Learn how we increased website engagement by 304% for a leading American utility

Southern California Gas company's (SoCalGas) focus has always transcended from mere delivery to continuously improving customer experience. In its quest to future-proof its digital needs, SoCalGas wanted to build a robust, scalable and user-friendly digital experience.

As the primary suppliers of gas in a significantly large locale, SoCalGas's website had to be up and running at all times for users to stay updated on service schedules and account details. The previous website was powered by legacy systems, and the dependency on unsupported systems created an unstable environment that resulted in downtime and performance issues. Additionally, the internal content team lacked flexibility in updating and publishing web content.

Moonraft partnered with SoCalGas to revamp its digital experience by migrating from its existing content management system to a more robust and powerful Acquia Cloud Platform. This not only resulted in greater reliability and lower dependencies, but also brought more flexibility in content authoring.
The migration from OWCS to Drupal 8 was a seamless transition that led to a smooth content update process, minimising technical dependencies. Since project completion, SoCalGas has been able to focus more on developing and enhancing its website rather than maintaining the servers to keep the website up and running, saving both time and money.

Detailed case study:

THE CLIENT
Southern California Gas Company (SoCalGas) is USA’s largest natural gas distribution utility delivering clean, safe and reliable energy to 21.8 million consumers throughout central and southern California. As part of the public service landscape, SoCalGas has evolved over the years, emerging as a leader in creating a responsible and sustainable energy economy, pioneering new ways to secure a greener future for customers.

THE SITUATION
As opposed to traditional utilities, SoCalGas’s focus has always transcended from mere delivery to continuously improving customer experience. In turn, the company has prioritised digital experiences over physical infrastructure to meet consumer expectations of today. Keeping in line with its vision and the rapidly evolving digital demands of the consumer, SoCalGas wanted to future-proof its digital needs and build a robust, scalable and user-friendly digital experience.

THE CHALLENGE
In the age of increasing digital consumption, customers expect information to be instant and seamlessly available. As the primary suppliers of gas in a significantly large locale, SoCalGas's website had to be up and running at all times for users to stay updated on service schedules and account details, and also pave avenues for new business. The previous website was powered by legacy systems like Oracle Web Center Sites (OWCS) and TeamSite 6.7, and the dependency on unsupported systems created an unstable environment that resulted in downtime and performance issues.
Additionally, the internal content team lacked flexibility in updating and publishing web content, as well as expanding and upgrading the site without technical help. Site maintenance was becoming difficult with severe troubleshooting and budgetary challenges due to dependency on specialised technical expertise for the outdated servers.

THE SOLUTION
Partnering with Moonraft Innovation Labs, a UST Global Company, SoCalGas revamped its digital experience by migrating from its existing content management system to the more robust and powerful Acquia Cloud Platform. This not only helped in increasing reliability and reducing dependencies, but also brought more flexibility in content authoring. The digital strategy aimed to build a consistent and comprehensive digital experience with uninterrupted service mirroring SoCalGas's brand voice in providing a reliable, constant and sustainable source of energy.
The project was approached with a three-phase execution plan including content migration, experience design and content analysis.

THE RESULTS
Leveraging Acquia Cloud Platform's powerful tools, SoCalGas achieved a seamless transition enabling a smooth content update process while mitigating technical dependencies. Since the completion of the project, SoCalGas has been able to focus more on developing and enhancing the website rather than maintaining the servers to keep the website up and running, saving both time and money. Consumers now have access to a website with fewer issues, more functionalities and more updated content.
Specific metrics include:
18% increase in new users
79% drop in bounce rate
304% increase in the average session durations
Average page loads are now 52% faster
Average page downloads are now 65% faster