Navigating Outages and Driving Sustainability: A Roadmap for Utilities

Explore how utilities can enhance communication, build trust, and engage customers more effectively during crises and beyond with insights from Chartwell Inc.'s 2024 Residential Consumer Survey. Shaun Jackson, Senior Vice President of Marketing at KUBRA, hosts this discussion, featuring special guests from Chartwell Inc., Steve Waters, Director of Councils, and Casey Collins, Senior Research Analyst.

This engaging episode examines actionable strategies for improving outage communication, fostering sustainability engagement, and evolving the utility-customer relationship from a service provider to a trusted advisor. This episode showcases best practices and innovative ideas for utilities to strengthen customer connections, from leveraging transparency and empathy during outages to creating impactful environmental programs.

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The transcript has been edited for clarity and readability while maintaining the original content and intent of the speakers.

Shaun Jackson:

I’d like to shift gears and discuss communicating during outage events, which we’ve experienced many times in the last six months, particularly in the fall. 

KUBRA recently hosted a podcast on staying connected during crises and how utilities can adapt communication strategies to manage today’s weather challenges. At that time, the U.S. was still recovering from Hurricanes Helene and Milton, and there was significant discussion around emergency communications challenges. 

Chartwell’s research also explored this topic from a consumer perspective. I’m interested in your thoughts on what effective communication strategies utilities can adopt during outage events to improve customer satisfaction.

7 Tips for Effective Outage Communication

Steve Waters:

Thanks, Shaun. I listened to that podcast—it was a great one. Chartwell provides a perspective from both utilities and consumers. I came to Chartwell from the utility world. I worked for a utility for 22 years in communications, so I've been through my share of hurricanes and load-shed events. Those experiences can still feel triggering sometimes, but outages are crucial moments that matter, right? 

We’ve organized Steve's valuable insights into a tip format to make it easier for our readers to follow and apply the key takeaways discussed during the podcast. Here are seven tips for effective utility communication during outages. 

Tip #1: Build a "Trust Reservoir" Before a Crisis

Some customers want a relationship with their utility, while others do not. For those who don’t, you have their attention in two key scenarios: paying their bill and experiencing an outage. Outages are an opportunity to shine—or risk damaging trust. This is where a reservoir of trust becomes crucial. Utilities that have established customer respect and trust can draw from this "bank" during crises. Communicating consistently, effectively, and empathetically builds that trust. Without it, utilities start at a disadvantage.

Outages present an opportunity, as they can help build brand perception. If you perform well and communicate effectively during outages, there’s an accelerated effect on customer satisfaction. Some key takeaways from my experience and from what we’ve observed at Chartwell align with what was echoed in your previous podcast: utilities must communicate before, during, and after events. You can’t wait for a crisis to start talking about your investments in reliability, how you restore power, or how you intend to communicate with customers.

Tip #2: Reframe the Conversation Around Value

You want to show people your investments and reframe the conversation. Move it away from the cost of service and toward the value you deliver. For example, what are they getting for their bill? They get a reliable, responsive, and resilient grid when issues occur. During the restoration process, operational restoration is one piece, and communication is another critical piece. These two need to work in tandem.

Tip #3: Align Operations and Communication Teams

Your operations and communication teams need to know and trust each other, work together as one cohesive unit, and execute well on both fronts. For instance, if you restore power effectively but haven’t properly set customer expectations or communicated well, you won’t win in their eyes. Similarly, if restoration is challenging, communicating effectively and empathetically becomes even more critical.

Tip #4: Involve Customers With Transparency

You must involve customers to help them understand what it takes to maintain the grid and restore power. Use videos, photos, or visuals to show crews setting poles, stringing wires, or addressing repairs. Show that it’s more than flipping a switch. People trust working line crews, so transparency helps. Also, explain how priorities are set, such as focusing on circuits serving large numbers of customers before more minor or single transformer issues. Help them understand why they might not see a crew, like when automation handles remote switching or crews work upstream on a larger problem.

Tip #5: Leverage "Crew Spokespeople" for Community Connection

When crews are visible, one method we used during major events at my utility was employing "crew spokespeople." These employees from other parts of the business had emergency roles within the community to answer questions, build relationships, and address concerns. They also accepted donuts or treats on behalf of the crews. Building this connection goes a long way, and social media can amplify the engagement.

Tip #6: Provide Empathetic and Actionable Updates

You want to provide empathetic, actionable, and timely data, as personalized as possible. Outage alerts, app notifications, emails, text messages, and phone calls are excellent tools to keep customers informed. Offer both the "big picture" of the overall response and, when possible, individual updates like Estimated Times of Restoration (ETRs). Innovations in outage communications, such as automation and machine learning, are improving ETR predictions. Predictive modeling based on past outage events can help utilities effectively pre-position crews and resources.

Tip #7: Use Multi-Channel Communication Effectively

On the communication side, good old-fashioned multi-channel communication still works: timeliness, value, empathy, and consistency are key. As mentioned earlier, leveraging employees and spokespeople is critical. Lineman spouses, for example, can be great defenders of crews’ work, and satisfied customers can become ambassadors. Identify those customers and empower them to share their experiences on your behalf.

Consumer Insights on Outage Communication

Casey Collins:

I'll jump in with the consumer perspective. Before I do, Steve, I want to reiterate your point. While talking about data across the U.S. and Canada, it shouldn’t sacrifice the individual personalization and targeting within your service territory.

Looking at our survey sample, we see key pieces of information Steve referenced as most important to customers: the estimated restoration time, the crew status, and the geographic area impacted by the outage. Communicating these top three pieces of information clearly and effectively to all customers is crucial. 

It’s also important to use the top channels customers prefer, such as text, email, mobile app, and outage map. Maximizing the use of these channels is crucial because the combination of information and communication channels significantly impacts utilities' overall CSAT scores when customer satisfaction with outage communications is high.

As a baseline in 2024, we saw customers express around a 69% CSAT score for their utilities. However, among those who felt their outage communications were strong, we observed boosts ranging from six to nearly 20 percentage points. Handling crises well and communicating effectively with customers in a way that makes them feel their situation is important and recognized by their utility, even with added automation, is critical. This approach can significantly improve utility performance.

One area our Outage Communications Leadership Council has focused on in recent years is empathy messaging. This can take many forms, such as using specific language in customer communications or ensuring field crews balance local restoration demands with promptly entering data. This allows customers to receive timely updates and accurate estimated time of restoration (ETR) notifications.

In Chartwell's 2023 consumer survey, we examined consumers' opinions on the timing of outage communications, especially during long-duration outages, defined as those lasting more than six hours. 

• About 40% of customers said they wanted to hear from their utility about their outage every hour.
• Another 18% preferred updates every two hours. 
• Compared to the 36% who only wanted communication when information had changed, this shows that even if the information isn't significantly updated, regular contact helps customers feel seen and reassured.

Understanding what utilities do during restoration and how they prevent future outages can impact customer trust. Finding the right communication balance for your specific customers and service territory is important. A one-size-fits-all approach likely won’t succeed, so finding ways to drill down and serve customers intentionally is important.

Shaun:

That makes a lot of sense, Casey. Both your comments and Steve’s resonated.

Steve, when you talked about the criteria, I think that’s a concept we apply to many aspects of our lives. Having more credits than debits is always better because you never know when you’ll need to draw on that, so it makes sense to take a proactive approach. The visual of the linemen’s spouses is so fascinating—that angle makes so much sense. I had never thought about it before. These people are truly heroes and heroines in a crisis, and it’s a great way to build trust and respect as brand ambassadors.

Your answers have painted a real picture of proactive communication's impact. We all know there are psychological aspects to crisis communication. From what we’ve seen at KUBRA, the right messaging and frequency can distinguish between customers feeling in control of a situation and scared and uncertain, which is never where anyone wants to be.

This discussion has already been enlightening, and there’s much more to cover. For today, though, our last topic is environmental programs, which we discussed earlier. Do you have any advice for our utility listeners on leveraging customer interest in sustainability to enhance engagement in environmental programs?

Engaging Customers in Sustainability Initiatives

Casey:

We should all see it as a positive that customers desire to learn more from their utility. They feel a positive relationship allows them to engage, take advantage of, and support what their utility is offering.

• In 2024, around 63% of consumers stated that their electric utility should do more to address climate change, while only 8% disagreed. 
• 80% of respondents wanted their utility to proactively connect them with government incentives for environmental efforts. 
• Only 41% were aware of their utility’s environmental impact, highlighting a gap in awareness.

Despite this, there is a positive outlook. 

• 56% showed interest in learning more from their utility to support sustainability and clean energy initiatives. 
• Customers also expressed willingness to collaborate, with 53% open to giving their utility control of their thermostat, 56% for appliances, and 60% for EV charging, provided the vehicle is ready when needed.

Finding ways to capitalize on those incentives is key to identifying the sustainability programs and messaging that resonate best with customers. This approach helps customers achieve their sustainability goals while supporting the utility's sustainability goals.

Evolving From Ratepayers to Prosumers

Steve: 

We’ve discussed the importance of words, and one we now take for granted is "customer." Not long ago, utilities referred to customers as "rate payers." For 100 years, the grid operated one way—the grid of 1990 resembled the grid of 1890. Around 15 years ago, we started discussing how the relationship between consumers and utilities would evolve, transitioning consumers to "prosumers." This shift is beginning to take hold. Consumer education and engagement panels have progressed from discussing issues to showcasing examples. One utility, for instance, is developing consumer personas based on their support for and readiness to engage in the energy transition. It’s exciting to see how these can be leveraged.

One initial step is raising awareness by showing what the utility is doing—demonstrating initiatives like solar programs, renewable energy access, and environmental protection. Engaging and straightforward tools like Falcon Cams, videos of goats managing vegetation, or even children’s books on sustainability with actionable tips for younger generations have proven effective. Utilities are also advancing through demonstration homes, community fairs, and showcasing ways customers can start with self-interest by managing their bill. 

Sustainability begins at home: managing a household budget and reducing energy use. Utilities can invite customers to join their sustainability goals by helping them save with easy, often free actions like going paperless, eating local produce, or transitioning to electric vehicles. What other industry encourages people to use less of its product, right?

Personalized Utility Engagement: One-Stop Shop vs. Out-Of-Sight, Out-Of-Mind

Understanding and segmenting your customers is crucial. About 45% of consumers want a robust relationship with their utility as a trusted advisor, 42% prefer minimal interaction (As long as they manage their bills and restore outages), and 34% expect utilities to be active community players. Outage experiences also build trust: engagement before, during, and after outages fosters strong community ties.

For "out-of-sight, out-of-mind" customers, utilities should focus on reliability and affordability, perhaps introducing programs like autopay or levelized billing. Meanwhile, 45% of those who desire a "one-stop shop" relationship represent opportunities to provide backup power recommendations, EV solutions, and time-of-use rates. Programs such as demand response, time-shifting EV charging, or tiered incentives can effectively serve this group. 

We’ve discussed demand response a couple of times. Historically, utilities have assumed there’s little consumer appetite for it. While about 45% of customers expressed reluctance, saying, "Don’t touch my meter" or "Don’t touch my devices," a significant number, as Casey cited, would be willing to allow the utility some control in exchange for a reasonable incentive, a small bill credit, or, in some cases, no incentive at all.

I loved what one of the speakers at a recent Chartwell conference said. They referenced Maslow's hierarchy of needs, emphasizing that providing an accurate bill and reliable power forms the foundation. When these basics are met, sustainability rises to the top of the pyramid. It’s not about taking control of their devices; it’s about making their lives easier and facilitating self-actualization. There’s a lot of opportunity in this approach.

Casey: 

Steve, you made an excellent point, especially when discussing the differences between the 45% of customers who want their utility to be a one-stop shop and the 42% who prefer their utility to be more out of sight, out of mind. Initially, when I saw these results, I considered them opposites. However, after a conversation with Chartwell's analyst, Ben Murdock, we explored whether these positions were truly opposites or if there was some overlap. Interestingly, we identified a small subset of individuals from our consumer survey who preferred both, seeking their utility to be both a one-stop shop and out of sight, out of mind. This required us to consider what such a hybrid model might look like to better understand their perspective.

As you pointed out earlier about autopay and levelized billing, I think solutions like these can bridge the gap between utility models. The out-of-sight, out-of-mind preference could integrate into the one-stop-shop approach, where some aspects of the utility relationship, such as billing, become effortless and automated for both the customer and utility. Enrolling customers in these programs creates opportunities for broader partnerships, including electric vehicles, demand response, new programs, and connections with government and community sustainability incentives.

Ultimately, a wide range of customer perspectives highlights the importance of segmentation and understanding the customer base. As these responses clearly demonstrate, customers are not a monolith.

Shaun: 

A lot was covered, and I had visceral reactions to several points. One thing that stood out as ironic was the question: Who else tries to promote using less of their products? I laughed—it’s so true and counterintuitive as a marketer. But it’s undeniably accurate.

The term "ratepayers" really stood out to me as well. What a cold and transactional word. It makes perfect sense that it has evolved to "prosumers," which conveys a much warmer and more engaging sentiment. 

As we wrap this up, you’ve shared much knowledge with us today. So, my closing question is: is there anything we haven’t covered yet, Steve and Casey, that you think our listeners need to know about the insights from your research?

Becoming the Customer's Trusted Energy Advisor

Casey:

I’d like to add a quick point about an area of opportunity for the utilities we work with—being seen as the customer’s trusted advisor. In our consumer research, we ask which products and services customers would most likely turn to their utility as a source of information or a service provider.

This is especially important when utilities are working to communicate messages like "use less of our product." Despite the counterintuitive nature of that message, opportunities still exist within it. For example, at last year’s EMACS conference, one of our speakers discussed partnering with customers to find backup power solutions and support demand response goals through smarter, automated home energy management systems. These are among the top preferred offerings where customers say they would turn to their utility as a trusted partner.

By finding ways to advise customers, utilities can strengthen trust and respect in the relationship, creating a more positive experience for both sides.

Steve:

I would emphasize that you’re not automatically the customer’s trusted advisor—you must build and nurture that relationship by offering proactive solutions. Customers won’t necessarily turn to you for energy-related opinions without this effort.

One data point we haven’t shared is that when we ask customers whom they trust for energy opinions or where their energy views are formed, the top source is other utility customers, including friends and relatives, surpassing even the utility’s spokesperson. This means that all the communication strategies we’ve discussed need to focus on winning customers' hearts and minds so they can become your evangelists.

Get to know your customers collectively through focus groups and panels, but also individually. Identify influencers and develop ambassadors within your employee base and your customer community. Position your employees and customers to advocate for you. If you can get others to speak on your behalf—in the marketplace of ideas and social media—you’re truly succeeding. It’s about going beyond relying solely on your voice to build trust and influence.

Shaun:

So true. We tend to tune out the voice of our suppliers in any way we can. With so many messages coming our way, the voice of your customers speaking on your behalf holds the most weight in the marketplace and the community.

Well, Steve and Casey, thank you both again for being here. This has been an insightful discussion with many takeaways for our audience. I was certainly taking notes whenever I could. I deeply appreciate the time you’ve spent with us today, and we sincerely hope to have you back.

Steve:

We’d love that. And we’ve got friends with great stories to share as well.

Casey:

Thank you so much, Shaun. It’s been a pleasure.

Read Part 1 of the podcast “The Trust Factor: Building Better Utility-Customer Relationships.”