New consumer research shows that Americans are looking to their electricity providers for guidance on saving energy and money
ATLANTA – December 5, 2024 – American consumers are more likely to recall energy-related messages from their electricity providers than other sources, like retailers or the government, according to the latest survey from the Smart Energy Consumer Collaborative (SECC). Fifty-five percent of respondents recalled seeing at least one message from their electricity providers in the past year, compared to 30 percent for manufacturers and 28 percent for retailers.
The “Modern Energy Messaging: Transactions to Relationships” survey – which was fielded to a nationally representative sample of 1,500 Americans who are responsible for making household decisions related to their energy usage – also revealed that providers’ messages are largely hitting the mark with consumers. Eighty-four percent of respondents found these messages interesting, including 90 percent of the Connected Pragmatists and 91 percent of the Green Pioneers, two younger consumer segments that value technology and the environment.
Additionally, these communications appear to be having a noticeable impact on consumers’ perceptions of their electricity providers. Among those who recalled receiving messages from their providers in the previous 12 months, 61 percent said that the messages improved their perception of their providers. With the Connected Pragmatists and Green Pioneers, who together comprise 43 percent of the U.S. general population, nearly three-quarters (73 percent) said that these messages gave them a more positive impression of their electricity providers.
“While consumers are seeing energy messages from a variety of sources today, including big-box retailers, device manufacturers and federal and local government, this new research demonstrates that consumers prefer their electricity providers to be the source of these messages,” said SECC’s President & CEO Nathan Shannon. “This is great news for providers and shows that their efforts to build trust and foster relationships with their customers have been paying off.”
The “Modern Energy Messaging: Transactions to Relationships” report can be downloaded by member organizations here, and a two-page executive summary is available for non-members. In addition, SECC’s Deputy Director Jason McGrade will be leading a one-hour webinar on the survey findings on Wednesday, December 11 at 1 p.m. (ET) that will feature guest speakers from GridX, Touchstone Energy and Virtual Peaker.
