Getting bills is one of life’s more unfortunate inevitabilities – except it happens much more often than death and taxes.

Are we stuck with bills forever? Does it have to be this way, or can we actually “disrupt” the bill?

While we may never be able to escape what goes into a bill, switching to video-based billing can dramatically change how a customer feels about them. And this simple shift of format can have a huge impact on how customers view the company that bills them.

Personalized video ushers billing into the digital age and repackages information in a compelling, engaging, and interactive way. But it’s more than just a much-needed makeover – video billing is the better way to bill, with clear benefits compared to paper billing, for consumers and companies alike.

Why video is the evolution of billing

At first glance, a video bill still provides your customer all the same, relevant, information as a regular paper statement, including customer details, services used, monthly charges and possible discounts or upgrades to services.

But instead of their eyes glazing over the endless rows of numbers, a video bill is literally a sight to behold. The magic of video is that it can transform what is essentially a static, boring spreadsheet into a dynamic, multi-sensory event with graphics, colors, music and motion.

What you can include in a video bill is endless, depending on what you offer and how the customer uses your services, but one thing will stay the same: the information will always be delivered in a way that customers actually find engaging.

The only limits are your imagination – you can brand and visually style it in any way you see fit. Visually-appealing and personalized to their own unique financial situation, a video bill evokes a positive feeling in the viewer, something that normal bills have rarely done, if ever.

How video bills work

People are curious and visual by nature. Video is aligned with what we are hard-wired to find compelling  rather than a static, white sheet of paper covered in small, hard-to-read text and symbols.

In fact, research has shown that 72% of consumers would rather use a video to learn about a product or service than any other medium.

More importantly, a video bill can be informative while adding a narrative element. It provides a rich, valued-added context to the numbers on a customer’s bill – a visual story, if you will – something paper or email statements can’t do.

We know people learn better through storytelling, but the real power behind video billing is the ability to personalize the content so that customers feel special and cared for. A video bill makes the story about each individual customer, delivering their key account details in a more dynamic, interactive experience, which goes far beyond impersonal form letters that leave them feeling like just their account number.

The freedom to create

Video billing offers creative freedom that lets you deliver what are normally dry financial details in a way that is compelling, be it animation, personalized information, imagery, humor, music, or any other technique to grab your customer’s attention. For example:

• A narrator can explain why a customer’s bill was higher than usual, and what they can do to keep their fees consistent. This is done to mitigate common bill shock.
• Easily visualize the breakdown of bill costs using graphs, charts and other tools.
• Remind customers about certain fees they might skim over on a regular paper bill.

A billing video can be used to reward “good behavior”. Say a loyal customer has never missed a payment, then the video bill can feature elements that would make the customer feel appreciated. And what could that entail? Anything really – rewards, discounts, happy imagery or funny quotes that might be appropriate to the customer’s age or location.

Personalized billing videos not only makes the customer the star of their own financial movie but helps them make better decisions.

Research has found that 94% of video marketers say video has helped increase user understanding of their product or service.

Delivered this way, a video bill makes a customer feel engaged and empowered, which is a huge plus for them. But what about you?

The 6 key benefits of video billing

Content is king. Fighting for eyeballs. We’ve all heard catchphrases describing how consumers are consuming more video content. But video billing isn’t just another empty way to capitalize on trends: video billing has real benefits for not just your customers, but for your company as well, including:

• Increased customer engagement – Dynamic and personalized, video billing keeps customers engaged, which has a trickle-down effect for you because an engaged customer often turns into a loyal customer.
• Add personalized value and upsell – Personalize advice and tips related to a customer’s unique situation, adding value and suggesting other products or services. For example, if they’re frequently using a particular service, promote add-ons or other offerings that relate to it.
• Less intrusive than phone calls – Companies who call their customers about bills have reduced customer satisfaction because nobody likes surprise phone calls. With video billing, customers always know what to expect with a video and can watch at their convenience.
• More time to do great work – Not only is your team making less phone calls that are annoying your customers, but it works both ways: 43% of video marketers say video has reduced the number of support calls they’ve received.
• Reduce costs and waste – Using paper has a price tag for both your bottom line and the environment. Video bills help save both by reducing the paper your company uses and the wasted time of employees  continually calling until they reach customers.
• Client intelligence and data – How a customer engages with a video, like knowing what they re-watched or skipped over, provides a wealth of behavioral insights into their preference that can be used to refine marketing strategies.