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Empowering Billings City with Digital Transformation: A Case Study
Technology Category
- Networks & Connectivity - NFC
- Platform as a Service (PaaS) - Application Development Platforms
Applicable Industries
- Electrical Grids
- Utilities
Applicable Functions
- Sales & Marketing
Use Cases
- Personnel Tracking & Monitoring
- Smart City Operations
The Challenge
The City of Billings, Montana, the largest city in the state, provides reliable water distribution, wastewater collection and treatment, and garbage collection to its population of 110,000 people. The city was facing challenges in meeting evolving customer expectations and delivering a high-quality customer experience. Their initial attempt at an online payment platform was limited in functionality, focused solely on bills, and was cumbersome to use. The platform was not user-friendly and did not meet the needs of a wide range of customers, some of whom were tech-savvy while others preferred more traditional solutions. The city was receiving a high number of customer calls and complaints related to bills and payment issues. Therefore, they were in need of a platform with self-service solutions to help resolve these common customer issues online.
The Customer
City of Billings
About The Customer
The City of Billings, Montana, is the largest city in the state, with a population of 110,000 people. The city provides reliable and safe water distribution, wastewater collection and treatment, and garbage collection services to its residents. The city is located in the fertile valley of the Yellowstone River and is surrounded by scenic mountain ranges. The city is committed to delivering a high-quality customer experience and keeping pace with evolving customer expectations. As a progressive utility, the city was determined to implement a digital solution that would improve operational efficiency and customer service productivity.
The Solution
Billings partnered with VertexOne WaterSmart™ and InvoiceCloud to implement a data-driven software-as-a-service (SaaS) platform. The VertexOne WaterSmart™ customer engagement and data analytics platform offered a powerful solution to Billings. The Customer Self-Service Portal, available to all customers through a mobile and web application interface, provided a single place for customers to see consumption, check and resolve leaks, receive targeted messages, and analyze their current and historical bills. Together with InvoiceCloud, Billings was able to advance the solution and provide the community with a powerful and easy-to-use payment solution that would further enhance billing information by combining it with actionable usage data insights.
Operational Impact
Quantitative Benefit
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