empowering Customer Service and Information through a Website Redesign

(KANSAS CITY, Kan.) — The Kansas City Kansas Board of Public Utilities (BPU) customer website recently received national recognition for its design, content, and ease-of-use, offering accessibility to key utility information and bettering overall customer service. The winner of a "Gold Stevie" Award from the 21^st Annual American Business Awards (ABA), BPU was recognized for “Best Website” in the utility category.

The ABA’s are the nation’s premier business awards program, with a panel of 240 independent judges recognizing BPU’s site for its functionality, ease-of-use, and helpful content for customers following recent redesign efforts. More than 3,700 nominations were submitted in various categories, with other website category winners besides BPU including AT&T, Cisco, Vanguard, State Farm, MetLife, and others.

BPU refreshed its website to improve overall user experience for customers looking to manage their accounts, monitor their utility usage, and access other utility-related information. A site heat map behavior analytic tool was used to understand how visitors interacted with the website pages. Based on this data, the site was refreshed with technical improvements and creative enhancements to help increase the visibility of important content and overall user engagement. This included extensive design and functionality improvements to make it easier for customers to find the information they need and complete tasks online. Major site enhancements included, among others:

• New pages highlight BPU Board Meetings, including a video recording library, meeting minutes, and a form for customers to sign up to speak at board meetings.
• 10 new videos developed based on customer information preferences.
• 20+ new pages making the site a content hub for customers.
• With a large Hispanic population, prioritized site content making it available in both English and Spanish.

Since the updates, the site has experienced dramatic increases in visibility, viewership, and user engagement. This includes:

• More than 3 million pageviews in the last two years.
• User sessions increasing by 21.61%.
• New visitors to the site increasing by 42.62%.
• Over 1.7 million site clicks to: videos, banners, sliders, PDFs, account login, outage map, phone calls, and forms. More than half of traffic engaged with an element on the site.

“The refreshed website reinforces BPU’s commitment to providing the best possible customer experience and ensuring customers have the information they need, when they need it, helping them make informed decisions about energy and water usage, conservation, and energy efficiency matters,” stated BPU Chief Communications Officer David Mehlhaff.

The American Business Awards are considered the nation’s preeminent business awards program, with more than 3,700 nominations for organizations of all sizes and every industry in a wide range of categories. The judging process spanned a three-month review period, with winners being recognized with either a Gold, Bronze, or Silver Stevie in their respective categories.

Experience the new look and improved functionality of the award-winning website at BPU.com.

BPU’s water department was originally created in 1909, and its electric utility was operational in 1912. The purpose of the utility, then and to this day, is to provide the highest quality electric and water services at the lowest possible cost. Today the publicly owned utility serves approximately 65,000 electric and 53,000 water customers, primarily in Wyandotte County, Kansas. The mission of the utility and its employees is “to focus on the needs of our customers, to improve the quality of life in our community while promoting safe, reliable and sustainable utilities.” BPU’s Web site is www.bpu.com.