Tag: Content Strategy

Illustration of small business customer segmentation on main street

Webinar: Segmentation for Small Business Customers

Segmentation is a critical tool for energy utilities to effectively reach customers, especially small business customers. SMB customers are often hard to reach for numerous reasons, including lack of time and lack of interest in information they think is not relevant to their needs.

In this webinar, Kurt Hansen, Questline Digital AVP of products and partnerships, discusses how to use segmentation and content marketing to not only reach business customers, but create long-lasting relationships with them as well.

Business is booming with content marketing

Content marketing is all about finding the overlap between customers’ needs and your energy utility’s goals. Your strategy should focus on sharing valuable and relevant content with customers. This requires much more than an individual promotion or email — rather, it’s a way to create trust through ongoing and targeted communications.

The first step in creating content that benefits your energy utility’s business customers is research. According to Hansen, when it comes to effective content, “It’s not just about does it look good? Does it sound good? Does it tell the story? It’s also about is that story the right level of technical depth?” Different customers require different levels of technical expertise. C&I customers, for example, are going to be at a much higher technical level than residential customers.

How do you segment small business customers?

Segmentation can be a challenge, especially if your energy utility doesn’t have sufficient data to categorize customers.  For example, it’s often difficult to identify the best industry segment for small business customers.

To start the segmentation process, you should see what data you currently have and what data your systems team might be able to get. Your existing information can then be supplemented with self-segmentation.

With a self-segmentation tool, business customers can visit individual pages your energy utility has created for them with targeted industry content. We encourage energy utilities to personalize these pages, with content and program information, to drive participation with your local services.   

“The idea is you’re giving that industry a designated page to turn toward for updated content specifically for them and information that drives them back to your energy utility’s website to convert them to other programs,” Hansen says. Your energy utility would then have that customer’s account captured into their specific industry and interests. This creates an opportunity to start a dialog with these customers.

Self-segmentation strategy for small business

A segmentation strategy and a content marketing strategy should join forces for maximum impact. These strategies should act as the backbone of your energy utility’s digital communications strategy with customers.   

“It isn’t just an individual email or promotion,” Hansen says, “it is building an overall strategy of how you want to engage with customers on a consistent, systematic and strategic level and having the content and strategy behind it to do it.”

When it comes to segmentation for small business, let your customers help do it for you. Self-segmentation is a great option when your energy utility doesn’t have the information to accurately identify which industries your SMB customers are in. Combining content marketing and segmentation, your energy utility will move in the right direction to create long-lasting customer relationships.

Learn how Questline Digital can segment and target your small business customers to increase engagement and build stronger digital relationships.

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Illustration of marketers creating a social media strategy

Best Practices: Social Media Strategy for Energy Utilities

A social media strategy is an essential component of an energy utility’s digital marketing plan. You can provide real-time updates, share helpful information, receive feedback and connect directly with your customers. Most importantly, popular social media sites are where many customers spend their time online. In order to reach them, you need to spend time there, too.

To engage your audience and build a trusting relationship between your energy utility and social media followers, you’ll need to optimize what you post, when you post and where you post. Follow these best practices to make sure your social strategy earns shares and likes — and avoids getting unfriended.

Reach the right audience on the right platform

There are a lot of social media platforms out there, and it seems like a new one is generating buzz almost every week. Learning new platforms, creating accounts and managing all these profiles can be overwhelming, especially for time-strapped energy utility marketers.

The good news is, you don’t need to use every social media platform — just the ones that your customers use the most.

Facebook should be the primary focus for most energy utilities. It reaches the most residential customers and the widest audience overall. LinkedIn, meanwhile, is an ideal way to reach business customers. Posting on Twitter and Instagram can be effective, but these platforms aren’t essential to reach your audience.

  • With 2 billion users, Facebook is an ideal platform for reaching a residential audience.
  • LinkedIn has more than 575 million users, and 40% of users access it on a daily basis.
  • More than 80% of Instagram’s 1 billion users follow a business account.
  • There are more than 500 million tweets sent every day from Twitter’s 330 million users.

Use an appropriate voice on social

Social media platforms are more casual and conversational than other customer communication channels. You don’t want to come across as too stodgy, but you should also be true to your energy utility’s brand. Even when you’re being friendly and personable, you want to sound like a trusted community organization, not a sarcastic teenager.

Your energy utility should maintain the same voice, or personality, across all of your social media accounts. Aim to be authentic, helpful, knowledgeable and friendly each time you craft a social media post, regardless of the platform. But change your tone based on who you’re targeting and the situation at hand.

  • Residential customers want to be entertained, while business customers want to stay up to date on industry trends and news.
  • Be personable to delight and amuse your audience on Facebook and Instagram.
  • Be direct with clear and concise language when posting to LinkedIn.
  • Be sympathetic and understanding in your posts when addressing an outage, natural disaster or other crisis.

Pick the best times to post

Social media tends to be ephemeral. Messages are consumed within a fairly short window after being published, without a lot of staying power. In fact, studies have shown that most retweets on Twitter happen with the first hour after tweeting. As a result, you want to post when your customers are online to see it.

You can find loads of conventional wisdom about the best days and times to share posts, but each audience is different. To find out what works best for your customers, try posting at different times on multiple days throughout the week to see which posts get the most engagement. Those results can help inform your social media strategy moving forward.

These recommendations, based on Questline Digital performance metrics, can help you get started:

  • Facebook, LinkedIn and Instagram posts shared on Sunday often see the worst engagement; the worst day for Twitter is Saturday.
  • Wednesday, Thursday and Friday are the best performing days overall.
  • Facebook posts perform well when posted from 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. Tuesday through Thursday.
  • LinkedIn posts see the most engagement when shared from 8 to 10 a.m. and at noon Wednesday; at 9 a.m. and from 1 to 2 p.m. Thursday; and at 9 a.m. Friday.
  • Instagram posts perform well when shared at 11 a.m. Wednesday and from 10 to 11 a.m. Friday.
  • Twitter posts perform best at 9 a.m. Wednesday and Thursday; posts shared weekdays from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. see high engagement as well.

Keep it short, sweet and visually engaging

Social media users enjoy posts that get to the point quickly and concisely. They want to easily understand what program you’re promoting or why they should click the link you shared. The shorter your message, the better chance you have of capturing their attention.

Even better than sharing a text-based post, try to draw your audience in with an eye-catching video, infographic, animated GIF or photo. Adding visual components to your social media posts makes them more engaging. When posts grab their attention, audiences interact more in the form of likes, comments and shares.

  • According to Questline Digital performance metrics, energy utility social media posts with videos, GIFs and images see the most engagement.
  • Posts with videos get 200% more likes, comments and shares than those with just links or no media at all.
  • Add a GIF or short infographic to your social media post to demonstrate a complex topic quickly and clearly with engaging visuals.

The right social media content can help you build a strong digital relationship with your audience — and ultimately increase customer satisfaction by making your energy utility relatable and accessible. By following these best practices, you can connect with customers on the platforms they use most, at the times they’re online and with the right information.

Learn how social media content from Questline Digital can build engagement with your customers.

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Illustration of marketers creating a content strategy

3 Great Content Marketing Ideas for Energy Utilities

If it feels like you’re being bombarded with advertisements, well, that’s because you are. The average consumer is exposed to upwards of 5,000 ads every day … and growing. You’re probably pretty good at tuning out most of those messages. Of course, your customers are good at tuning out messages, too.

That’s why content marketing can be so effective. With this approach, you build long-term satisfaction by providing customers with information that actually interests them — instead of bombarding them with ads they don’t care about.

Do your messages cut through the clutter to reach customers? Here are three great content marketing ideas from other industries that energy utilities can apply to their own content strategy.

1. Makeup.com

Screen capture of Makeup-dot-com content marketing example

At first glance, Makeup.com looks like it’s produced by a glossy fashion magazine. The robust website is filled with makeup product reviews, how-to’s, expert tips and helpful videos.

In fact, the site is owned by cosmetics giant L’Oreal. Yet there’s one thing you won’t find on Makeup.com — blatant sales messages. Ads would be a turnoff and easy to tune out. Instead, L’Oreal attracts customers by offering advice and information that interests them. And, not coincidentally, it helps them use more makeup.

What utilities can do: Help customers, don’t sell to them. Provide content that helps them take control of their energy use, such as efficiency tips or smart home technology advice. When they’re ready, these informed customers will be more open to your program promotions or other marketing messages.

2. Learn from Experience

Screen shot of Farmers Insurance content marketing example

Farmers Insurance is known for their quirky TV commercials featuring actor J.K. Simmons reenacting actual, elaborate mishaps. Farmers’ content hub, Learn from Experience, plays off this theme with entertaining and useful articles drawn from real-life examples.

But this content isn’t about insurance. Instead, it’s about all the things that people need to insure, from cars and homes to life-changing events like weddings and births.

What utilities can do: Energy is critical to customers’ daily lives. Yet their questions and interests may not always be specific to energy use. Look for energy-adjacent topics to build content around. For example, instead of focusing on the energy-saving benefits of a smart thermostat, show customers how the technology also makes their lives more comfortable and convenient.

3. I Love You, Colonel Sanders!

Screen shot of KFC content marketing game I Love You Colonel Sanders

An anime-style dating simulator that’s finger-licking good? I Love You, Colonel Sanders! puts gamers in the role of a culinary student who wants to date their classmate, Colonel Sanders. If it works out, he might even ask you to be his business partner and open a chain of chicken joints.

If you’re wondering what this has to do with selling fast food, the answer is, not much. And yet, the free video game — created by Kentucky Fried Chicken and distributed on the Steam online game platform — has received more than 8,000 positive reviews and generated lots of buzz. In other words, KFC built strong connections around a memorable interactive experience and got customers talking about the brand.

What utilities can do: Make it fun! Educational content doesn’t have to be boring. In fact, interactive games and quizzes aren’t just more engaging, they’re more memorable as well. Customers are much more likely to absorb and retain information when it’s presented as entertaining content.

Every day, as more digital clutter invades our lives, it gets harder to reach customers with truly important messages. By learning from these content marketing ideas and developing your own strategy, your energy utility doesn’t need to push its messages on customers. Instead, customers will come to you to seek out information and advice that interests them.

Looking for new ideas to power your utility’s content strategy? Find out how Questline Digital can help.

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Marketing tactics used to build a content strategy for energy utilities

Webinar: A Winning Content Strategy for Energy Utilities

Content marketing is both an art and a science — with the power to build long-term relationships with energy utility customers. In this webinar, Brian Lindamood, Questline Digital’s VP of Marketing & Content Strategy, shares tips to help energy utilities create a winning content marketing strategy.

Building blocks of customer satisfaction 

Instead of just promoting programs or services, content marketing is a strategic approach focused on using high-quality and relevant content that customers want and need. Content marketing positions your energy utility as a trusted resource in customers’ lives.

“Content marketing is the lifeblood of the Internet,” Lindamood says. “Content is what Google finds when it searches your website, what your customers share on social media, what you deliver to customers in emails. Without useful content, that customer relationship becomes transactional and your digital marketing is essentially just sales, not about building a long-term relationship.”

In traditional marketing, there is always a gap between what your company has to say and what your customers want to hear. You can reach a broad audience with a traditional push marketing strategy, especially if you have a large advertising budget. But it’s all too easy for customers to tune out information that doesn’t interest them. Using content in a pull marketing approach, utilities can close that gap by connecting with customers around their interests.

The art and science of content marketing

As an art, content marketing helps to build connections by delivering content that’s informative, entertaining and engaging. The key is finding out your customers’ wants, needs and interests and building content around them.

As a science, content marketing allows you to track the success of any given campaign. You can get measurable results and see how you’re engaging with a particular target audience.

Content can take many different forms, including articles, infographics, videos and social media posts. Energy utility customers are increasingly looking for visual and interactive content. However, text-based articles are still effective for explaining in-depth technical content, especially for a business audience.

There are a wide variety of digital platforms to distribute your content, including:

  • Blogs and websites
  • Mobile apps
  • Social media platforms
  • Email
  • SMS/text
  • CRM/marketing cloud platforms
  • Voice-activated speakers

The 4 Ps of content strategy for energy utilities

How do you turn quality content into an effective content strategy? Your content must have purpose, reach the right people, use the right platforms and deliver measurable performance metrics.

  1. Determine your purpose. Your content must have a goal. For example, is your energy utility looking to drive enrollment into a program or build customer satisfaction?
  2. Identify your target audience. Who are your customers and what are they interested in? Keep in mind, you might have a different message for each customer segment.
  3. Choose the right digital platforms. What platforms will be most effective at reaching your target audience? A successful content strategy typically includes a mix of web, email and social media.
  4. Measure performance. How do you measure your goals? Performance metrics are essential to determine if your content is successful. If there isn’t a way to measure your goals, it’s just content, not a content strategy.

An essential investment 

While it takes time and money to invest in high-quality, relevant content, this investment pays off. Content creates an emotional connection with customers, which builds a relationship with your energy utility over the long haul. Plus, customers are more likely to share engaging content with friends and family on social media. It’s also essential for your content to be professional, accurate and useful, as your customers view your energy utility as an energy expert and helpful resource.
With content marketing, you’re not pushing a message out to your customers. Rather, you’re pulling them in with content that they find valuable and interesting. When it comes to improving customer satisfaction and meeting program goals, content marketing has a big impact.

Learn more about Questline Digital’s proven approach to content marketing for energy utilities.

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Customers laughing at social media content on a smartphone

Make Them Laugh: Engage Utility Customers With Humor

Using humor as part of a marketing campaign is a tried-and-true way to make a memorable connection with your audience.

The Super Bowl is one of the most expensive and high-profile marketing events of the year. (It’s also a football game.) USA Today estimates that “one-quarter of Americans watch the Super Bowl for commercials alone” and that these commercials are largely made up of two main emotions: sentimental or silly. Inevitably the big game is followed by days of conversations and video sharing — not about exciting touchdowns or missed passes, but about hilarious ads.

Why is this such a universal phenomenon? Simply put, humor works. We remember the Super Bowl commercials that make us laugh, and we want to talk about them with our friends.

Energy utilities can benefit from this same appeal. While an outrageous Super Bowl ad might be off-brand for most utilities, a little laughter can still be effective — and appropriate — for making energy content more engaging and memorable.

Learn the main reasons why humor is an effective marketing strategy to increase brand awareness and customer engagement.

Humor creates rapport with your audience

Non-offensive jokes can easily establish likeability and trust. Most great speeches often begin with a joke. Humor not only humanizes your energy utility, but also creates a connection with your customers. Humor works best when it is based upon shared experiences. For example, Questline Digital’s article “Go Green, Save Energy and Feel Smug” establishes a universal emotion of pride and triumph while also highlighting energy efficiency in an unexpected way.

Humor helps trigger memory

Scene from humorous video series Dont Do It Dave

A goal of content marketing is to create brand recognition in customers’ minds. Studies show that consumers are most likely to remember information (and where they received it) that they perceive as humorous. For example, Questline Digital’s video series “Don’t Do It Dave!” demonstrates the importance of household safety in a way that is fun and memorable. It’s far more likely to prompt corrective customer behavior than dry, serious content.

There are pitfalls, of course, with this approach. In fact, several well-known marketing campaigns have experienced backlash over a poorly executed punchline or pun. By taking advantage of content that has been previously shared and well-received you can avoid this danger.

Remember, when done well, humorous content is a fun and unique way to engage with customers. Make sure your energy utility is using humor in a way that fits your brand and customers’ interests, and you will surely see customer satisfaction increase.

Power your content strategy with the entertaining videos and social posts in Questline Digital’s Content Catalog.

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