Unlocking value: How to elevate customer experiences in Utilities

2023 through to 2024 has been marked by shifts that have altered customer expectations and redefined metrics across all industries, not least the utilities sector. The question facing modern companies as we look ahead to 2025 and beyond, is how to continue, for yet another year, to plan for the unplanned. 

As the latter half of the year approaches it seems there will be familiar constraints at play for the energy and utilities sector, which will continue to affect consumer expectations and behaviours. Delving a little deeper into the landscape of the next 12 months, here is a quick overview of the pivotal trends set to shape the industry's trajectory and the corresponding customer expectations.

• Supply chain delays will continue to impede the timely receipt of key components affecting renewable energy projects, construction projects and new products. The effects of global warming aren’t going anywhere either so customers need to know they can expect enhanced reliability and resilience from their providers. 

Customers expect their utility company to proactively address concerns related to extreme weather events, grid vulnerabilities, and system failures or delays. Customers will be seeking assurances that their energy needs will be met consistently, even in adverse conditions, and if issues arise - they need proactive, empathetic and regular communication to keep updated.

• Volatile energy and commodity prices are expected to affect oil and gas operations, in 2024 just as in 2023. The rising energy prices of the past few months have cast a new light on the balance to be struck among energy security, energy access and energy sustainability. Continued economic uncertainty currently looms large across the globe as different regions chart their own course to addressing disruption and rebuilding energy and other trading relationships. 

This means customers will prioritise affordability and transparency in pricing structures. They will seek providers who are clear and transparent on how costs are calculated while also expecting them to explore innovative ways to mitigate price hikes - perhaps through internal efficiencies, or alternative energy sources. Additionally, customisable pricing models that align with individual consumption patterns may gain traction, catering to diverse consumer needs.

• Environmental, social, and governance (ESG) expectations continue to gain momentum and the pressure on companies around ESG reporting will likely progress further. Modern customers, especially Millennial and Gen Z view companies in the sector as partly responsible for the rapidly changing environmental and societal disruptors, and expect them to do what they can to offset their impact. 

Beyond individual interactions, customers will increasingly align their expectations with utilities that demonstrate a commitment to community engagement and social responsibility. They'll value initiatives supporting local communities, energy access for all, and transparent communication regarding corporate social responsibility efforts.

Finally, continued technological advancements mean that responsive customer support and engagement is becoming a minimum expectation as customer service standards climb. Customers will anticipate prompt and proactive support, leveraging digital channels for enquiries, issue resolution, and personalised recommendations. Utilities that prioritise customer engagement, responsiveness, and user-centric experiences will likely garner favour.

The moments that matter

In order to enhance the customer experience - utility companies should ensure they are leveraging what we call the ‘moments that matter’ for their customers. Centering communications around these moments means they will come across as empathetic, transparent and customer centric. 

The beginning

The first few weeks of a customers’ relationship with you are critical - it’s when engagement is at its highest and you haven’t had the chance to upset them yet! Therefore it is super important to get your onboarding right. 

Ideally this will start with an automated welcome flow that includes plenty of useful how-to information, and usage explanations that will benefit the customer including how to save energy and bring down bills. The customer service options should be laid out front up and expectations set on usual response times. 

Know-your-customer checks and verifications should happen at the very start too. New customers can be contacted fairly frequently with a lower risk of getting annoyed and this time should be used to ensure they are getting the most out of their service and learn everything they may need to know. Helpful alternative product information is also well received at the beginning of the relationship - personalised to the customers’ own demographics, preferences and location details. 

The middle and throughout 

Basic, ongoing customer support should obviously include a monthly usage roundup, and bill receipts. However if there is any risk of bill shock, Utilities companies have the opportunity to mitigate this proactively. With the help of an effective Customer Engagement Platform like Pendula. Smart meters notifications can be set up for unusual usage patterns that can be pushed out as a text message or “high bill” warning communication sent straight to the customer. 

Contract anniversaries are a simple opportunity to demonstrate your value and show you care about the customer with a “Happy Anniversary” message including further, personalised information that may be relevant to them based on their usage trends over the past year. 

Keeping customers engaged with operational notifications is important, and these can all be specially curated for each individual whilst still being automated within Pendula. These may include local outages, rate changes or extreme weather conditions in certain areas. 

With integrated technologies at the backend, utilities companies have the opportunity to deliver hyper personalised communications to their customers. Pendula can seamlessly integrate across all data sources, including smart meters, IoT devices and energy management systems. This means that marketing and CX teams can demonstrate they are being truly customer-centric with prompt and proactive engagement that empowers their customers to monitor and optimise their own energy consumption. 

Transparent, authentic and helpful communications create deeper customer relationships and lifetime loyalty. 

Customer-first B2C businesses see nearly double the revenue growth of non customer-first businesses. (Forrester)¹

Say it isn’t….  The end

No company wants the customer relationship to end but churn is unavoidable given the sheer choice available to modern customers today, and rising alarmingly in the utilities sector. A next-gen customer engagement platform is able to help manage this with proactive communications directed towards those that are showing signs of churn. 

Even when it seems all is lost and the customer has opted to switch providers, a win-back campaign leveraging historic customer data and layering with real-time competitive insights can be a simple way to stay front of mind and attract back old customers with a tempting offer

72% of businesses do not have a win-back campaign in place for their customers (Customer Success Collective)²

In summary, customer expectations in 2024 will revolve around a trifecta of reliability, sustainability, and technological innovation - and the brands they work with must demonstrate they are actively investing and progressing in these areas in a way that benefits their individual customers. Companies that successfully anticipate and meet these evolving demands while fostering greater transparency, better engagement and deeper customer relationships, are poised to thrive in an increasingly customer-centric energy landscape.

Start a conversation with Pendula

When you’re ready to step up your customer engagement strategies, we’re here with the solution. Talk to an expert about how Pendula can make a difference today.
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^{[1] https://www.forrester.com/report/the-state-of-customer-obsession-2022/RES178015
[2] https://www.customersuccesscollective.com/state-of-customer-churn-2023-report/}