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Customer & Employee Research
Do you really know what your customers think about your utility? What they expect? Are willing to buy? Will your employees stick with you? Given the fluid conditions of the electric utility market, it’s too risky to base your decisions on anecdotal data. Market research can help you anticipate issues before they become problems. Turn to the premier provider of customer and employee research in public power, SDS Research.
Public Power Market Expertise
SDS Research is public power's "vendor of choice" for customer, employee, and market research. A Hometown Connections partner since 1999, SDS Research offers APPA members discounted pricing and expertise in public power research.
SDS Research has conducted research projects with more than 230 public power communities nationwide, in 34 states. No other research firm has interviewed more public power customers via telephone surveys and focus groups than SDS Research, and no other firm has the breadth and depth of comparative industry benchmark data in key areas such as overall satisfaction, loyalty, value, and communication.
For a clear understanding of what your customers think and will buy, turn to SDS Research.
SDS Research uses its own certified agents to conduct telephone surveys. These qualified people are trained and supervised using the highest standards.
Employee Surveys and Focus Groups
Data on customer opinion and buying behavior is only part of the equation for utility success. Employees who are satisfied, loyal, and motivated provide the very best service to customers. That’s why SDS Research conducts employee surveys and focus groups. This invites employees to give honest, confidential, and constructive input on their concerns, needs, and interests.
TouchPoint Tracking Service
To offer public power managers an unfiltered look at their customers' experience with employees and service delivery, SDS Research has created the TouchPoint Tracking service for APPA members. This monthly telephone survey reaches out to customers who had some type of contact with the utility within the previous 30 days, including a new account order, repair, installation, disconnect, or a question about service or billing. During these two-minute follow up calls, SDS asks customers general questions about their experience, specific questions about the customer service or technical employee they had contact with, and open-ended questions on suggestions for improvement. Unresolved, specific customer concerns or sales opportunities are communicated immediately to the utility through the acclaimed SDS Alert program.
SDS provides summary reports to the utility monthly, with in-depth trend reports provided every six months. Results are presented on an aggregate (company-wide) basis and by each employee. Employee ratings allow for an analysis of each employee's performance in customer contact situations, providing feedback for evaluation, coaching and training.
Every interaction is important to customers, and it should be important to the utility, too. For as little as $600 per month, a utility can monitor all customer interactions and gain clear, consistent feedback from up to 2,400 customers annually. This feedback provides an understanding of customers' opinions, including feelings about their installation, repair, billing questions, and other crucial interactions with utility staff.
Great customer service depends on attention to detail and always adjusting to customer needs and concerns. TouchPoint Tracking enables an APPA member to factor in the customer’s perspective when making decisions about utility operations.
Solutions Through Research
Each project includes an easy-to-follow report with a comprehensive executive summary and a list of recommendations to help you put the information to immediate use.
Included in the report are statistical results and verbatim comments from research participants. Every comment is reported exactly as it is received.
You may contract with SDS for research services at the APPA member 10% discount for individual utilities.
For further savings, you may combine resources through your Joint Action Agency or State Association for even greater economies of scale and access to valuable regional data comparisons.
The group customer research projects strengthen the bond between the joint action agency or state association and its members, generating region-wide assessments of customer satisfaction and public power’s strength in the local marketplace. These projects also offer individual utilities greater insights into the strategies, priorities, and operations of their public power colleagues.
APPA Members on SDS Research
“We wanted to establish a baseline of how our consumers/owners perceive us, and we were looking for information that would help us increase the penetration and quality of the services we offer. We also wanted the survey to help us develop a comprehensive marketing plan for our CATV, Internet, and electric services…Todd Morris and the entire SDS Research team are always easy to reach and willing to help. This was our first survey conducted by an outside firm, and the whole group was more than willing to answer any questions we had. Throughout the survey process, as the SDS agents were making the calls, we would get ‘alerts’ or messages from customers the agents felt needed immediate attention. The surveys were handled in a very professional manner.”
--Cory Hogan, Consumer Marketing Specialist, GEUS, Greenville, TX
"We have had a long standing relationship with Dale and Dan Inkley of SDS. Since 1999 they have conducted five employee surveys and one round of focus group discussions for Easton Utilities. SDS is a first rate company with a professional staff that provides informative, easy to read survey results and conclusions from which our company can select priority areas and take action. The surveys have been instrumental in improving several key areas in employee satisfaction."
--Hugh Grunden, President & CEO, Easton Utilities, MD
Ask the Experts
For more information on partnering with SDS Research to meet your market assessment objectives, please contact your Hometown Connections representative.
Visit the SDS Research web site for more information.
• SDS Research
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