November 16, 2001—The number of customers using PECO Energy’s online bill-paying option has risen from 2,000 when the option was introduced three years ago to more than 7,500 today, according to a company release.
PECO attributes the increase in part to a direct-mail advertising campaign launched in April, and in part to recent evidence that consumers are becoming more comfortable with online transactions. (Some experts estimate that more than 40 million consumer bills are presented on the Internet in the United States.)
The benefits of online payment include the convenience of not needing to write checks or buy stamps, as well as the ability to pay multiple bills in one sitting, the company says. The e-bill looks similar to the paper bill. Customers can see how much electricity or natural gas they use, weather data for the billing period, the monthly energy cost, a breakdown of the charges, their meter reading date, and a thirteen-month comparison chart.
