A Case for Channel Strategy around 3rd Parties

When the Groupon effect toppling regimes around the world and iphone apps attempting to aid confessions for catholics, some utilities are still mooning on how to integrate internet and mobile in their comprehensive channel strategy. [Bit of a out-of-context stat – internet penetration in Egypt and Tunisia are 21% and 34% respectively, compared to 77% in the US (according to www.internetworldstats.com)].

Here is one more case for channel strategy.

In my tiny town with the population of 205K, there are 23 (mini-) firms dealing in energy efficiency – Energy conservation consulting, Energy conservation products and services, Insulation materials, Appliance installers, Builders and so on. If you survey the entire territory of a major utility, there are hundreds of such firms. These companies want to be found by the customers, and if possible, when they focus on their core service areas, they would want someone to handle their billing and payment functions.

Utilities have a tremendous opportunity to facilitate the relationship between these companies with the customers. When the utility websites can have their listings, utilities can insource their billing and payment capabilities to support these firms. Revenue model? – that’s a no brainer.