COVID, one year later: Celebrating utilities’ efforts to help customers

March 17, 2021 | Sara Patnaude | 4 min read
Weaved throughout the struggles of the 2020 are successes worth celebrating. Utilities across the US and Canada worked incredibly hard to help customers, contribute to COVID-19 relief efforts, and essentially become a reliable (and possibly unexpected) source of support in a trying time.

The five must-haves for the perfect utility mobile app

March 10, 2021 | Sara Patnaude, Anna Nixon | 4 min read
Developing a responsive website is a great step toward setting up a mobile presence, but it isn’t enough. Utility mobile apps outperform utility websites in overall customer satisfaction.

Digital business transformation: 5 steps to develop a human-centric approach to modernizing your utility

February 25, 2021 | Kim Neininger, Sara Patnaude | 7 min read
The utility of the future will be fully digital. Making that transition requires you to radically rethink how your people, processes, data, and technologies will affect business performance. To help you maximize value from digital investments, we’ve compiled five tips to get you started.

Ensuring equity in utility workplaces

February 23, 2021 | Sara Patnaude | 6 min read
Experts often link diversity and inclusion with organizational and team success. But what does that look like in practice? In honor of Black History Month, we wanted to revisit an E Source Forum 2020 roundtable discussion and share the powerful insights we learned.

What can we learn from utility social media during the Texas and Midwest outages?

February 22, 2021 | Shelby Kuenzli | 4 min read
The mid-February weather in many parts of the US has been one for the record books. Residents in Texas and the Midwest are struggling with water and power outages. We’ve gathered examples of how utilities are using social media to warn customers about outages and deliver info.

5 steps to crafting an apology that builds customer loyalty

February 22, 2021 | Joy Herbers | 6 min read
It wasn’t a great week for apologies. Just ask Ted Cruz. As Texas and the Midwest recover from power and water outages after a devastating winter storm, it’s a good time to start working on sincere apologies.

Energy equity: Utilities can and should lead the way

February 10, 2021 | Sara Patnaude | 7 min read
There’s a problem hiding in the shadows that needs to be solved: high energy burden. More than a quarter of US households spend over 6% of their income on energy, forcing them to decide between necessities like food and heat. Utilities can help; DeAndrea Newman Salvador can show us how.

Can low-income consumers benefit from EVs? Yes, but maybe not in a traditional way

January 29, 2021 | Bill LeBlanc | 7 min read
Over the past two years, virtually every utility or government entity I’ve spoken with about electric vehicles has mentioned a desire to promote equity in electric transportation. But many are having trouble developing solutions. Why? Because they need to reframe the problem and ask new questions.

Gift-of-energy programs can help utilities spread the love on Valentine’s Day

January 21, 2021 | Lisa Schulte | 7 min read
Your customers are getting ready to spread the love on Valentine’s Day. Why not let them give the gift of energy? We’ve gathered utility program examples and explain how you can design and promote an offering that allows a friend or family member to pay some or all of their loved one’s bill.

The E Source Customer Care Service is now the Contact Center Optimization Service

December 21, 2020 | Amy Esensten | 2 min read
We’ve changed the name of the E Source Customer Care Service. You’ll now get best practices, actionable advice, and market research data from the Contact Center Optimization Service. The name is new, but we’re just as passionate about helping you deliver the best possible contact center experience.