Transforming a utility’s brand to a thought leadership

Energy costs, rate plans and customer service will always be important to utility customers and a critical component of utility marketing communications. However, the expectation for utilities to be an authority and thought leader seems to be increasing. According to ResearchScape, a 2013 survey indicated that almost one-quarter of those surveyed would switch to a new energy company if it provided expert advice on how to reduce energy costs.¹ The only issues that ranked higher in this study than the utility’s role as an authority were the basics of cost, rate plans and personalized customer support.

Becoming the Trusted Adviser
A utility’s customer experience is impacted by a number of touch points beyond formal communications. It could even be argued that traditionally a customer’s perception of a utility has been largely formed based on customer service interactions, such as billing, services and outages. Establishing a utility as a thought leader should go beyond these touch points. Certainly customer service can play a supportive role in the endeavor, but a disciplined digital marketing approach that centers on content marketing can be a positive driver to establishing a utility as a thought leader.

Content marketing can showcase the utility’s expertise and transform the brand into a dominant, one-stop source for everything customers need to know about energy, as well as some things they didn’t even realize they needed to know. Furthermore, content marketing can allow utilities to be in the right place at the right time as customers are seeking information. Digital marketing and, in particular, search engine marketing are instant beneficiaries of an effective content marketing program.

Give Advice
Content marketing for utilities can provide educational information on a myriad of topics. For example, an Accenture survey indicated that 93% of consumers were interested in learning about how smart meters work.² Content marketing in the form of a blog post or a downloadable guide is an ideal way for a utility to provide this education customers crave. Sharing your utility’s knowledge through digital marketing techniques not only demonstrates authority on various topics but also improves a brand’s perception in consumers’ eyes.

The same Accenture survey also found that customers who had smart meters expected the utility to provide advice on decreasing energy costs through actions that would reduce energy bills. Thought leaders are the informed experts who give advice to help consumers turn abstract ideas into reality. Content marketing for utilities is a perfect fit for providing the advice customers want via digital marketing or traditional utility marketing channels.

Engage Businesses
It’s not just residential utility customers who are looking to utilities to be thought leaders. A study by Deloitte reSources found that, although businesses would like to take action to become more energy efficient,³ approximately 30% of them say they haven’t been able to take energy efficient actions because of lack of information. These businesses report that they don’t quite know how to accurately evaluate the impact efficiency will have on their bottom line or quantify the savings impact.

Content marketing for utilities can package energy efficiency information into downloadable guides and ebooks that explain optimal energy efficiency, financing options and methodology for savings calculations (how to assess the bottom-line impact). This type of information can help utilities cement their reputation as a thought leader and make them heroes to business customers. These types of ebooks and guides can be delivered through digital marketing channels such as landing pages and blog articles, and promoted via email newsletters and social media. Alternatively, the guides and ebooks can help utilities build email opt-in lists of their business customers.

These examples are just the tip of the content marketing iceberg. Utility marketers and communications teams have a number of ways they can employ content and digital marketing to improve brand image and demonstrate thought leadership. 

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