A new Cogent Syndicated report from Escalent finds that persistent inflation and higher energy prices are impacting business customer engagement, which is seeing a decline led by bill manageability concerns and lower utility value perceptions.
Despite the trending decline, 17 outstanding utilities, recognized today as Escalent’s 2023 Business Customer Champions, have scored well above their industry peers for building engaged customer relationships. These utilities have reinforced their value by taking an active and visible role in the local community and offering easy-to-use options that help business customers reach savings and sustainability goals.
Those are some of the latest findings of the 2023 Utility Trusted Brand & Customer Engagement™: Business study, which tracks the performance of 81 gas, electric and combination utilities to identify brand and customer experience opportunities and trends in the industry. The report is published semiannually by Escalent, a top human behavior and analytics advisory firm with extensive energy, utility and brand experience.
After reaching a peak in 2021, the industry Engaged Customer Relationship (ECR) Index among business customers has been steadily declining and dropped a significant 12 points to 766 (on a 1,000-point-maximum scale) from the second half of 2022 to the second half of 2023. Overall, Business Customer Champions have gained 15 points during that same period and are now seeing 5% higher ECR scores than the industry overall.
Business customer ECR scores have not suffered declines as significant as residential customer scores. However, drops in perceived bill manageability, pricing fairness and overall utility value are taking a toll on business customer engagement and the weakening is becoming more substantial.
“For the last two years, business customers have been reporting less financial stress than many residential customers,” said Suzanne Haggerty, director of syndicated research with the Energy team at Escalent. “However, there are signs that persistent high prices due to ongoing inflation are leading to curtailed consumer spending. This will, in turn, reduce revenue and spending power for many utility business customers, making them more price-sensitive and making it difficult for utilities to build and maintain engagement.”
Business customer economic indicators are the lowest they’ve been since 2020, when pandemic lockdowns curbed spending throughout the United States: In the second half of 2023, 17% of business customers in the Cogent study expect their local economic growth to contract over the next year.
Historically, a pessimistic economic outlook correlates with lower Brand Trust and ECR scores. Industrywide, in the second half of 2023 customers who reported declining economic growth score their utility 10% lower on ECR.
Business Customer Champions outperform the industry average in several attributes, notably:
“In tough economic times, affordability, transparency and community connections are key to business customer engagement,” Haggerty continued. “Utilities that prove their value as a vital part of the local economic community and act as a trusted energy advisor for their business customers will pave the way to better relationships.”
Escalent is pleased to name these 17 utilities as our 2023 Business Customer Champions.
Cogent Syndicated 2023 Business Customer Champions* | |
AEP Ohio | Los Angeles Department of Water & Power |
Ameren Illinois | MidAmerican Energy |
CenterPoint Energy – South | Mississippi Power |
Chattanooga Gas Company | Nicor Gas |
Con Edison | OPPD |
Dominion Energy Ohio | Seattle City Light |
Duke Energy Midwest | SMUD |
El Paso Electric | Xcel Energy – Midwest |
Florida Power & Light |
*Utilities named as Business Customer Champions are selected based on having Engaged Customer Relationship Index scores in the top decile of the industry, the top score within their respective benchmark segment, or an Engaged Customer Relationship Index score within 20 points of the top benchmark segment score and above the industry average.
The following tables reflect regional peer benchmark Engaged Customer Relationship scores among the 81 utilities surveyed.
East Region Utilities Customer Engagement Performance | |
Utility brand name | ECR score |
Con Edison | 842 |
National Grid | 805 |
BGE | 802 |
Duquesne Light | 791 |
PSE&G | 791 |
PPL Electric Utilities | 769 |
Jersey Central Power & Light | 765 |
PECO Energy | 759 |
PSEG Long Island | 756 |
Eversource Energy | 747 |
West Penn Power | 744 |
Penelec | 733 |
NYSEG | 713 |
Appalachian Power | 702 |
Midwest Region Utilities Customer Engagement Performance | |
Utility brand name | ECR score |
OPPD | 799 |
MidAmerican Energy | 798 |
Duke Energy Midwest | 793 |
AEP Ohio | 792 |
Xcel Energy – Midwest | 788 |
Ameren Illinois | 779 |
Ameren Missouri | 770 |
ComEd | 770 |
We Energies | 767 |
Consumers Energy | 760 |
Indiana Michigan Power | 754 |
DTE Energy | 753 |
The Illuminating Company | 743 |
Alliant Energy | 742 |
AES Ohio | 736 |
NIPSCO | 729 |
Ohio Edison | 715 |
Wisconsin Public Service | 715 |
AES Indiana | 713 |
Evergy | 711 |
Southern Region Utilities Customer Engagement Performance | |
Utility brand name | ECR score |
El Paso Electric | 825 |
Florida Power & Light | 809 |
Mississippi Power | 805 |
Georgia Power | 801 |
Duke Energy Carolinas | 793 |
Dominion Energy Virginia | 790 |
CPS Energy | 782 |
TECO Tampa Electric | 781 |
Alabama Power | 778 |
Public Service Company of Oklahoma | 772 |
Southwestern Electric Power Company | 770 |
Dominion Energy South Carolina | 764 |
Duke Energy Florida | 762 |
Duke Energy Progress | 757 |
Louisville Gas & Electric | 756 |
OG&E | 749 |
Kentucky Utilities | 746 |
JEA | 741 |
FPL Northwest FL | 737 |
Entergy | 727 |
West Region Utilities Customer Engagement Performance | |
Utility brand name | ECR score |
Los Angeles Department of Water & Power | 845 |
Seattle City Light | 841 |
SMUD | 813 |
Rocky Mountain Power | 798 |
PNM | 797 |
Puget Sound Energy | 793 |
Salt River Project | 792 |
Xcel Energy Colorado | 791 |
PG&E | 790 |
Colorado Springs Utilities | 777 |
Southern California Edison | 774 |
Idaho Power | 765 |
Pacific Power | 761 |
Portland General Electric | 760 |
APS | 752 |
NV Energy | 738 |
NorthWestern Energy | 716 |
SDG&E | 528 |
Natural Gas Utilities Customer Engagement Performance | |
Utility brand name | ECR score |
CenterPoint Energy – South | 808 |
Dominion Energy Ohio | 803 |
Chattanooga Gas Company | 801 |
Nicor Gas | 795 |
CenterPoint Energy – Midwest | 787 |
Virginia Natural Gas | 776 |
Dominion Energy West | 745 |
Dominion Energy North Carolina | 703 |
For more information on the full report, click the button below.
Escalent conducted surveys among 14,364 business customers of 81 US electric, natural gas and combination utility companies. Utilities within the same region are given equal weight to balance the influence of each utility’s customers on survey results. The Engaged Customer Relationship (ECR) Index is a composite score based upon a 360-degree customer review of how engaged businesses are with their energy utility provider. Scores are composed of ratings across service satisfaction, brand and product experiences. Escalent will supply the exact wording of any survey question upon request.