Utilities Encourage Energy Efficiency, Engagement, Collaboration via Social Media

Have you considered how your utility’s reputation and brand are perceived and influenced by your customers’ online social media interactions?

A JD Power report from 2013 found that utility customers today consult social media channels prior to making equipment purchase decisions. Social media is reshaping energy consumption and behavior patterns as utility customers spend more time on their energy providers’ social media sites seeking news on outages and restorations as well as real-time information on energy savings. According to Navigant Research, industry trends show that customers often communicate with their utility providers about billing issues, outages and programs through social media channels. This rapidly evolving mode of communication and interaction indicates that a customer’s online behavior influences their level of engagement and program participation with their utility.

Is your utility helping its customer base develop real-world relationships with local trade allies by driving program participation through social media and gamification to improve collaboration?

Leading utilities are already moving in this direction and realizing the value of social media to communicate with their customers, encourage ongoing interaction, drive energy savings and improve overall satisfaction.  They have moved out of their comfort zone and embraced their customer’s digital life to improve engagement and reach energy savings and customer satisfaction goals faster by:

• Streamlining and improving customer communications through a friendly, interactive, two-way online channel
• Engaging and educating customers to be energy efficient through a rich, interactive experience around customer energy use profiles
• Delivering personalized information and actionable resources to drive utility program participation and reduce energy consumption
• Connecting customers to local trade allies and service providers
• Enabling persistent energy savings, influencing behavior change and getting real results

At this time of active social engagement among customers, is your utility in sync with what is happening in the world of social media and how it can educate, engage and empower your customers?

Social media is changing the way customers interact with each other and their energy service providers. It’s time to narrow the collaboration gap with your customers by listening to them through online channels and engaging them with an impactful, fun and enjoyable experience. The end result? Your utility gets to be a customer-focused, collaborative leader while influencing behavior change, driving program participation and meeting energy savings and customer satisfaction goals.

Sapna Maniar is Solutions Manager with Nexant.