CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Thirty-six utility Environmental Champions were announced today by Cogent Reports™, the syndicated research division of Market Strategies International. The list includes the top 3 ranked electric, natural gas and combination providers in four regions across the United States, and the results are based on over 25,000 consumer performance ratings for 125 leading utilities nationwide.
The Environmental Champions were determined based on Environmental Dedication scores and rankings that reflect the extent to which consumers believe providers are supporting environmental causes, committed to environmentally friendly energy sources, encouraging green initiatives and offering tools to help consumers save energy. This is the second year Cogent Reports has computed Environmental Dedication scores for individual utilities and recognized Environmental Champions in its Utility Trusted Brand & Customer Engagement™ study, a report that also measures Brand Trust, Operational Satisfaction and Product Engagement, and overall Customer Engagement.
“These Environmental Champions are setting an example for peers in the industry on environmental dedication. This designation reflects a commitment to prioritizing environmental initiatives and serves as a reward from their customers for doing so,” said Chris Oberle, senior vice president at Market Strategies International. “We believe expanding the management of environmental efforts, improving outreach on environmental causes, and communication of renewable strategies will become increasingly important as utilities position themselves to effectively implement clean power initiatives.”
Solar conversion is one example of the many types of environmental programs utilities are now offering. Driven by the Obama administration’s Clean Power Plan (CPP) and individual state renewable power initiatives, solar power is front and center for electric utilities. According to Cogent Reports, consumer interest in using solar energy is high (over 40%). However, captured demand for solar products is low (about 7%) and only an additional 3% of customers expect to use solar options any time soon.
“Utilities need to leverage consumer interest in solar by educating customers on the features and benefits of these programs,” continued Oberle. “In addition, we know from our Utility Trusted Brand & Customer Engagement study that a critical step leading to increased program adoption—whether solar conversion, weatherization or other environmental initiatives—is to establish trust with customers. The data tell us that only utilities with strong brands have customer support for their environmental efforts and programs.”
The 2015 Environmental Champions include: BGE, CenterPoint Energy‒Midwest, Central Maine Power, Citizens Energy, Columbia Gas‒East, Columbia Gas of Ohio, Consumers Energy, CPS Energy, Dayton Power & Light, Delmarva Power, DTE Energy, Duquesne Light, Florida Power & Light, Gulf Power, Indianapolis Power & Light, Louisville Gas & Electric, MidAmerican Energy, MLGW, New Jersey Natural Gas, NW Natural, NYSEG, OG&E, OPPD, PG&E, Piedmont Natural Gas, PPL Electric Utilities, Puget Sound Energy, Salt River Project, Seattle City Light, SMUD, SoCalGas, Southwest Gas, TECO Peoples Gas, UGI Utilities, Virginia Natural Gas, and Xcel Energy‒West
About the 2015 Residential Utility Trusted Brand & Customer Engagement Study
Cogent Reports conducted surveys among 25,812 residential electric, natural gas and combination utility customers of the 125 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 market research consultancy with deep expertise in consumer/retail, energy, financial services, healthcare, technology and telecommunications. The firm is ISO 20252 certified, reflecting its commitment to providing intelligent research, designed to the highest levels of accuracy, with meaningful results that help companies make confident business decisions.
Market Strategies conducts qualitative and quantitative research in 75 countries, and its specialties include brand, communications, CX, product development, segmentation and syndicated. Its syndicated products, known as Cogent Reports, help clients understand the market environment, explore industry trends and monitor their brand and products within the competitive landscape. Founded in 1989, Market Strategies is one of the largest market research firms in the world, with offices in the US, Canada and China. Read Market Strategies’ blog at FreshMR, and follow us on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn.
