Is a C in Customer Satisfaction good enough for your utility?

April 26, 2022 | Blog

Residential customer satisfaction trended down to 748/1000 — a solid C according to the most recent J.D. Power utility ratings. Customers today have more autonomy in making decisions about their power generation and consumption than ever before. In addition, customers have higher expectations for engaging when and how they want. This shift has changed the utility customer relationship. So, do utilities care about customer satisfaction? And what can they do to improve it? A recent survey of utilities by Zpryme sought to better understand utilities’ relationship with their customers. Based on over 100 responses, the report, The Customer in an Era of Digital Transformation, brings to light a disconnect between how utilities rate the importance of customer satisfaction and their customer communication strategy versus the sobering reality of the J.D. Power ratings.

Responses show 88% of utilities rate customer satisfaction as very important to their organization and 75% are very (27%) or somewhat (48%) satisfied with their customer communication strategy. Really?! It’s time for that hard conversation, like the one you have with your child who’s not applying themselves. Getting a C in customer satisfaction is not good enough! There is room for improvement – with a digital engagement strategy in place your utility can do better!

And it seems utility respondents even have a good idea of what they need to improve to get an A in customer satisfaction. When asked what area of their customer service strategy needed the most improvement, top responses were:

  • Proactive communications (58%)
  • Smart device interactions (42%)
  • Digital communications (40%)
  • Personalized communications (39%)

Proactive communications include high bill alerts or onboarding new customers, while smart device interactions can enable paying bills or understanding home energy use.  Of course, digital communications enable cost-effective communications and smart device interactions. And they also enable website self-service, customized energy savings recommendations online, email marketing campaigns for communicating new programs, rates, and more — all effective ways to engage and service customers at their convenience, improving your utility’s customer satisfaction.

To read the entire report, The Customer in an Era of Digital Transformation, download it now.

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