…and the bartender says to the three of them, “What’s on your mind? The latest in wireless lighting controls? Variable frequency drives? Maybe energy management systems?”

First of all, what a weird conversation a bartender would have with customers, but that’s beside the point.

We just wanted you to picture the energy-related decision-makers you’re trying to reach at large commercial organizations. That group includes a variety of folks representing a diverse set of job titles and responsibilities – some you may not even realize are involved in energy decisions.

Topics: Customer-Centric Marketing, Utility Communications, Data and Analytics, Digital Transformation and User Experience, Innovation, Marketing Strategy and Best Practices, Audience Segmentation

A utility promoting their customer service number? That's a pretty rare occurrence in this self-service age. Sure, Stranger Things have happened, but it certainly isn't commonplace.

But whaddaya know? This week a utility bought billboards (but actually a sneaky move by Netflix) all over their territory that featured an actual working phone number. 

Topics: Customer-Centric Marketing, Utility Communications, Data and Analytics, Digital Transformation and User Experience, Innovation, Marketing Strategy and Best Practices, Audience Segmentation

On Tuesday, October 17, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, along with executives from Google’s parent company, Alphabet, announced a $1 billion plan called Sidewalk Toronto. 

What is Sidewalk Toronto?

In short, it’s an 800-acre “beta city” project that will be the first development by Alphabet’s Sidewalk Labs. The goal of the project, which will be located on the city’s eastern waterfront, is to be:

A new type of place that combines the best in urban design with the latest in digital technology to address some of the biggest challenges facing cities, including energy use, housing affordability, and transportation… A place that encourages innovation around energy, waste, and other environmental challenges to protect the planet. [Source]

Topics: Customer-Centric Marketing, Utility Communications, Data and Analytics, Digital Transformation and User Experience, Innovation, Marketing Strategy and Best Practices, Audience Segmentation

This week Microsoft purchased 100% of GE’s new Irish wind farm capacity for the next 15 years.

The announcement comes at a time when some of the country’s most influential companies like Apple and Facebook are going out of their way to secure clean energy production for their operations. 

Yet another signal that increasing corporate responsibility initiatives and requirements are fueling the appetite for renewables.

Topics: Customer-Centric Marketing, Utility Communications, Data and Analytics, Digital Transformation and User Experience, Innovation, Marketing Strategy and Best Practices, Audience Segmentation

Yesterday morning Tesla’s Elon Musk responded to a tweet about the devastation in Puerto Rico with this...

That’s right, the genius leader of a non-regulated energy provider tweeted at government officials and the PUC. And guess what? They responded.

And then just this morning, Musk tweeted back!

Topics: Customer-Centric Marketing, Utility Communications, Data and Analytics, Digital Transformation and User Experience, Innovation, Marketing Strategy and Best Practices, Audience Segmentation

When Hurricane Maria made landfall in Puerto Rico on September 20, it was lights out for the U.S. territory. 

One hundred percent of the system run by the Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority is offline because Maria damaged every part of it. (Source)

 

The storm was bound to cause destruction to this small island.

Topics: Customer-Centric Marketing, Utility Communications, Data and Analytics, Digital Transformation and User Experience, Innovation, Marketing Strategy and Best Practices, Audience Segmentation

Both qualitative and quantitative research provide us with great insights into the mindset of the consumer and help us identify generational and industry trends.

As we gear up for our research this fall, with results to present in early 2018, we want to know: What do you want to know? What are the questions that keep you up at night? What’s on your mind?

Topics: Customer-Centric Marketing, Utility Communications, Data and Analytics, Digital Transformation and User Experience, Innovation, Marketing Strategy and Best Practices, Audience Segmentation

The word “sustainability” suffers from tremendous overuse in the energy space: “solar,” “green,” and “renewables”—everyone uses the same buzzwords. We’ve diluted what some words mean to a point of near meaninglessness. Your customers may say they like to hear these words (and some of them do), but few people actually care. And when they do care, it’s because your intentions and impacts are clear, tangible things that matter to people.

How can you make your efforts authentic?

Here are a few places to start:

Topics: Customer-Centric Marketing, Utility Communications, Data and Analytics, Digital Transformation and User Experience, Innovation, Marketing Strategy and Best Practices, Audience Segmentation

Two months ago we highlighted a few lessons the energy industry could learn from the acquisition of Whole Foods. Now that the purchase is complete, we thought we'd share three more lessons we can glean from the multi-billion dollar deal.

Topics: Customer-Centric Marketing, Utility Communications, Data and Analytics, Digital Transformation and User Experience, Innovation, Marketing Strategy and Best Practices, Audience Segmentation

The Pantone Color Institute has just released a new shade of purple in honor of the late music icon Prince.

Prince was and always will be a music icon, but what made the world's foremost color authority want to honor him?

Topics: Customer-Centric Marketing, Utility Communications, Data and Analytics, Digital Transformation and User Experience, Innovation, Marketing Strategy and Best Practices, Audience Segmentation