Does it Matter if Electric Utility Customers Like You?

Electric utility companies are currently declining on customer trust and overall company reputation ratings. During the pandemic, electric utilities posted historic high brand ratings but have now reached historic lows. This rapid weakening of brand strength is lowering the industry’s ability to solicit support for important management directions, turning customers into brand advocates that support utility rate cases and innovation, and influencing customer behaviors such as moving customers to digital or using enhanced offerings and options. 

One reason for the decline is a lack of an effective utility-centric brand measurement that employees, media, regulators, and other stakeholders can believe in. Another reason is many utilities only consider half of the brand equation, either trust or reputation.  Lastly, brand measurements need to contain an assessment of how a company implements the positioning of its brand. This means that brand appeal is a central and essential utility customer experience goal. 

What is Brand Appeal?  

Brand appeal is a utility’s ability to engage and motivate its customers to use and promote the company, its service quality, and its offerings. Brand appeal includes company reputation, marketing execution, and customer trust as important drivers combined into a single impactful measure.  This score can then be used to measure superior performance on customer touchpoints and overall engagement…and it is one of the greatest opportunities for electric utilities to grow their customer scoring as the J.D. Power Utility Brand Appeal Index (BAI) scores 26 points below the industry’s average Customer Satisfaction Index (CSI).  This means that customers value the service they receive from their utility more than they value the utility itself.  It’s clear from this that many electric utilities are not appealing energy providers for their customers, which will eventually impact loyalty and profits. 

Reputations and Customer Trust are Dropping… 

Electric utility reputations hit an historic low in 2022 after the effects of the so-called “pandemic bump” wore off.  

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This downward trend in reputation and trust has major consequences.  In fact, electric utilities with weak brand appeal had an average customer satisfaction score of 509, compared to those electric utilities with strong brand appeal with a score of 827.   

Rate Increases and Brand 

Perhaps more important to electric utilities is the customer acceptance of rate increases. We see brand appeal playing a key role here as well.  Electric utilities with weak brand appeal averaged 62% of customers NOT supporting a rate increase for any reason, while those with strong brand appeal showed far better acceptance, with only 35% of customers reporting that they do not support a rate increase for any reason.  

How can J.D. Power Help? 

Electric utilities need a meaningful brand metric to track, benchmark and manage as their brands are stagnating.  

J.D. Power now provides a 360-degree evaluation of the utility-customer relationship with the Utility Brand Appeal Index Study. Join the upcoming Utility Brand Appeal Webinar and learn more about how this study can help your electric utility measure brand appeal.

Get the insights you need to advance profitable customer relationships and higher customer satisfaction performance rankings today.