Oracle Utilities Opower Home Energy Reports Cloud Service

Transcription

1 Oracle Utilities Opower Home Energy Reports Cloud Service Customer Service Guide E Last Updated: July 12, 2018

2 Oracle Utilities Opower Home Energy Reports Cloud Service Customer Service Guide Copyright 2010, 2018, Oracle and/or its affiliates. All rights reserved. This software and related documentation are provided under a license agreement containing restrictions on use and disclosure and are protected by intellectual property laws. Except as expressly permitted in your license agreement or allowed by law, you may not use, copy, reproduce, translate, broadcast, modify, license, transmit, distribute, exhibit, perform, publish, or display any part, in any form, or by any means. Reverse engineering, disassembly, or decompilation of this software, unless required by law for interoperability, is prohibited. The information contained herein is subject to change without notice and is not warranted to be error-free. If you find any errors, please report them to us in writing. If this is software or related documentation that is delivered to the U.S. Government or anyone licensing it on behalf of the U.S. Government, then the following notice is applicable: U.S. GOVERNMENT END USERS: Oracle programs, including any operating system, integrated software, any programs installed on the hardware, and/or documentation, delivered to U.S. Government end users are "commercial computer software" pursuant to the applicable Federal Acquisition Regulation and agency- specific supplemental regulations. As such, use, duplication, disclosure, modification, and adaptation of the programs, including any operating system, integrated software, any programs installed on the hardware, and/or documentation, shall be subject to license terms and license restrictions applicable to the programs. No other rights are granted to the U.S. Government. This software or hardware is developed for general use in a variety of information management applications. It is not developed or intended for use in any inherently dangerous applications, including applications that may create a risk of personal injury. If you use this software or hardware in dangerous applications, then you shall be responsible to take all appropriate fail-safe, backup, redundancy, and other measures to ensure its safe use. Oracle Corporation and its affiliates disclaim any liability for any damages caused by use of this software or hardware in dangerous applications. Oracle and Java are registered trademarks of Oracle and/or its affiliates. Other names may be trademarks of their respective owners. Intel and Intel Xeon are trademarks or registered trademarks of Intel Corporation. All SPARC trademarks are used under license and are trademarks or registered trademarks of SPARC International, Inc. AMD, Opteron, the AMD logo, and the AMD Opteron logo are trademarks or registered trademarks of Advanced Micro Devices. UNIX is a registered trademark of The Open Group. This software or hardware and documentation may provide access to or information about content, products, and services from third parties. Oracle Corporation and its affiliates are not responsible for and expressly disclaim all warranties of any kind with respect to third-party content, products, and services unless otherwise set forth in an applicable agreement between you and Oracle. Oracle Corporation and its affiliates will not be responsible for any loss, costs, or damages incurred due to your access to or use of third-party content, products, or services, except as set forth in an applicable agreement between you and Oracle. Documentation Accessibility For information about Oracle's commitment to accessibility, visit the Oracle Accessibility Program website at Access to Oracle Support Oracle customers that have purchased support have access to electronic support through My Oracle Support. For information, visit or visit if you are hearing impaired. ii

3 Contents Introduction 1 Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) 1 Customer Experience 4 Report Types 5 Subject Line, Header, and Footer 6 Neighbor Comparison 7 Daily Peak 8 Personal Tracker 8 Pre-Audit Home Profile 9 Post-Audit Home Profile 10 Personalized Tips 10 User Feedback 11 Marketing Modules 11 Providing Customer Support 12 Accessing a Customer's Web Account 12 Managing Report Preferences 12 Viewing a Sent Report 14 iii

4 Introduction Home Energy Reports are communications sent through the channel to engage utility customers about their home energy use. They include a neighbor comparison, personalized tips, and links to online resources where customers can learn more about their usage and ways to save. Marketing modules may also be included. The goals of the product are to give customers actionable insights about their energy and motivate them to lower their usage. Note: Some of the features described may not be applicable or available to your utility. Contact your supervisor if you have any questions. Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) This section offers sample responses to help you answer frequently-asked questions (FAQs) about the Home Energy Reports program. How was I selected to be a part of this program? You were randomly chosen to receive communications from the eligible households in our service area. Why are you trying to make me feel bad? We are not trying to shame or judge you. If we have offended you, it was not our intent. Rather, we hope that the information we provide can offer valuable insights and context about your home s energy use so that you can save energy and money. We have joined other cities and utilities across the country to provide these reports because they have been proven to help households effectively save. Can I opt out of this program? Yes. The Oracle Utilities Opower program is provided to help you understand your home energy use, save energy, and lower your bills. However, if you would like to opt out, you can do so in the My Account section of the Energy Efficiency Web Portal - Classic or by clicking the Unsubscribe link at the bottom of the . I can also remove you from the program 1

5 over the phone. Please note that you cannot opt in again to Home Energy Reports once you have opted out. Note to CSRs: Make sure that customers understand that the purpose of the program is to help them. Let them know program participants have been proven to save energy and money, and you want to help them do the same. What is the purpose of the program? Most people are eager to make their home more efficient and save money, but they're not always sure how. The purpose of program is to provide more information about your energy use so you can make informed choices and save money. We welcome your feedback. How did you select my neighbors? Our goal is to provide you with a comparison that is valid and meaningful. We compare your household to other real households in your area, not a theoretical home with similar characteristics. To provide valid comparisons, we've chosen specific homes with characteristics that typically lead to similar energy needs, such as home size, heating source, and dwelling type. Most importantly, we only include homes that appear to be occupied at the time of the neighbor comparison. I have special circumstances. Why don t you take these into account for the neighbor comparison? We do take some special circumstances into account through tools like the Energy Efficiency Web Portal - Classic. For example, this tool lets us know if you have a pool or not. But there are a few reasons why we can t take all special household characteristics into account for the neighbor comparison. We can only compare your usage based on what we know about you and your neighbors. We base your comparison on reliable data that is gathered for households in your area. However, a variety of lifestyle choices and household changes don t have a system of record. For example, we don t have a way of knowing if you have guests visiting, work from home regularly, or just bought new windows. For this reason, we base your comparison on the major, known factors that drive energy consumption. Some attributes are not a good basis for comparison. 2

6 For example, you might wonder why we don t compare your home to only homes of a similar age. Similarly aged homes don t necessarily have similar energy needs. Older homes may typically be less efficient, but they are also more likely to have been renovated. New homes may be more efficient in some ways, but they may have more features that use energy (jetted spas, heated floors, central AC, etc.). We want the comparison to be meaningful. We hope that the neighbor comparison can offer valuable information and context about your home s energy use so that you can save energy and money. If you have a swimming pool, for example, you may be compared to households that don t have a pool. This gives you a more realistic view of how having a swimming pool impacts your energy consumption compared to other homes. Even without taking into account everything that's special about your circumstances, the program can still be a useful informational tool and allow for measurement of your own performance over time. How do you know the comparisons are valid? Our comparisons include 100 similar, nearby, occupied homes. Our research shows that for almost all residents, this 100-home average indicates typical usage. How can I update information about my household to improve the accuracy of my neighbor comparison? There are several ways to update your household s profile information. If you have access to the Energy Efficiency Web Portal - Classic, you can tell us more about your home by updating your information in the My Account > About my home area of the Energy Efficiency Web Portal - Classic. These changes may impact the tips you see and/or how you compare to your neighbors in your next report. To see your updated information more quickly, you can visit the customer Energy Efficiency Web Portal - Classic after your next billing cycle. I can also help you update your profile. Why are you comparing me to my neighbors? We are joining other utilities and cities across the country to provide this information because it has been proven to effectively help customers save energy and money. We compare your energy use to the use of similar size homes that are close to yours and use the same heating fuel. We do this to provide you with education and context, and to offer an idea of what you could realistically save. 3

7 Are you comparing me to customers at other utilities? No, you are only compared to other customers in your utility. Customer Experience Home Energy Reports are sent to customers on a monthly, bi-monthly, or quarterly basis. The s are often sent on Friday afternoons so that customers will have time to review the reports over the weekend. The major types and components of Home Energy Reports are described below. 4

8 Report Types The following are the supported report types: 5

9 Single Fuel Electric: Reports for customers who only have electricity. The energy units are displayed as kilowatt-hours (kwh). Single Fuel Natural Gas: Reports for customers who only have natural gas. The energy units are displayed as therms, CCF, or m 3. Dual Fuel - Electric and Natural Gas: Reports for customers who have both electricity and natural gas. The energy units are displayed using an Energy Index (units), which combines electricity usage (kwh) and natural gas usage (therms, CCF, or m 3 ) into a single measurement. Subject Line, Header, and Footer The subject line and header are used to engage the customer, brand the communication, and identify the time period of the neighbor comparison. The footer provides customers with links to manage preferences and unsubscribe from Home Energy Reports. It also contains the utility address and other necessary legal text. Subject Line The subject line is designed by Oracle Utilities to engage customers. The default subject line is "Hi [firstname lastname] - your Home Energy Report is here." Header Logo: A logo provided by the utility. This is the same logo used in the Energy Efficiency Web Portal. Utility account number: Since the account number is required to register on the Energy Efficiency Web Portal, having the number on the report provides a useful reference for customers. Part of the account number is obscured by default. Footer Manage Preferences: A link to the Energy Efficiency Web Portal page where a customer can edit their report preferences. Unsubscribe: A link to a page where customers can unsubscribe from Home Energy Reports. Unsubscribing from Home Energy Reports in this manner unsubscribes the customer from all Oracle Utilities Opower communications. This action is permanent. A customer cannot opt in again after opting out of Home Energy Reports. 6

10 Address: The utility's mailing address. The mailing address must appear due to CAN- SPAM regulations in the US and similar regulations abroad. Disclaimer: This is an optional disclaimer that can be added at the request of the utility. Legal text: This is the copyright and any other legal text required by the utility or Oracle Utilities. Neighbor Comparison The Neighbor Comparison compares the customer ( You ) to two groups: Efficient Neighbors and All Neighbors. The results are displayed in a horizontal bar graph. A summary statement indicates how the customer compares to their efficient neighbors, and an evaluative statement is highlighted to indicate if the customer is doing "Good," "Great," or is "Using more than average" compared to their efficient neighbors. "Efficient Neighbors" are defined as the most efficient 20% of the customer's neighbors. The comparison is designed to motivate customers to save energy based on how they see themselves in relation to their neighbors. Normative Message / Insight Statement: The normative message appears above the chart and provides an insight ("You used 18% more than your neighbors") about why the bar chart appears the way it does. Specifically, it displays a percentage for (a) how much more or less the customer used compared to their "efficient neighbors" or (b) how much more or less the customer used compared to "neighbors" (i.e., all neighbors, including efficient neighbors). The wording of the statement itself varies depending on several factors. How You're Doing: This graphic highlights whether the customer is doing "Great," "Good," or "Using more than average" compared to All Neighbors or Efficient Neighbors. Bar Chart: The bar chart displays how much energy each group in the comparison used. You: This bar indicates how the customer is doing. All Neighbors: This bar indicates how all the customer's neighbors are doing. Efficient Neighbors: This bar displays a usage value for the most efficient 20% of the customer's neighbors. The efficient neighbors value that appears in the module is not an average of the top 20% of neighbors. A threshold value the 20th percentile neighbor is used to determine the efficient neighbors value. What homes are compared: This link leads customers to the utility's frequently asked questions (FAQs) webpage that usually includes a description of how neighbor groups are selected. Definition: For dual fuel customers, a short sentence below the chart defines the unit of measure for the comparison. 7

11 Sign in: When clicked, the Sign in link prompts the customer to log into the Energy Efficiency Web Portal. Note: The energy units are displayed in the graph area based on the customer s fuel type (Single fuel electric=kwh, Single fuel gas=therms or CCF, Dual Fuel=energy index). Daily Peak The Daily Peak module displays a customer's average daily peak usage for the last month, so that customers can see which hours of the day they are using the most energy. The module includes one graph that shows peak use on the weekdays and another that shows use on the wekeends. The messaging indicates if the customer has one peak, two peaks, or no peaks. If customers receive a monthly bill, the month covers the entire billing period. Bar Charts: Two bar charts show the customer's average energy use for each hour of the day. One bar chart shows hourly energy use on weekdays and the other shows use on weekends. Chart Description: Descriptive text below each bar chart identifies the billing period of the data displayed. Insight Statement: An insight statement above each bar chart summarizes the customer's peak energy use. The messaging indicates if the customer uses the most energy in the morning, afternoon, evening, or night. The insight statement varies based on the customer's energy use. For example, if the customer has a single peak on weekends that occurs between the hours of 6:00 AM and 12:00 PM, the insight statement says, "On weekends, you're a morning user". Personal Tracker The Personal Tracker provides a historical view of the customer s energy use-to-date with the goal of comparing the current year to the previous year. The Personal Tracker can show as few as three historical bills or as many as two years of historical bills. A message appears above the chart comparing the customer s recent use to their historical use. Gas-only and dual fuel customers see a variation in the units of energy displayed. The electricity unit kwh is replaced by therms for gas-only customers and units for dual fuel customers. Normative Message/Insight Statement: A normative message above the chart explains the customer's energy use. The message varies depending upon how much data is available. 8

12 Available Data 13 or more historical bills are available, including two January bills. 13 or more historical bills are available, including one January bill. Less than 13 but at least 3 historical bills are available. Message The message provides a year-to-date comparison that explains how the customer's energy use so far this year compares to their use in the previous year. The message explains how the customer's energy use in the most recent bill compares to their energy use from the same billing period of the previous year. The message compares the energy use in the current bill to energy use in the previous bill. Bar Chart: The bar chart displays the customer's bills over time and provides a comparison to previous energy use if enough data is available. Each bar in the chart represents a bill. When 13 or more historical bills are available, a double bar chart compares the customer's energy use on each bill in the current year to their energy use on each corresponding bill from the previous year. If less than 13 but at least three bills are available, a bar chart shows the customer's energy use on each available bill. Missing Data Message: If there is missing data, then a message displays below the chart to explain the reasons for this. For example, the message will explain that missing data may be a result of the customer's net energy use being at or below zero for the billing period, or because a comparable bill from the previous year could not be found. This message is hidden if there is no missing data. "See More Energy Trends" Button: By default, a See More Energy Trends button takes users to the Data Browser in the Oracle Utilities web portal. In the Data Browser, customers can see a more interactive view of their energy trends. Pre-Audit Home Profile The Pre-Audit Home Profile can be included in Home Energy Reports for customers who have not yet completed the Home Energy Analysis in the Energy Efficiency Web Portal. It is designed to show customers which of their home attributes are unknown, and to encourage them to provide these attributes by completing the audit to receive a more personalized Home Energy Report. When included in an Home Energy Report, the Pre-Audit Home Profile appears at the top of the report, below the header. 9

13 Benefit Message: A message at the top of the module describes the benefits of completing the audit. By default, the message is "To see a more accurate comparison and helpful tips, update your home profile. It won't take long just 2-3 minutes." List of Home Attributes: The module includes a list of eight home attributes, including home type, home size, and heating type, and indicates which of the attributes are known or unknown for the customer. Action Statement: The bottom of the module displays a call to action that provides instructions on how to complete the What Uses Most audit or Home Energy Analysis. "Complete Home Profile" Button: Customers can click a Complete Home Profile button at the bottom of the module to be directed to the What Uses Most audit or Home Energy Analysis in their Oracle Utilities web portal account. Post-Audit Home Profile The Post-Audit Home Profile can be included in the first Home Energy Report that a customer receives after completing the Home Energy Analysis in the Energy Efficiency Web Portal. It is designed to introduce customers to their new personalized Home Energy Report by providing a summary of their responses to the audit, and informing customers that both their report and tips have been updated based on their home attributes. When included in an Home Energy Report, the Post-Audit Home Profile appears at the top of the report, below the header. Introductory Message: A message appears at the top of the module to describe that the Home Energy Report has been updated based on the customer's home attributes. List of Home Attributes: The module includes a list of eight home attributes, including home type, home size, and heating type. Across from each attribute is the customer's response to the attribute from the completed What Uses Most audit or Home Energy Analysis. The eight attributes displayed in the module were chosen because they are the most helpful to Oracle Utilities in personalizing the Home Energy Report. If an attribute is still unknown for a customer after they have completed the audit, then it is excluded from the list of attributes in the Post-Audit Home Profile. "Update your home profile" Message: A message appears at the bottom of the module that informs customers they can update their home profile by returning to the What Uses Most audit or Home Energy Analysis. Personalized Tips Each Home Energy Report contains tips on how customers can save energy. The list of applicable tips is personalized for each customer. Customers receive three tips in each 10

14 Home Energy Report. Tip Selection: Each tip is selected based on information about the customer, for example, the size of the customer's home, whether the customer has pets, or the geographic location of the customer's home. Tips are ranked according to usefulness to the customer, cost effectiveness, and other criteria that is relevant to the customer. For example, if a tip has been displayed in the recent past, the customer will not see that tip again until a specific time period has passed. Additionally, customers will not receive multiple tips on the same topic in a single Home Energy Report. See More Ways to Save: Customers can click this button to view a web page in the Energy Efficiency Web Portal that contains all of the energy saving tips that are applicable to them. Customers can scroll through this list at any point. User Feedback The User Feedback module is an optional module that solicits feedback from customers on the usefulness of the Home Energy Report. Customers can indicate how useful they find the on a scale from 1 to 5. After submitting feedback, customers are directed to a confirmation page in the Energy Efficiency Web Portal. Question: A question in large font at the top of the module asks customers if they find the Home Energy Report helpful. Scale: A scale of numbers from 1 to 5 appears below the question. Customers can click on a number to indicate how helpful they find the Home Energy Report. By selecting 1, the customer can indicate that they do not find the Home Energy Report helpful. By selecting 5, they can indicate that they find the Home Energy Report very helpful. Thank You Page: After submitting feedback, customers are directed to a confirmation page in the Energy Efficiency Web Portal where they are thanked for their input. The page also informs customers that their feedback is used to make improvements to the product. Marketing Modules The utility has the option of adding additional marketing modules to the . Marketing modules can be customized to contain text and/or pictures, and are often used to promote utility-specific programs or drive customers to online tools and resources. 11

15 Providing Customer Support Accessing a Customer's Web Account CSRs with the proper permissions can access a customer's Energy Efficiency Web Portal - Classic account using the Oracle Utilities Opower Customer Service Interface (CSI) to assist with questions and troubleshooting. When you do this, you can see the Energy Efficiency Web Portal - Classic much like the customer sees it, except you cannot modify the customer s address or password (if applicable). To access a customer's Energy Efficiency Web Portal - Classic: 1. Sign in to the CSI. 2. Find and open the customer's account. 3. On the customer's account page, in the Actions area, click View Customer s Web Account. A permission confirmation page displays. 4. Ask the customer for permission to view their web account. Once you have permission, click Proceed. The customer's web account opens in a new tab. 5. Switch to the new tab to enter the customer s web account. Note: If you and the customer are on the web portal at the same time, any changes made are preserved for the last person that commits their updates. Managing Report Preferences You can opt a customer in to or out of Home Energy Reports, change their address, help them "go paperless" and receive s only, or help them manage this information on their own. Opting a Customer In to Reports Using the CSI This option is only available if your utility supports Home Energy Reports and the customer is eligible to receive them. To opt a customer in to reports using the CSI: 1. Sign in to the CSI. 2. Find and open the customer's account. 12

16 3. In the Report Delivery Preferences section, click Edit Preferences. 4. Edit the fields next to report frequency and address. If these fields are not available, then the customer is not eligible for Home Energy Reports. 5. Click Update. Opting a Customer Out of Reports Using the CSI To opt a customer out of reports using the CSI: Warning: Opting a customer out of communications is permanent. After a customer is opted out of reports, they are unable to receive HERs and ehers in the future. Do one of the following, depending on where you are in the user interface. 1. Sign in to the CSI. 2. Find and open the customer's account. In the Actions panel, click Opt Out of Reports. In the Report Delivery Preferences section, click Edit Preferences. 3. Optional. In the Opt Out section, click the drop-down menu and choose a reason. 4. Click Opt Out. Updating a Customer's Report Preferences Using the CSI You can change Home Energy Report preferences such as the delivery frequency, address, and whether the customer goes paperless and receives Home Energy Reports only. To update a customer's report preferences using the CSI: 1. Sign in to the CSI. 2. Find and open the customer's account. 3. In the Report Delivery Preferences area, click Edit Preferences. 13

17 4. Do one of the following, depending on what you would like to update: Task Edit the frequency. Edit the address at which s are received. Make the customer go "paperless" (receive s only). Instructions Click the drop-down menu next to report frequency and choose the desired frequency. Edit the field next to address. 1. Click the drop-down menu next to Print report frequency and choose None. 2. Verify that a frequency for Home Energy Reports is already chosen and that their address accurate. 5. Click Update. Viewing a Sent Report To more effectively answer questions about Home Energy Reports, CSRs can view copies that have been sent to a customer. To view a sent report: 1. Sign in to the CSI. 2. Find and open the customer's account. 3. On the customer's account page, look in the Reports area. A list of all the customer's Home Energy Reports displays, with the most recent report at the top. 4. Click the name of the appropriate report to open an HTML version of it. You also have the option to view the raw MIME version of the . 14