Top Utilities Lead the Way Out of Residential Scoring Slump

LIVONIA, Mich., Dec. 19, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — A new Cogent Syndicated report from Escalent finds that, for the first time since 2020, year-end utility customer engagement has improved. Although all major indices see year-over-year improvement, a significant Brand Trust gain has had the most impact on the Engaged Customer Relationship (ECR) score recovery, with improved scoring related to company reputation leading the index gain.

Those are some of the latest findings of the 2024 Utility Trusted Brand & Customer Engagement™ (UTBCE): Residential study, which tracks the performance of 142 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 data analytics and advisory firm with extensive energy, utility and brand experience.

After reaching a peak of 728 at the end of 2020, the residential ECR score had been steadily declining until it reached a record low of 700 in the first quarter of 2024. The score showed signs of a turnaround in the second quarter and ends 2024 at 708—a statistically significant six points higher than year-end 2023.

“We expected ECR and other UTBCE indices to course-correct after the scoring surge of 2020,” said Suzanne Haggerty, director of syndicated research with the Energy industry practice at Escalent. “When scores began to slide below prepandemic levels in early 2023, however, we realized that many utilities would have to take quick and decisive actions to reverse that trend.”

While industry engagement is finally trending upward and many utilities are starting to see healthier scores, 47 utilities are scoring well above their industry peers for building engaged customer relationships and have earned the title of Escalent 2024 Utility Customer Champion.

“These aren’t utilities that have suddenly started outscoring their peers in 2024,” Haggerty explained. “Most Customer Champions have higher scores now than they did prepandemic, meaning they held on to at least some of that 2020 scoring bump.”

Customer Champions outperform the industry average in several attributes, notably:

• Customer Champions have carefully guarded their company’s character and built goodwill within their local communities, contributing to 6% higher Company Reputation scores and customers who are more likely to report a willingness to say positive things about their utility.
• Customer Champions are providing transparent updates on their commitment to transitioning away from fossil fuels and supporting environmental causes, leading to 4% higher Environmental Dedication Index scores. Additionally, Customer Champions have made year-over-year progress in the index, gaining eight points as the industry score drops by one point.
• Customer Champions have effectively communicated to customers about system improvement plans, contributing to the 4% higher perception that their utilities are making investments to improve infrastructure safety and reliability. This is an important perception when rate cases are underway or increased rates begin to appear on the bill, since elevated perception of those investments correlates with 12% higher trust in utilities to set and communicate fair, reasonable rates.
• Customer Champions are ensuring customer awareness and understanding of a variety of voluntary offerings that offer everything from improved customer service to energy savings, seeing 5% higher Benefits Awareness Index scores and 4% higher customer perception of related communication.

Leading utilities that have protected their company reputations and continue to illustrate their value to customers with effective programs and clear communication about improvements are building engaged relationships.

Escalent is pleased to name these 47 utilities as our 2024 Customer Champions.

Cogent Syndicated 2024 Customer Champions*
Ameren Missouri	Mississippi Power
Atmos Energy – Midwest	National Fuel Gas
Atmos Energy – South	New Jersey Natural Gas
Avista	Nicor Gas
BGE	OPPD
Black Hills Energy – Midwest	OUC
Cascade Natural Gas	PPL Electric Utilities
CenterPoint Energy – Midwest	PSE&G
CenterPoint Energy – South	Peoples
Chattanooga Gas Company	Pepco
Columbia Gas – East	Piedmont Natural Gas
Columbia Gas – South	Puget Sound Energy
Columbia Gas of Ohio	Salt River Project
ComEd	South Jersey Gas Company
Con Edison	Southwest Gas
Delmarva Power	Spire Missouri – West
Dominion Energy South Carolina	TECO Peoples Gas
Elizabethtown Gas	TECO Tampa Electric
Enbridge Gas North Carolina	UGI Utilities
Florida City Gas Company	Virginia Natural Gas
Georgia Power	Washington Gas
Green Mountain Power	Wisconsin Public Service
Indiana Michigan Power	Xcel Energy – Midwest
Intermountain Gas Company

* Utilities named as 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 142 utilities surveyed.

East Region Utilities Customer Engagement Performance
Utility brand Name	Service provided	ECR score
PSE&G	Combination	735
BGE	Combination	717
Con Edison	Combination	717
Delmarva Power	Combination	717
PECO	Combination	713
National Grid	Combination	712
Eversource	Combination	690
NYSEG	Combination	657
RG&E	Combination	631
PPL Electric Utilities	Electric	731
Green Mountain Power	Electric	725
Pepco	Electric	720
Duquesne Light Company	Electric	703
West Penn Power	Electric	690
Penn Power	Electric	687
Penelec	Electric	682
Potomac Edison	Electric	676
PSEG Long Island	Electric	675
Jersey Central Power & Light	Electric	675
Met-Ed	Electric	674
Mon Power	Electric	667
Atlantic City Electric	Electric	665
Central Maine Power	Electric	622
Appalachian Power	Electric	615
New Jersey Natural Gas	Natural Gas	738
Columbia Gas – East	Natural Gas	732
Washington Gas	Natural Gas	732
Elizabethtown Gas	Natural Gas	731
UGI Utilities	Natural Gas	723
Peoples	Natural Gas	722
National Fuel Gas	Natural Gas	720
South Jersey Gas Company	Natural Gas	718
Philadelphia Gas Works	Natural Gas	711

Midwest Region Utilities Customer Engagement Performance
Utility brand name	Service provided	ECR score
Black Hills Energy – Midwest	Combination	762
Wisconsin Public Service	Combination	747
Xcel Energy – Midwest	Combination	742
NIPSCO	Combination	741
Montana-Dakota Utilities	Combination	724
Consumers Energy	Combination	723
Alliant Energy	Combination	716
Ameren Illinois	Combination	708
MidAmerican Energy	Combination	703
We Energies	Combination	696
Duke Energy Midwest	Combination	689
DTE Energy	Combination	686
CenterPoint Energy – Indiana	Combination	538
ComEd	Electric	728
OPPD	Electric	722
Indiana Michigan Power	Electric	711
Ameren Missouri	Electric	709
AEP Ohio	Electric	700
Ohio Edison	Electric	693
Evergy	Electric	691
The Illuminating Company	Electric	686
AES Indiana	Electric	681
Toledo Edison	Electric	679
AES Ohio	Electric	665
CenterPoint Energy – Midwest	Natural Gas	742
Nicor Gas	Natural Gas	729
Columbia Gas of Ohio	Natural Gas	728
Atmos Energy – Midwest	Natural Gas	726
Spire Missouri – West	Natural Gas	723
Spire Missouri – East	Natural Gas	718
Citizens Energy	Natural Gas	718
Peoples Gas	Natural Gas	714
Enbridge Gas Ohio	Natural Gas	710
Kansas Gas Service	Natural Gas	708

South Region Utilities Customer Engagement Performance
Utility brand name	Service provided	ECR score
Dominion Energy South Carolina	Combination	722
Louisville Gas & Electric	Combination	708
CPS Energy	Combination	687
MLGW	Combination	650
OUC	Electric	762
Mississippi Power	Electric	760
TECO Tampa Electric	Electric	748
Georgia Power	Electric	746
Southwestern Electric Power Company	Electric	737
Entergy Mississippi	Electric	737
Florida Power & Light	Electric	734
Entergy Arkansas	Electric	729
Public Service Company of Oklahoma	Electric	728
Alabama Power	Electric	722
Duke Energy Progress	Electric	721
JEA	Electric	721
Dominion Energy Virginia	Electric	710
OG&E	Electric	708
Duke Energy Florida	Electric	708
Nashville Electric Service	Electric	707
Duke Energy Carolinas	Electric	706
Entergy Texas	Electric	705
Kentucky Utilities	Electric	702
Xcel Energy – South	Electric	696
Entergy Louisiana	Electric	691
El Paso Electric	Electric	691
Austin Energy	Electric	680
Entergy New Orleans	Electric	651
FPL Northwest FL	Electric	638
Kentucky Power	Electric	627
Florida City Gas Company	Natural Gas	764
TECO Peoples Gas	Natural Gas	762
Columbia Gas – South	Natural Gas	759
Chattanooga Gas Company	Natural Gas	759
Virginia Natural Gas	Natural Gas	755
Piedmont Natural Gas	Natural Gas	752
Enbridge Gas North Carolina	Natural Gas	750
Atmos Energy – South	Natural Gas	750
CenterPoint Energy – South	Natural Gas	748
Texas Gas Service	Natural Gas	725
Spire Gulf Coast	Natural Gas	723
Oklahoma Natural Gas	Natural Gas	717
Spire Alabama	Natural Gas	715
Spire Mississippi	Natural Gas	685

West Region Utilities Customer Engagement Performance
Utility brand name	Service provided	ECR score
Avista	Combination	735
Puget Sound Energy	Combination	724
Colorado Springs Utilities	Combination	703
NorthWestern Energy	Combination	702
Black Hills Energy – West	Combination	700
Xcel Energy Colorado	Combination	696
PG&E	Combination	650
SDG&E	Combination	574
Salt River Project	Electric	776
Seattle City Light	Electric	730
SMUD	Electric	729
Los Angeles Department of Water & Power	Electric	728
Snohomish PUD	Electric	720
PNM	Electric	717
Tucson Electric Power	Electric	713
APS	Electric	712
Rocky Mountain Power	Electric	702
Portland General Electric	Electric	698
Idaho Power	Electric	695
Southern California Edison	Electric	693
Pacific Power	Electric	685
NV Energy	Electric	639
Cascade Natural Gas	Natural Gas	795
Intermountain Gas Company	Natural Gas	754
Southwest Gas	Natural Gas	751
SoCalGas	Natural Gas	734
New Mexico Gas Company	Natural Gas	716
NW Natural	Natural Gas	707
Enbridge Gas West	Natural Gas	692

For more information on the full report, click here.

About the Cogent Syndicated Utility Trusted Brand & Customer Engagement™: Residential study

Escalent conducted surveys among 59,377 residential electric, natural gas and combination utility customers of the 142 largest US utility companies (based on residential customer counts). The sample design uses a combination of quotas and weighting based on US census data 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 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 an award-winning data analytics and advisory firm specializing in industries facing disruption and business transformation. As catalysts of progress for more than 40 years, we accelerate growth by creating a seamless flow between primary, secondary, syndicated, and internal business data, providing consulting and advisory services from insights through implementation. We are 1,800 team members strong, following the acquisition of C Space and Hall & Partners in April 2023. Escalent is headquartered in Livonia, Michigan, with locations across the US and in Australia, Canada, China, India, Ireland, the Philippines, Singapore, South Africa, UAE, and the UK. Visit escalent.co to see how we are helping shape the brands that are reshaping the world.

Contact        
Stephanie Salvadero, 734.838.5192
[email protected]

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