Customer Engagement Archives - Page 17 of 19

5 Trends to Watch for Electric Utilities in 2021

The new year is here — and that means new trends for electric utilities to watch in the months ahead. It’s important to stay ahead of these innovations so your energy utility stand out as a trusted resource to customers. To help start the new year right, here are five energy trends for electricity consumption and end-use electric equipment for 2021 and beyond.

1. Electricity Consumption

The Energy Information Administration (EIA) forecasts electricity generation from renewable energy sources, such as solar and wind power, will rise from 17% in 2019 to 22% in 2021. The EIA also forecasts that total U.S. electricity consumed in 2021 will be similar to 2020 consumption. Further, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) forecast of fewer cooling degree days in 2021 will offset an increased demand for space heating.

2. Beneficial Electrification

U.S. renewable energy consumption recently surpassed coal for the first time in over 130 years. Replacing direct fossil fuel use (propane, heating oil, gasoline) with electricity is saving customers money while benefiting the environment. For example, even as beneficial electrification has become more popular, carbon dioxide emissions per MWh from electric power generation has decreased 28% from 2005 to 2018.

Beneficial electrification applications in transportation, space heating, cooking and water heating is improving consumer quality of life and increasing grid resilience. Comparatively, propane and heating oil are twice as expensive as a fuel for space and water heating. Electric vehicles are also saving consumers about $1,000 per year on fuel costs while offering lower maintenance costs, decreased emissions and better acceleration.

3. Lighting Functionality

Fixture efficacy in the range of 200 lumens per watt is becoming more common. With energy efficiency of LED lighting reaching a plateau, the relationship between light and health is receiving even greater emphasis. As a result, the quality of light is replacing efficacy as a major discriminator for lighting specifiers.

The DesignLights Consortium’s (DLC) Networked Lighting Controls program is supporting a major shift toward interconnectivity. Lighting is also serving multiple functions from sound deadening to asset management to wireless internet connectivity to sanitation. Platforms like DALI-2 and PoE++ are enabling software-defined connected lighting that is more flexible and scalable. Lighting as a Service (LaaS) is allowing companies to better focus on their core competencies, rather than on energy infrastructure.

4. Indoor Air Quality

Building owners are realizing the importance of indoor air quality (IAQ) on employee health and productivity. Electric device manufacturers are answering the call. Ultraviolet (UV) light is being used to sanitize and disinfect spaces and mass transit vehicles. Fiber-based air filters are now built with an electrostatic charge and integrated UV lights to achieve better filtration from impingement, charge attraction and UV disinfection.

Plasma generators produce a stream of ions in supply ducts that make microscopic particles clump together and fall out of the air. These ions also enter the conditioned space to kill bacteria and germs before dissipating. Humidity is being removed by desiccant wheels or added using steam, ultrasonic or high-pressure misting systems.

5. Battery Energy Storage

The U.S. energy storage market is set to grow from 1.2 GW in 2020 to nearly 7 GW in 2025, representing sixfold growth. Front-of-the-meter battery storage is helping utilities with frequency regulation, voltage support and black start. Behind-the-meter battery storage is enabling time-of-use bill management, demand charge reduction, increased PV solar self-consumption and backup power resiliency.

Lithium-ion (Li-On) batteries provide higher-capacity storage, longer rated life and lower maintenance costs. Standards like NFPA 855 Installation of Stationary Storage Systems and the 2018 International Fire Code (IFC), Section 1206, have given users guidelines for safer operation of batteries.

Electric utilities: New trends for the new year

Now is the time to prepare for the trends your electric utility’s customers should be focused on in 2021 and beyond. Forecasts about electricity consumption and beneficial electrification can help your utility plan how to market your programs in the new year. Plus, understanding the changes in lighting and indoor air quality is especially important in helping customers push through the coronavirus pandemic and return to a “new normal.” A lot is in store for electric energy use this year — is your energy utility ready?

Want to keep your customers informed of new trends in energy technology? Add a Questline Digital eNewsletter to your engagement strategy.

Learn More

Webinar: Diversity and Inclusion Strategies for Energy Utilities

Concerns about racial justice, diversity and inclusion have taken on renewed importance this year with a national dialogue that was long overdue. For energy utilities this issue is critical, not just as large employers, but as institutions in your communities and in the way you serve and represent your customers.

In Questline Digital’s Plugged In webinar, “Diversity & Inclusion: Strategies for Energy Utilities,” industry experts from the Smart Energy Consumer Collaborative, Heidrick & Struggles and Duquesne Light Company shared their insights and tactics for creating a more inclusive energy utility workplace and community.

Improving workplace diversity and inclusion at energy utilities

Patty Durand, president and CEO of SECC, started the webinar by discussing ways that energy utilities and clean tech companies can increase diversity within their workforces. She emphasized that the energy efficiency sector is the largest employer in the clean energy economy. However, not everyone is benefiting from this economic powerhouse.

For example, Hispanic, Black and women employees represent a smaller share of the energy efficiency workforce than the national workforce. That’s why it’s vital to expand energy efficiency job opportunities to low-income or marginalized communities.

Durand shared the results of a recent ACEEE report highlighting exemplary programs operated by utilities, state agencies and community-based organizations to increase diversity and inclusion. To engage underrepresented workers, ACEEE identified the following strategies:

Engage people from underrepresented groups with training and internship programs. To increase the pipeline of workers from underrepresented groups, stakeholders can offer training programs to contracting firms.
Focus on supplier diversity and inclusive procurement. Utilities can choose to work with minority, women, disabled and veteran-owned businesses to design, administer and implement their programs.

How diversity and inclusion can transform energy utilities

The world is changing fast, resulting in fundamental differences in today’s global markets and talent pools. Grappling with these changes, every company has their own unique diversity, equity and inclusion journey. Kay Fuhrman, partner and leader with Heidrick & Struggles, shared eye-opening statistics showcasing workforce inequalities and why companies need to take steps to improve diversity, equity and inclusion.

According to Heidrick & Struggles data, people of color will soon account for 120% of total net workforce growth, representing the largest share of U.S. workforce growth. But today, they only make up 13% of U.S. and U.K. executive leadership. Similar inequalities exist for women who make up 80% of all consumer purchasing decisions, but only make up 25% of C-level executives at the top 1,000 U.S. companies.

Fuhrman shared that companies who make diversity a core part of their culture experience these benefits for inclusion:

17% increase in team performance
20% increase in decision-making quality
Two times more likely to meet or exceed organizational targets
Six times more likely to be innovative and agile as an organization

All organizations are located on a continuum of diversity and inclusion, Fuhrman explained. Over the past three to five years, the majority of companies fall between “supportive” and “engaged.”

Supportive companies are focused on recruiting and hiring from underrepresented groups. With engaged companies, the concept of DE&I is embedded in their core values. At the top of the continuum are companies that are considered change agents. These leaders in DE&I have a deep understanding of what it takes to make change happen and leverage diversity.

To help energy utilities start making positive change in their workforces and culture, Fuhrman shared the ABCs of key diversity best practices:

Accelerate DE&I impact and results by aligning and preparing leaders
Build visual representation by attracting external talent
Create an inclusive culture with leadership advocacy

A commitment to being a DE&I change agent

For energy utilities, the workplace should reflect the communities they serve. Sarah Oliver Carter, Chief Diversity Officer at Duquesne Light Company, shared how a focus on diversity, equity and inclusion is the foundation of the Pittsburgh-based energy utility’s workplace and mission.

To deliver on a commitment to attract and retain highly skilled talent from underrepresented communities, this year Duquesne Light Company launched a full DE&I strategy that will span the next three to five years. The utility also created a supplier diversity program to support local minority-owned businesses.

According to Carter, a commitment to DE&I started with leadership and cascaded down to other parts of the organization. The first step was aligning diversity, equity and inclusion with company strategy, then inviting employees to get involved and determine what equity means to them. The utility’s DE&I guiding principles were broken down to five main pillars:

Workforce Talent: Identify as an employer of choice. Attract, develop, retain and mentor a workforce that is reflective of the communities we serve. Enhance our employer brand to ensure that DLC is recognized as a trusted and inclusive organization.
Workforce Culture: Lead in driving and sustaining “Culture Growth.”Cultivate an environment of workplace inclusion where voices are heard, respected, valued and engaged, resulting in a workforce that sparks new and bright ideas for business success.
Customer: Support procurement in efforts to mainstream supplier diversity.
Community: Strive for excellence in customer service. Support and suggest innovative customer and business solutions through alignment with company strategy and framework.
Supplier Diversity: Lead in community impact by focusing on sustainable workforce initiatives and investing locally in the success of diverse small businesses.

As these insights illustrate, a commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion needs to be an ongoing effort. Equipped with this knowledge, your energy utility can take steps to create opportunities for underrepresented populations — and create positive change in your workplace and community.

Share your energy utility’s community efforts with a customer engagement strategy from Questline Digital.

Learn More

How to Put a Friendly Face on Your Energy Utility Brand

When customers think of energy utilities, their first thoughts aren’t always the friendliest. They might be mad about a late payment fee or frustrated that their power isn’t restored yet. Often, they forget that there are real people behind the energy utility. As marketers, it’s important to remind customers that their utility is part of the community, and its employees are their friends and neighbors.

That’s why humanizing your energy utility’s brand is so important. The more you share the personal side of what matters to your energy utility, the more people see that it isn’t just a corporation. It’s made up of living, breathing people working toward helping others.

Connect with community programs

Many energy utilities have a special mission to give back to their communities. For example, AEP Ohio supported a “Math Camp-In” to help students learn and understand math in an entertaining way. This program quickly had to adapt to virtual learning due to the coronavirus pandemic, and AEP Ohio was there to ensure students could access the Math Camp-In virtually with no hassles.

AEP Ohio also helps customers facing financial hardship with the Neighbor to Neighbor assistance program, which is especially needed during these troubling times. The program helps customers maintain or restore their energy service by allowing other customers to donate through their AEP Ohio bill. AEP Ohio then matches every donation and 100% of the proceeds helps a family in need.

Eversource Energy has a similar program called the Neighbor Helping Neighbor Fund. In partnership with six community action agencies, the program helps customers who are not able to pay their utility bill due to a crisis, such as the pandemic. Eversource helps customers make a one-time or continuous donation contribution through their monthly bill.

Mississippi Power’s Project SHARE is a way for customers to help elderly or medically disabled customers. For as little as a dollar a month, customers can add a donation to their utility bill payment. Since its creation, Project SHARE has received more than $900,000 in donations from both customers and employees of Mississippi Power.

Each of these examples focuses on helping customers in financial need, but it also shows a connection to the community. Your energy utility is not just an electric service for customers; it’s also a part of the community. Programs like this show that your energy utility cares about customers in difficult times with tangible programs and services.

If your energy utility does not currently have a program like any above, strongly consider implementing one to make a difference in your community and customers’ lives.

Sustainability matters to your customers

Your customers’ concerns go beyond finances. For example, many customers are looking toward a greener future — more renewable energy and less carbon emissions. What is your energy utility doing to work toward this goal?

Dominion Energy has a plan in place to cut net carbon and methane emissions to zero by 2050 and it’s currently building the largest offshore wind farm in the United States. The energy utility is also committed to creating as little waste as possible and recycled 46 tons of equipment in 2019 alone. Additionally, Dominion Energy is focused on implementing building and program designs that avoid impact to wildlife and habitats around their facilities.

Avista is also committed to addressing the issues of climate change and transitioning to a lower carbon future with plans to integrate renewable energy, influence climate policies and lead with energy efficiency and conservation.

It’s no longer enough to talk about working toward a better future. Your energy utility needs to take action. And it’s important to share these plans with your customers. This is especially important as the Millennial and Gen Z generations become more influential.

“Long gone are the days when big brands could hide behind clever marketing campaigns that made it seem like they stood for something important,” according to a Forbes. “Today’s younger generations are smarter than that and take pride in knowing which brands aren’t just talking the talk but are walking the walk. Companies are being forced to change their approach when it comes to marketing to Millennials and Generation Z consumers.”

Show your utility’s personal side

If we didn’t have people working for energy utilities, the world would be a dark place (pun intended). Your employees are a vital part of the community — consider showcasing their work to your customers. Customers often forget the people behind the screen answering their questions or the lineworkers restoring their power during a storm. Fortunately, there are many ways to share the great work your employees are doing.

On National Lineman Appreciation Day, Hawaiian Electric took to social media to share a video to recognize their lineworkers. Many other energy utilities followed suit, but you don’t have to wait for one day a year to share your appreciation. Profile your lineworkers in a blog post on your website or in a video in your newsletter.

For Employee Appreciation Day, National Grid created a video to “recognize and highlight the hardworking men and women” that make up the energy utility. The video was filmed across three different states. Customers want to learn more about the people that help them every step of the way, from starting their service to keeping it on.

A human brand for human customers

Customers want to get to know your energy utility past the bills and power outages. So, let them. There are moments when you need to show your corporate side, but there are also many times to show your human side. For example, empathy in times of crisis goes a long way and being active in your community is essential to building customer relationships. Know when to humanize your energy utility, and you’ll be able to better understand your customers as well.

Learn how a custom digital marketing campaign from Questline Digital can help your energy utility connect with customers.

Learn More

Digital Marketing Performance Metrics: What You Need to Know

Digital marketing performance metrics are vital to understanding the success of any email or social media campaign, especially for energy utilities. Metrics like click-through rate, reach and time on page can help energy utility marketers understand what content is resonating with customers and what actions customers take as a result.

In order to analyze the data, however, you first must understand the terminology. With a variety of metrics across different digital channels, there’s a lot to keep track of. That’s why it’s important to start at the beginning.

Email campaign performance metrics

When it comes to analyzing the performance of email campaigns, understanding the basic terms will set you up for success. Here are the most common performance metrics used in email marketing:

Delivered emails are all sent emails minus any emails that bounce. A delivered email is one that has been successfully handed off to the recipient’s mail server.
Delivery rate is the number of delivered messages divided by the number of sends.
An open occurs when all the images are downloaded in an HTML email.
Open rate is the ratio of unique opens out of the total delivered.
Unique Opens refers to distinct subscribers who open an email.
Unique Clicks refers to distinct subscribers who click an email.
A click happens when an email recipient clicks on any link in an email.
The click-through rate (CTR) measures unique clicks on any link in an email.
Click-to-open rate (CTOR) differs from CTR by comparing the number of unique clicks to unique opens.

Email list performance metrics

Digging deeper into understanding the performance of emails, these metrics help marketers measure the growth and health of their email subscriber lists over time:

Open reach is the percentage of subscribers that have opened at least one message sent in the past year. It shows how much of your list is engaging with emails over time.
Click-to-open reach (CTO reach) is the percentage of subscribers clicked on any link after opening a message in the past year.
Opt-out rate measures individuals who opt-out by using an unsubscribe link in an email.
A complaint occurs when a recipient classifies the email message as unwanted. This is more commonly known as marking the email as “spam.”
Complaint rate calculates the total number of complaints in relation to messages delivered.
List growth is the rate the subscriber list grew in the past year. It’s calculated by taking all subscribers in the list over the course of a year and dividing it by the total size of the previous year’s list.

Content performance metrics

Apart from the email clicks and opens that drive customers to your energy utility content, these metrics will help you evaluate the performance of that content:

Pageviews are the total number of times a website page was viewed. This metric is a great way to gauge which piece of content is most popular with customers.
Unique pageviews combine the number of pageviews generated by the same user during the same session. This metric allows you to estimate the overall percent of your audience that is interested in the content, and how many of them are repeat visitors.
Average time on page is the amount of time users spend on a single content page. If your average time per page is relatively high, then you’re doing well, particularly if the pageviews are also relatively high. However, if the average time per page is low, it means your visitors are simply skimming the content, probably because it is not very engaging.

Social media performance metrics

On social media, performance metrics go beyond clicks and views to measure engagement activity such as shares and comments:

Engagement rates track how involved consumers are with your content based on likes, shares and comments.
Impressions are how many times a post shows in someone’s timeline.
Followers are the number of people who follow your particular social media page.
Likes are the number of times someone likes either a post or your page in general.
Shares and retweets measure how many times your post has been recommended to others from someone’s personal page.
Reach is the potential number of unique viewers were exposed to a post.
Response rate and time measures how quickly and when someone responds to a direct message or comment on your social media page.
Web traffic is the amount of users who visited your website from your social media pages.
Share of voice is how users are talking about your business compared to others.
Sentiment connects to share of voice by taking what customers are saying about your brand and putting them into negative or positive context.

Put digital marketing performance metrics to work for you

Understanding performance metrics — for email campaigns, content and social media — is critical for your energy utility to measure the success of marketing campaigns and improve future efforts. Devote time to these metrics and you will see customer engagement and satisfaction increase as your marketing becomes more effective.

Creating a campaign is only one step on the way to success — analyzing its success is the next big step.

See how your digital marketing performance metrics compare to the rest of the industry with Questline Digital’s Energy Utility Benchmarks report.

Download Now

Game On! Energy Utility Marketing Wins with Gamification

Gamification — the application of game-design elements in non-gaming contexts — is a great opportunity for energy utilities to engage customers. Games facilitate our natural desire for socializing, learning, competition and achievement, not to mention fun and play. The latter may sound frivolous but serves as a powerful engagement tool.

In 2010, Google released their first-ever gamified Doodle (a temporary alteration of the company’s logo) to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Pac-Man. In the following two days, consumers spent more than 4.82 million hours playing with Google’s Pac-Man logo.

This is not the only time Google has gamified its applications. On April Fool’s Day in 2015 and 2017, the search giant overlaid playable Pac-Man and Ms. Pac-Man maps over Google Maps. These events generated countless news articles, tutorials and hours of customer engagement.

How does gamification work?

By adding interactive elements to marketing messages, educational resources or other content, gamification makes that information more appealing and more memorable.

How does it work? Gamification leverages three elements to achieve high levels of engagement:

Mechanics: Most games are built around a core mechanic that must be performed to progress. In other words, the mechanic is the set of rules. The mechanic does not have to be complicated to make the game entertaining.

Dynamics: This is essentially the game play, whether building a contraption, smashing moles or collecting widgets. Game dynamics act as the vehicle to progress and receive a reward.

Reward: This is achieved by the payoff. This could be a high score, medal or new piece of information. An engaging experience provides some measurement of progression for consumers as they try to reach their reward.

Fun and games with energy content

There are many types of games to engage and entertain your audience, including classic crossword puzzles, old-school video games and trivia. These interactive content pieces can be used in an eNewsletter, on your energy utility’s website or social media sites to drive engagement. You can also leverage continuity by turning your gamified content into a series to boost engagement.

These Questline Digital interactive games are great examples of how you can gamify energy-related content:

POWER PLAY: Energy Crossword Puzzle: This is a crossword puzzle with energy-inspired themes. In this case, the rules are the same as any crossword puzzle with the player working toward completion.

Who Wants to Be an Energy Expert?: This series of multiple-choice quizzes is presented like a TV gameshow. There are simple rules to follow with additional elements such as a “phone an expert” option that provides additional educational touchpoints.

Hazard Hunt: Home Electrical Safety: This game lets the player search for common hazards found in everyday life. The player navigates each room and hovers over the potential hazard to reveal a useful tip.

Gamification is an increasingly popular tactic to drive engagement and educate customers about energy topics and technology. In the age of “infotainment,” creating a truly engaging customer experience requires great content and a stimulating way to consume it.

Learn how interactive games from Questline Digital’s Content Catalog can power-up your marketing strategy.

Learn More