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Digital self-service for everyday requests: flexible, reliable, available 24/7.
By combining swb’s customer service expertise with botario’s automation platform, swb created a new digital self-service channel for customers across energy, telecommunications and everyday service requests. The result is a chatbot that helps customers resolve common enquiries independently, while keeping service personal, secure and easy to access.
Combining automation with trusted customer support.
Customer service in the utilities sector requires speed, reliability and trust. Customers expect clear answers when they need information about tariffs, services, faults, meter readings, contracts or payments. At the same time, providers must protect sensitive data and keep service processes efficient across a wide range of requests.
For service organisations like swb, the challenge is balancing digital self-service with the need for dependable human support. Customers should be able to solve routine issues independently, while still reaching the right team when personal assistance is needed.
To meet these expectations, swb introduced a digital self-service chatbot with botario. The platform enables customers to access information, submit requests and receive support around the clock, directly through swb’s website.
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Meet swb.
swb provides essential services across northern Germany, especially in Bremen and Bremerhaven. The company supports everyday life with electricity, natural gas, drinking water, heating, technical services and waste disposal.
With more than 170 years of experience in customer service, swb understands how important reliable communication is for customers. The company wanted to introduce a digital self-service channel that could answer common questions, support service requests and help customers find the right information quickly.
The goal was clear: improve customer access while maintaining the trust, reliability and service quality customers expect from swb.
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The business challenges
Scaling digital service without compromising data protection.
As customer expectations evolved, swb wanted to give customers a simple way to resolve enquiries independently at any time of day. Many requests were practical and recurring, from data changes and service questions to tariff information, meter readings, faults and payment support.
At the same time, standard solutions were not enough. swb needed a platform that could support highly individual requirements in an enterprise environment and adapt to its specific service processes.
Data protection was also a decisive requirement. As an energy provider, swb works with sensitive information such as personal data, addresses, consumption data and meter readings. Any automation solution had to meet high standards for security, control and compliance.
swb needed a flexible chatbot platform that could support digital self-service without weakening trust.
One chatbot platform for digital self-service across energy and telecommunications.
To address these challenges, swb partnered with botario to implement a chatbot as an additional digital service channel on the company website. The project was built on close collaboration between swb’s internal team and botario’s technical experts.
botario contributed expertise in platform implementation and backend integration. swb’s project team brought deep knowledge of business processes, customer service requirements and real use cases from daily operations.
The result is a chatbot that supports customers with a wide range of service enquiries 24/7. They can access information about tariffs and services, report faults, submit meter readings, adjust instalment payments, receive support with payment questions and get answers about contracts and energy or telecommunications services.
The platform gives swb the flexibility to manage dialogues, logic and workflows independently, while continuously improving the customer experience over time.
The solution's capabilities include:
Automated self-service responses
The chatbot supports common customer enquiries directly on the website, including tariff information, service questions, faults, meter readings, payments and contract-related topics.
Flexible configuration and integration
botario enables swb to manage dialogues, logic and workflows independently, integrate custom scripts such as Python code, and connect documents and company knowledge into the chatbot experience.
Analytics, quality assurance and live support
swb can use custom dashboards, relevant usage metrics and full chat history access for analysis and quality assurance, while also integrating live chat for direct interaction with employees when needed.
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Reliable service, fewer repetitive requests and 24/7 customer access.
The introduction of botario has helped swb expand its digital customer service with a flexible self-service channel that is always available. Customers can resolve many common requests independently, while swb can continuously optimise dialogues, workflows and service quality based on real usage data.
By combining automation with human support, swb can offer faster access to information, reduce pressure on service teams and maintain a trusted customer experience across essential services.
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More customer access through 24/7 self-service.
Customers can use the chatbot at any time to find information, submit requests and receive support for common service topics, without waiting for office hours or a direct service interaction.
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Greater flexibility for service teams.
swb can manage and optimise chatbot dialogues, workflows and logic independently. This allows the team to adapt the service channel continuously as customer needs, processes and use cases evolve.
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Stronger control over service quality and data.
With configurable dashboards, custom metrics and full chat history access, swb can analyse usage, improve quality and maintain transparency across automated customer interactions.
A close collaboration built on flexibility and trust.
Beyond the technology itself, the success of the project was shaped by the close collaboration between swb and botario. botario brought the technical expertise needed to implement the platform and connect it with backend systems. swb contributed detailed knowledge of customer service processes, business requirements and practical use cases.
This combination enabled a solution tailored to swb’s individual needs. The platform was not limited to a standard setup. It gave swb the ability to configure, manage and improve the chatbot experience in line with its own service reality.
For swb, the value was clear: botario provided the flexibility, customisation and technical capability needed to support digital self-service in a sensitive, customer-facing environment.
Looking ahead: expanding digital self-service for the next stage of customer support.
After several years of successful partnership, swb and botario are already working together on further projects and new use cases. The focus is on continuing to improve the digital service experience and making customer support even more accessible, efficient and reliable.
Both teams are building on a proven foundation: automation that supports customers around the clock, gives service teams more flexibility and keeps trust at the centre of every interaction.
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