Highlights from AESP’s EV Driver Experience Solutions Lab

June 27, 2023 | Blog

Communication and Education will Pave the way for a

Smooth Customer Journey

Apogee, like many forward-thinking energy professionals, has been monitoring the progress of the electric vehicle industry for many years and recently proudly supported the Association of Energy Service Professional’s (AESP) Electric Vehicle Driver Experience (EVDX) Solutions Lab as a founding sponsor. While there are many EV barriers to address, it was an exciting start toward clearing the path to widespread EV adoption and the benefits EVs bring, like new utility revenue streams, the integration of renewable resources, and innovations in battery storage. All of this and more creates attractive incentives and has the potential to reshape the industry as we know it.

The inaugural EVDX event was initiated by Bill LeBlanc, President of LeBlanc Energy Innovation and Chief Catalyst at Rolling Energy Resources. His idea came to fruition working with AESP’s President and CEO, Jen Szaro. The exclusive event was designed to improve the business and customer EV experience and encourage EV adoption. A blend of great speakers and intensive group design sprints made for full days. Each session methodically laid the groundwork for the next, ending in thought-provoking solutions attendees could implement on the job.

According to LeBlanc, “Mainstream consumers and businesses will not be willing to purchase EVs if they appear risky, especially since they have solutions that work already today with their gas vehicles.” Complete solutions must simplify the entire EV journey before we can cross the proverbial market “chasm.” In contrast, early adopters will accept inconvenience in exchange for the value the new product brings them. He continued, “The first step is to understand the EV customers’ perspective and barriers, then you must discover why the barrier exists. Solutions Lab attendees identified almost 400 barriers to address in the eight segments studied.”

Here are additional takeaways from EVDX:

To get more EVs into the market quickly, consumers and businesses need access to advisory services that help nudge them toward electric transportation.
Since 70% of vehicles sold are used in the broad market, we need to sell a LOT of new EVs now to accelerate the availability of lower cost used cars.
Charging an EV must be perceived as being as convenient as fueling a gas vehicle.
Utilities should align with EV manufacturers and dealerships to educate and provide solutions to buyers early in their EV journey.
Simple self-service calculators and educational tools will help in decision making and marketing strategies to encourage broader adoption.

The EVDX event left attendees motivated and inspired. The bottom line… there is still a lot of work to do. Utilities should be a reliable resource that communicates and educates communities and enables informed decisions regarding EVs. It doesn’t have to be complicated. Apogee has several solutions to help engage and educate consumers. Please take a moment to review our innovative Electric Vehicle communications solutions and let us help you pave the way for electric vehicle adoption in your community.