Managing Contact Methods

Each utility contact must have at least one contact method associated with their billing account. Contact methods can include:

• Phone numbers
• Email addresses
• Social networks
• Websites
• SMS (Short Message Service)
• Telex
• EDI (Electronic Data Interchange)
• Electronic file transfer

Utilities can determine which of these communication types is available in CX for Utilities Agent Service during the implementation and configuration process. Additionally, each contact method has types. For example, you can specify that a phone number is one of these types:

• Home phone
• Work phone
• Assistant phone
• Home business phone
• Collections phone
• Emergency phone
• Fax number

When a communication method is added, the first record for a particular method is always marked as the primary contact method. For example, if the billing account has only one email address on file, that email address is marked as the primary email contact. If there are multiple records for a contact method, you can specify which of those records is the primary record. You cannot delete a primary contact method.

• Adding a Contact Method
  
• Editing Contact Methods
  

Adding a Contact Method

Each utility contact must have at least one contact method associated with their billing account.

To add a contact method:

1. From the Customer Dashboard, select the billing account you want to work with in the header, and then select Update Communication Preferences from the Actions menu.
2. The system opens the Set Communication Preferences drawer.
3. In the Contact Methods section, click the + Add Contact Method button.
4. Select a value from the Contact Method field.
5. Enter the contact method details in the field(s) below the Contact Method field. The fields that appear here differ, depending on the contact method that you select. For example, if you select Phone, you can then enter the phone type, country code, area code, phone number, and extension.
6. To mark the record as the primary contact method, click the Primary option to turn it on. If the record you are adding is the only contact method of this type (for example, the only phone number record), the system automatically marks it as the primary contact method.
7. Click Add to save your changes.

Editing Contact Methods

After you create contact methods, you can edit or delete them.

To edit or delete a contact method:

1. From the Customer Dashboard, select the billing account you want to work with in the header, and then select Update Communication Preferences from the Actions menu.
2. The system opens the Set Communication Preferences drawer.
3. To edit an existing contact method record, in the Contact Methods section of the screen, click the Edit icon next to the record you want to edit. The system displays the contact method details. Edit them as necessary, and then click Update.
4. To delete a contact method record, click the Delete icon next to the record you want to delete, and then click Continue on the Delete contact method window. Be aware that you cannot delete a contact method record that is marked as a primary contact method.