in the first place?
Mandee: Oh, that is a common question. You know, I think it’s actually just the nature of what a budget is. So, a lot of times when I’m talking to people and maybe they’re just trying out adulting for the first time, you know, they don’t have the homeowner experience. But the idea of a budget plan is really a little bit convoluted. You’ve got an amount that you’re going to pay over amount of time. And then you break it down into monthly installments, basically, but yet, that amount goes towards the actual transactions. So, your transactions might be hitting your account, and your balance fluctuates. So, then you have this account balance that goes up and down throughout the season, but you’re paying a fixed amount. So, I think the biggest confusion comes down to like, when a customer sees an account balance, but yet they see a totally different amount due, it’s really balancing that information on the page and explaining what a balance is, and what the amount due is, and really what the budget is — how it works.
Brian: Are there actions that can be taken to solve this confusion?
Mandee: Well, I think that’s where companies like MPX work with our clients to really dig into figuring that out, and working with what are the right words, what are the right terms? How is the information displayed in the best way? So, I think working on that, together, we’re able to put together a few best practices that we can really present on that statement so that it’s presenting clear, meaningful information. If you’re presenting the information in a meaningful way, and the customer can look at it and they truly understand what they’re seeing, then you’re going to reduce the calls. So, it’s really deciphering the code of what a budget statement is, and then presenting it in a simpler way to the customer.
Brian: Okay, and another issue is that price plans fluctuate over time. How can that complication be addressed?
Mandee: Oh, yes, they do. So, there’s a couple of different things. When talking about the price plan itself, you’ve got the prices that are going up and down on the actual commodities market. But then you actually have the prices that the market is showing to the customer. So, the customer might have a fixed price plan or a Kept price plan. But then there’s a market price, and then the amount of fuel that they’re ordering and falling under their budget plan, that fluctuates as well. So what trend might have been at the beginning of a budget statement, or a budget plan year, that trend might change over time or over the course of the season. And so that fluctuates as well. There’s so many moving parts in a budget plan. So, I think one of the things that makes MPX unique, I think, is the flexibility and quick turnaround time for communications, and being able to either adjust on the fly, or communicate in very, very quick turnarounds, sending out renewal letters or price plan information, right at the last possible second, when, you know, the pricing can be as stable as it’s possible to be. And then also looking at the overall season, throughout the feeding season, and looking at where the customers are falling in their expected costs or in their expected usage. And then adjusting those prices. And, of course, this isn’t something that MPX gets into. This is what the energy marketers are doing, but a company like MPX is going to jump in and be able to make those adjustments to those customer correspondences.
Brian: Tim, I’d like to bring you into this discussion. With acquisitions being very common in the energy market, what can a fulfillment vendor do to support a smooth integration?
Tim: Well, I think, you know, first of all, it’s really been sensitive to what is unfolding. You know, oftentimes, an acquisition can cause some angst and anxiety with the personnel at the organization. It’s very confidential in nature up until whenever the closing occurs. So, there’s just some added kind of elements of drama, if you will, that are occurring that are unrelated to the fulfillment vendor, but if the fulfillment vendor can be sensitive to that, and just know that they’ve got to move quickly, because oftentimes, if there’s a brand change, the organization that’s making the acquisition wants their brand to be visible on the new documents. So, it’s really understanding what is occurring. Are there brand changes? Is there an integration change that will occur because the acquiring company is on one system, and the new organization is on a second one? So, is it integration related? Is it branding related? Are there layout changes? So, it’s really understanding what the requirements are, and then being sensitive to the fact that there are time constraints and kind of visibility concerns that will be important to the organization, and just provide that kind of flexibility and that ability to move quickly, because that’s why they’re hiring us is to solve their problems. And this is a wonderful, you know, new part of their community of customers. But there are some challenges to make sure it’s done right and done quickly.
Brian: So, how much lead time is typically required to get a new brand ready for correspondence?
Tim: You know, I mean, again, it depends on how complicated the changes are. If it’s simply just a brand change, that can be done in a matter of days. If there’s layout or integration issues, it’s, again, really understand what they are, and then give a firm, kind of definitive timeframe, but certainly, you know, within a couple of days to a month is probably a reasonable rule of thumb. There could be extenuating circumstances that make that longer, but more often than not, the changes can be done in a matter of a week, or thereabout. So, it doesn’t take extensive planning. But of course, as soon as an organization does know, even if they might be able to tip off of an organization like ours, you know, in advance to say, “I can’t tell you because of confidentiality who is going to be affected, but can your team be on the ready so that we can make those changes?” So, like anything in this business, just good communication, being sensitive to what the important priorities are, and planning accordingly.
Brian: Jacob, turning back to you, how can outside vendors support changing market initiatives?
Jacob: It’s a great question. You know, looking at your existing customers, we think it’s really all about using the data to get the right message to the right people. It’s not a one size fits all approach. And there’s a lot of complexity in utilizing that data, in terms of applying it to marketing messaging onto billing documents, or inserts or postcard mailings. But you have this data that nearly every company has, whether it’s as simple as zip codes, or maybe it’s a single-family versus commercial property, whether they’re using an oil or gas boiler, the type of water heating perhaps that they have in place, the length of their time and their customer relationship with you. Those are all really important data points that can be utilized to get the right message to the right people to, in turn, build out loyalty to promote other products to promote service plans, budget plans, and what have you. You know, and I also think that the right vendor can take really great marketing ideas and bring them into reality. They bring a lot to the table, getting the right data, advising the most effective and affordable ways to get something into the mail. For instance, when it makes sense to maybe mail something separately. Or alternatively, to piggyback a document with an existing piece of correspondence that’s already going out. Or sharing best practices, even from other industries. And furthermore, using digital mediums.
Brian: Mandee, with so many available data sources, what are some of the ways energy marketers are using their data?
Mandee: Well, that’s a good question because there are so many. The ways that marketers today can really pull in the information, it varies so much from core systems like ADDs, to external CRM systems like Salesforce or other CRM systems, to just spreadsheets. I mean, Jacob mentioned a few of those key data points that having the information on the type of boiler or the type of home heating or furnace, that information can feed targeted and segmented marketing messages that can be coupled with statements or invoices, or additional messaging or inserts. There’s a lot of different ways to communicate as well. So, pulling in the different data sources, and seeing what’s available, all those data pieces can come together to create a story. And that story really helps to target the messages to really clear the air. So, you’re not sending noise out to the customers. And that includes the statement data, and the statement information that you’re presenting. So, like I said earlier, the budget statements are already a complex topic. So, you don’t want to send information about a different type of product to a customer that has a certain type of plan that’s only relevant to a certain type of offer that you might be promoting. So, having that data, whether it’s from ADDs, or from a separate CRM, or a bunch of spreadsheets, making sure that you really have partners that are able to use that data to target the messages makes for a more enjoyable experience for the customer because they don’t get overwhelmed with choices or information or offers that just aren’t relevant to them. So, there’s a lot of different sources, but then a lot of different uses of the data to present a cohesive message to the customer as well as a concise way of communicating that information to not create more confusion.
Brian: Jacob, now it’s no surprise that digital adoption by customers can be slow. Why does this matter? And what are ways to accelerate digital adoption?
Jacob: Yes, the elusive digital adoption. It’s kind of the, I think, the holy grail for a lot of industries, and certainly the fuel industry as well. You know, there’s no doubt that some people prefer paper, and maybe always will, but the number of consumers that prefer digital is quite massive. We also think that the untapped saving for fuel dealers is pretty massive as well. Postage expense, for instance, even day sales outstanding can both be significantly impacted by paperless adoption. You know, I would challenge fuel dealers to look at not why their consumers aren’t adopting, but maybe the way that they’re asking and the way that they’re enabling those consumers to adopt. A lot of slowness that we found to adopt is because consumers, they’re either not being asked effectively to convert to paperless or it’s just not easy to do. You know, the real impactful digital campaigns that we’ve seen are multifaceted; they’re across the entire organization. It’s not a one and done. It’s a constant over many years. And it’s aggressive with new customers that are onboarding to get them immediately off of paper. And then you’re in front of your existing customers just as often as possible, whether it’s on a customer service call or it’s on billing documents, or it’s on other correspondence that you’re sending out through targeted campaigns. We’ve also seen some reluctance on the dealer side for how to manage digital versus paper. You know, the cadence that those are going out to customers, ensuring that the print and the digital documents, for instance, look the same, that customers are notified when digital documents are available, so they don’t go unnoticed. And, you know, all of this is just really readily supported by a good vendor.
Tim: And I’ll just add a couple of thoughts that we as individuals tend to be relatively selfish. And that is just a consideration for how to inspire people to move to paperless, rather than traditional paper. So, if there are reasons that are in the interest of the customer base, they’ll be way more apt to convert to paperless. So, for instance, you know, if you’re in an area where there’s going to be snowstorms and weather considerations, which might affect deliveries, there can be alerts that are available for customers to opt into, to be notified when the delivery is going to be made and where the driver is, and what if there’s going to be a day delay, but there’ll be on it tomorrow, or whatever it is that, you know, we’ve witnessed both good and bad mechanisms for text alerts that when it’s done right, it’s so comforting, and so helpful. And so as long as it’s just considered like how to do it, not to do it at the off hours of the day where people would be disturbed, but to just to give them some confidence. So that’s one example to put it in the interest of the customer to have inspiration as to why they should be paperless. The other is that, you know, part of what Jacob was saying is that it’s an all organization kind of effort, that is so true. The area, the companies that we’ve seen be most successful really prepare both their customers and their call center team, and all the others in the organization to be really prepared for the anxiety that some people might feel. You know, if you’re calling in and you’re like, “I don’t really want to go to paperless.” But the person on the other end of the line says, “Listen, let me just walk you through it; it’s really simple. And here are a couple things that are really a unique advantage.” The culture of the organization and the preparation of the staff and their true genuine understanding and enthusiasm for this transition, and what the benefits are for the customers can make a huge difference. And part of what Jacob also mentioned is, at the beginning, when customers are new, it’s just a really fabulous opportunity to assume that they’re going to be paperless and help them with the reasons why. And of course, they can opt in to paper if you so choose, but many organizations go the opposite path where it’s assumed they’re going to be paper and then look for them to opt in to paperless. So just changing that paradigm is a big part of it. So, those really, I mean, there is no magic to it other than a really concerted company-wide effort, and really thinking through what the benefits are for those who would become paperless. Certainly, there’s tremendous savings. Postage is significant, and it keeps going up, but just keep thinking about how to inspire that customer to want to do it.
Brian: Fantastic. Tim, if someone would like to learn more about MPX, how can they get in touch with you and the rest of your team?
Tim: Our website is mpxlinq.com. And all of our emails are first initial and last name, so tcole, or mfish, or jroberson for the three of us. But again, mpxlinq.com is probably the easiest. And my phone number is 207-671-7966. Again, it’s Tim, 207-671-7966.
Brian: Well, Mandy, Jacob, Tim, I’d first like to thank MPX for being a gold sponsor at the 2023 BTC. And I’d also like to thank each of you for joining us today, and I look forward to catching up with you all in person in May.
Tim: Thanks, Brian.
Jacob: Thanks, Brian.
Mandee: Thanks for joining us.
Brian: To learn more about the BTC and to register, please visit addsys.com/btc. And to keep up with the latest happenings at ADD Systems, visit addsys.com/blog or connect with us on social media by following ADD Systems on LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter. If you have any questions about ADDcast, feel free to reach out to us at addcast@addsys.com. Thanks for listening, and have a great day!
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