Customer Support of Energy Utilities Directly Related to Brand Trust
44 Utilities Named Most Trusted Brands Among Residential Customers
CAMBRIDGE, Mass.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Support of utility rates and attracting consumer use of alternative
energy offerings requires brand trust among residential electric and
natural gas utility consumers, according to a new Cogent Reports™ study
by Market
Strategies International. This annual study highlights a statistical
relationship between brand trust and rate support, and shows customers
expect utilities to expand support for new offerings and community
outreach as a result of rate increases. The study’s findings, which
designates 44 utilities as “Most Trusted Brands,” can be found in the
2017 Utility
Trusted Brand & Customer Engagement™: Residential study.
“Building a brand that customers trust and offering products and
services customers will use are the new utility challenges. Brand trust
is truly the difference between customers supporting or resisting new
utility income opportunities,” said Chris Oberle, senior vice president
at Market Strategies International.
High brand trust scores are required to attract customer use of
alternative energy offerings and to increase the preference to use
utilities as providers of these products. Additionally, customers who
trust their utility are twice as likely to recommend those alternative
energy products to other customers.
“Our research clearly shows utility brand trust levels are closely tied
to financial success, customer advocacy and market support for rate
changes,” continued Oberle. “High brand trust benefits customers,
shareholders and stakeholders, and positions utilities as credible
players in shaping the evolving utility market.”
The study’s brand trust index has declined by one point this year to 692
(on a 1,000-point scale). The study, now in its fourth year, benchmarks
brand performance of 130 utilities on a quarterly basis among 59,823
utility consumers. The brand trust index is based upon 35 rating
questions that relate to a suite of emotional attachment and management
performance factors.
This year, Cogent has designated 44 utilities as 2017 Most Trusted
Brands. This group of utilities scores 40 points higher on brand trust
than their industry peers. As a result of the brand trust garnered among
customers, Most Trusted Brand utilities experience a 7 percent
improvement in support for rate increases and a 27 percent boost in
positive customer comments than industry peers. Additionally, Most
Trusted Brands are viewed by customers as better stock investments.
The following four tables show benchmark scoring among the utilities
surveyed.
2017 Brand Trust Scoring by Benchmark Segments: EAST REGION
Service Type |
Utility Brand |
Brand Trust Score |
||
Combination | NYSEG* | 713 | ||
Combination | RG&E* | 710 | ||
Combination | PSE&G* | 698 | ||
Combination | BGE | 692 | ||
Combination | Delmarva Power | 683 | ||
Combination | National Grid | 683 | ||
Combination | PECO Energy | 674 | ||
Combination | ConEdison | 672 | ||
Combination | Eversource | 637 | ||
Electric | PPL Electric Utilities* | 718 | ||
Electric | Duquesne Light Company* | 700 | ||
Electric | Central Maine Power | 687 | ||
Electric | West Penn Power | 681 | ||
Electric | Penn Power | 679 | ||
Electric | Penelec | 673 | ||
Electric | Met-Ed | 653 | ||
Electric | Potomac Edison | 650 | ||
Electric | Appalachian Power | 649 | ||
Electric | PSEG Long Island | 645 | ||
Electric | Atlantic City Electric | 644 | ||
Electric | Monongahela Power | 625 | ||
Electric | Pepco | 614 | ||
Electric | Jersey Central Power & Light | 602 | ||
Natural Gas | New Jersey Natural Gas* | 724 | ||
Natural Gas | National Fuel Gas* | 722 | ||
Natural Gas | Peoples* | 715 | ||
Natural Gas | UGI Utilities* | 709 | ||
Natural Gas | Washington Gas* | 709 | ||
Natural Gas | Philadelphia Gas Works* | 708 | ||
Natural Gas | Columbia Gas – East | 700 | ||
Natural Gas | South Jersey Gas Company | 699 | ||
Natural Gas | Elizabethtown Gas | 682 |
Score above 500 indicates positive level of brand trust |
Performance index scores based upon a 1,000 maximum score and can be compared |
* Most Trusted Brand designation is awarded to utilities that score in the top quartile, or achieve top two regional designation or are within 20-points of the top regional score. |
2017 Brand Trust Scoring by Benchmark Segments: MIDWEST REGION
Service Type |
Utility Brand |
Brand Trust Score |
||
Combination | MidAmerican Energy* | 730 | ||
Combination | Consumers Energy* | 708 | ||
Combination | Ameren Illinois | 706 | ||
Combination | DTE Energy | 704 | ||
Combination | NIPSCO | 695 | ||
Combination | Alliant Energy | 694 | ||
Combination | We Energies | 694 | ||
Combination | Vectren | 691 | ||
Combination | Xcel Energy – Midwest | 691 | ||
Combination | Wisconsin Public Service | 685 | ||
Combination | Duke Energy Midwest | 684 | ||
Electric | ComEd* | 702 | ||
Electric | Ohio Edison* | 696 | ||
Electric | Dayton Power & Light | 691 | ||
Electric | KCP&L | 690 | ||
Electric | AEP Ohio | 687 | ||
Electric | Indiana Michigan Power | 680 | ||
Electric | Indianapolis Power & Light | 671 | ||
Electric | OPPD | 669 | ||
Electric | Ameren Missouri | 665 | ||
Electric | The Illuminating Company | 665 | ||
Electric | Toledo Edison | 654 | ||
Electric | Westar Energy | 637 | ||
Natural Gas | Atmos Energy – Midwest* | 721 | ||
Natural Gas | Nicor Gas* | 702 | ||
Natural Gas | Columbia Gas of Ohio* | 701 | ||
Natural Gas | SEMCO Energy Gas Company | 695 | ||
Natural Gas | Black Hills Energy | 694 | ||
Natural Gas | CenterPoint Energy – Midwest | 694 | ||
Natural Gas | Citizens Energy | 692 | ||
Natural Gas | Laclede Gas | 689 | ||
Natural Gas | Peoples Gas | 680 | ||
Natural Gas | Missouri Gas Energy | 679 | ||
Natural Gas | Dominion Energy Ohio | 678 | ||
Natural Gas | Kansas Gas Service | 678 |
Score above 500 indicates positive level of brand trust |
Performance index scores based upon a 1,000 maximum score and can be compared |
* Most Trusted Brand designation is awarded to utilities that score in the top quartile, or achieve top two regional designation or are within 20-points of the top regional score. |
2017 Brand Trust Scoring by Benchmark Segments: SOUTH REGION
Service Type |
Utility Brand |
Brand Trust Score |
||
Combination | CPS Energy* | 698 | ||
Combination | Louisville Gas & Electric * | 690 | ||
Combination | SCE&G* | 690 | ||
Combination | MLGW | 657 | ||
Electric | Georgia Power* | 738 | ||
Electric | Florida Power & Light* | 724 | ||
Electric | Kentucky Utilities* | 717 | ||
Electric | OG&E* | 710 | ||
Electric | OUC | 708 | ||
Electric | JEA | 705 | ||
Electric | Entergy | 702 | ||
Electric | Nashville Electric Service | 701 | ||
Electric | Public Service Company of Oklahoma | 700 | ||
Electric | Gulf Power | 697 | ||
Electric | Xcel Energy – South | 695 | ||
Electric | Southwestern Electric Power Company | 687 | ||
Electric | Dominion Energy Virginia | 683 | ||
Electric | Duke Energy Carolinas | 683 | ||
Electric | El Paso Electric | 678 | ||
Electric | TECO Tampa Electric | 677 | ||
Electric | Alabama Power | 665 | ||
Electric | Duke Energy Florida | 659 | ||
Electric | Austin Energy | 657 | ||
Electric | Mississippi Power | 656 | ||
Electric | Duke Energy Progress | 653 | ||
Electric | Kentucky Power | 600 | ||
Natural Gas | TECO Peoples Gas* | 777 | ||
Natural Gas | Piedmont Natural Gas* | 748 | ||
Natural Gas | CenterPoint Energy – South* | 734 | ||
Natural Gas | PSNC Energy* | 732 | ||
Natural Gas | Alagasco* | 729 | ||
Natural Gas | Virginia Natural Gas* | 727 | ||
Natural Gas | Columbia Gas – South* | 720 | ||
Natural Gas | Oklahoma Natural Gas* | 716 | ||
Natural Gas | Atmos Energy – South | 712 | ||
Natural Gas | Texas Gas Service | 705 |
Score above 500 indicates positive level of brand trust |
Performance index scores based upon a 1,000 maximum score and can be compared |
* Most Trusted Brand designation is awarded to utilities that score in the top quartile, or achieve top two regional designation or are within 20-points of the top regional score. |
2017 Brand Trust Scoring by Benchmark Segments: WEST REGION
Service Type |
Utility Brand |
Brand Trust Score |
||
Combination | Xcel Energy – West* | 699 | ||
Combination | SDG&E* | 692 | ||
Combination | Avista | 672 | ||
Combination | Puget Sound Energy | 669 | ||
Combination | PG&E | 656 | ||
Combination | NorthWestern Energy | 655 | ||
Electric | SMUD* | 744 | ||
Electric | Idaho Power* | 729 | ||
Electric | Salt River Project* | 726 | ||
Electric | Seattle City Light* | 716 | ||
Electric | Pacific Power | 703 | ||
Electric | Tucson Electric Power | 701 | ||
Electric | APS | 695 | ||
Electric | Rocky Mountain Power | 691 | ||
Electric | Portland General Electric | 685 | ||
Electric | Southern California Edison | 685 | ||
Electric | Los Angeles Department of Water and Power | 653 | ||
Electric | NV Energy | 652 | ||
Electric | PNM | 632 | ||
Natural Gas | Questar Gas* | 743 | ||
Natural Gas | Cascade Natural Gas* | 742 | ||
Natural Gas | SoCalGas* | 738 | ||
Natural Gas | NW Natural* | 733 | ||
Natural Gas | Southwest Gas* | 726 | ||
Natural Gas | Intermountain Gas Company | 711 | ||
Natural Gas | New Mexico Gas Company | 706 |
Score above 500 indicates positive level of brand trust |
Performance index scores based upon a 1,000 maximum score and can be compared |
* Most Trusted Brand designation is awarded to utilities that score in the top quartile, or achieve top two regional designation or are within 20-points of the top regional score. |
About the Utility Trusted Brand & Customer Engagement: Residential
report
Cogent Reports conducted surveys among 59,823 residential electric,
natural gas and combination utility customers of the 130 largest US
utility companies (based on residential customer counts). The sample
design uses US census data and strict quotas to ensure a demographically
balanced sample of each evaluated utility’s customers based on age,
gender, income, race and ethnicity. Utilities within the same region and
of the same type (e.g., electric-only providers) are given equal weight
in order to balance the influence of each utility’s customers on survey
results. Market Strategies will supply the exact wording of any survey
questions upon request.
About Market Strategies International
Market
Strategies International is a leading provider of research and
consulting services to utility management, trusted by the world’s most
successful organizations to help them thrive. We blend primary research
with data from our syndicated, benchmarking and self-funded studies to
provide clients with exceptional research insight that helps solve their
challenges. Our research specialties include brand, communications, CX,
product development and segmentation. Our syndicated products, known as
Cogent Reports, help clients understand the market environment, explore
industry trends and monitor their brand within the competitive
landscape. Founded in 1989, Market Strategies is one of the largest
market research firms in the world. Read Market Strategies’ blog at FreshMR,
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and LinkedIn.
Contacts
Market Strategies International
Anne Denz, 617.715.7611
anne.denz@marketstrategies.com