Nicor Gas, based in Illinois, is one of the largest gas distribution companies in the country. It recently retooled its Web site to focus on delivering functionality vs. simple branding information, and has already seen gains to the bottom line.

The company focused on three major areas for the retooling: customer service, pricing data and shareholder information. For example, in the area of customer service, the new site now contains a “My Account” section, which lets the company’s more than 2 million customers view and update their account information, see their gas history, submit a meter read, start e-mail updates and find a payment center.

Previously, those functions could only be performed via postal mail or on the phone. The company estimates the new self-service features will not only increase customer satisfaction, due to the streamlined process, but also save on the amount of time customer service reps need to spend on each service call.

The new site also offers a section designed to help customers better gauge their natural gas costs over time. This includes current pricing and external factors that influence natural gas costs, as well as information designed to help customers manage the higher gas costs expected this winter. For example, it provides links to information explaining Nicor’s pricing services, such as fixed-bill pricing and its innovative Winter Cap pricing program.

On the shareholder side, the new site now lists the current price for natural gas on the New York Stock Exchange, as well as links to quarterly and annual reports, SEC filings and even a list of analysts who cover Nicor and their contact information.

Through it all, Nicor kept its customers as the primary focus. “Through customer research, we were able to identify what services and offerings customers wanted most from our Web site,” said Claudi Colalillo, senior vice president of customer care and corporate communications at Nicor. “This information was the driving force in the development of the entire site, and we believe that our customers, shareholders and business partners will find it helpful in meeting their needs.”

For more information, contact Nicor here.