Economic Optimism Fuels Business’ Trust in Utilities

As business owners articulate a positive outlook on their local economies, an opportunity is opening for utilities to step in as trusted business advisors. New research from Escalent finds that 69% of US businesses believe their local economy will grow in the next year, and 72% expect an increase in their revenue over the same period. Perhaps even more telling of their optimism, 65% of businesses are planning business expansions. This presents a significant opportunity for utilities to deliver energy management advice and programs. These and more findings are from the Cogent Syndicated Utility Trusted Brand & Customer Engagement™: Business study from Escalent, a top human behavior and analytics firm.

Each year the study tracks a composite Brand Trust score, which shows an increase in utilities being trusted by their business customers. The industry’s Brand Trust index among business customers increases 20 points from 2018 to 744 (on a 1,000-point scale) this year. Among the study’s six components that make up the Brand Trust index, Business Community Support sees the greatest increase. As awareness of utilities having “programs that help the local economy” increases, so does Brand Trust. The study also shows that 80% of businesses scoring their utility 800 or more on Brand Trust expect to expand locally, leading to an increase in energy consumption and better utility financial performance.

“Becoming part of the fabric of the local economy helps build constructive relationships with local businesses. It shows the business community you are a trusted partner in their success,” said Chris Oberle, senior vice president at Escalent. “Utilities have benefitted from focusing on programmatic ways to help local economies expand. In fact, 76% of businesses that are aware of utility economic development programs also say their local economy is growing.”

Below is a list of Trusted Business Partner utilities. They are the utility industry’s local leaders on enabling economic expansion.

The following charts reflect benchmarking of business’ trust levels in their electric and natural gas utilities compared with their peers. Brand Trust index scores are based on a 1,000-point maximum scale.

About Utility Trusted Brand & Customer Engagement™: Business

Escalent conducted surveys among 12,577 business electric, natural gas and combination utility customers of the 78 largest US utility companies (based on customer counts). Utilities are given equal weight to balance the influence of each utility’s customers on survey results. Escalent will supply the exact wording of any survey question upon request.

About Escalent

Escalent is a top human behavior and analytics firm specializing in industries facing disruption and business transformation. As catalysts of progress for more than 40 years, we tell stories that transform data and insight into a profound understanding of what drives human beings. And we help businesses turn those drivers into actions that build brands, enhance customer experiences and inspire product innovation. Visit escalent.co to see how we are helping shape the brands that are reshaping the world.

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