Kenya Power offices in Nairobi. [Photo/Kahawatungu.com]
Kenya Power customers are steadily adopting social media for engagement with the Company, shifting away from a tradition where they preferred calling or visiting the offices to get their issues addressed.
Internal analysis by the Company shows that over 40 per cent of customer engagements are through social media channels compared to a low of 10 per cent two years ago.
Twitter has emerged as the most preferred online communication platform, currently accounting for over 70 per cent of all interactions on social media.
“Social media is convenient for our customers as it is faster and cheaper compared to calling or having to physically visit our offices. We note that the increased adoption of social media as a key engagement platform reveals our changing customer profiles,” said Eng. Peter Mwichigi, Kenya Power’s General Manager for Customer Service.
Eng. Mwichigi was speaking at the Company’s Stima Plaza headquarters during an event to mark the International Customer Service Week.
Kenya Power customers have grown tremendously over the years because of intensified connectivity programmes undertaken by the Company, mainly the Last Mile Connectivity Project and electrification projects targeting informal settlements and low-income areas.
The customer base now stands at over 6 million, having grown from 2.7 million in 2013, mainly driven by the ability to connect over one million customers annually.
“With a growing customer base, the Company is challenged to seek ways of enhancing our service to increase customer confidence and satisfaction. We will continue riding on technological advancements to achieve this objective,” said Eng. Mwichigi.
Kenya Power regularly conducts customer satisfaction surveys to establish their experiences with the brand and products. Feedback from the survey informs the choice of the communication tools the Company uses to engage customers.
Because of improved communication with customers, in the year ending June 30, the Company registered an overall customer experience index of 67.8 per cent. This was also supported by enhanced banking hall experience and improved power restoration.
“Excellent customer service delivery is one of the targets the Company has set to achieve in the medium term. In line with this objective, last month, we commenced the roll-out of the Integrated Customer Service Management System (InCMS), a new versatile software that rides on technology to enhance service delivery to customers,” he added.
The InCMS will enable customers to be more self-reliant as it allows them to use web and mobile-based applications to check their bills, apply for connection, track their applications and settle their accounts through a host of payment channels including debit and credit cards, among many other benefits.