As explained in this excerpt from the February 2020 issue of GreatBlue Point of View, the vast majority of public power customers nationwide say it is important to them that their electric utility is community owned.
GreatBlue Point of View is published by GreatBlue Research, the exclusive market research partner of Hometown Connections committed to supporting the customer survey requirements of community owned utilities.
GreatBlue Point of View
Boost Customer Satisfaction by Stressing Utility is Community Owned
As with all businesses, measuring levels of customer perception and satisfaction are critical in ensuring the continued success of a product or service. Utilities, and specifically Public Power utilities, are no exception. A question we have been asking customers more and more lately is, do customers actually care if their electric company is labelled as ‘Community Owned’? And if so, how does it affect their perception of their electric company?
Data from the Public Power Data Source, a national customer research tool developed by GreatBlue Research and the American Public Power Association, shows that 79% of Public Power customers agree it is important to them that their electric utility is ‘Community Owned’. Additionally, 42.4% of customers nationwide stated their perception of their electric utility improved after learning it was classified as ‘community owned’. This is in contrast to only 8% stating it negatively impacted their perception.
How can you use this data? First and foremost, customers understanding their utility is “community owned” has a direct correlation to their positive perception of you. Increasing awareness levels of the community owned utility factor is important. Spend time marketing this fact and communicating its benefits. Craft messages and develop a communication strategy that spreads this information to all customers.
About GreatBlue
A full-service market research firm using quantitative and qualitative research methodologies, GreatBlue Research studies customer perception and satisfaction, employee satisfaction, product awareness/interest, market visibility/needs assessment, and marketing effectiveness. Utilities receive statistically reliable data with thoughtful, concise insights and detailed recommendations. GreatBlue is a leader in tracking customer opinion data across the public power sector, able to show individual utilities how they compare to peer organizations nationwide.
For more information on GreatBlue’s market research solutions for public power, send an email to info@hometownconnections.com.