Build Customer Loyalty (and Non-Meter Revenue) with Move Services
Loyalty will be critical in 2021 as utilities face more competition and dynamic regulatory environments. High levels of satisfaction (and revenue) are fostered by making it easy for customers to do business with you and by looking to your utility as a one-stop-shop for a range of services.
Research proves that movers want help
Research confirms this idea. A September 2020 report from utility industry analytics firm Chartwell shows that ease of doing business and customer satisfaction affects customer loyalty. The firm says that highly satisfied customers are almost twice as likely to stay with their utility if given the choice than unsatisfied customers.
As the saying goes, “you only get to make a good first impression once!” For almost everyone, packing up and moving a household is a chaotic, stressful, and fragmented process at best.
Think of everything that has to be done: set up electric and gas, choose an internet and security provider, buy furniture, pack and unpack boxes, and more. Over the course of a single move, a customer will have to talk to literally dozens of organizations in a very short period of time. And, most people don’t do it often enough to become “good” at it.
As a utility provider, your company is one of the first service providers to receive a call from a mover. That means your company is perfectly placed to make that all-important good first impression. After all, according to years of our internal data, “utility setup” is at the top of the to-do list for all movers, renters and owners alike.
What your utility can do
So, why not take advantage of the mover phone call to advise your new customer on all things home, including other items on their priority lists? By offering additional programs, products, services, and guides, you give your customer the chance to say “yes” to something. Of course, the best outcome is for a customer to sign up for an energy efficiency program or buy an appliance service plan from you. A “yes” response to those offers represent incremental income for your utility’s bottom line.
If the customer says no to your offer, at least you offered. And, who knows? A seed may have been planted if the customer decides in a month or two that she really does need that particular service after all.
Move calls are a great place to start when looking for incremental, non-meter revenue gains.
Research shows that movers are 4X more likely to try new brands during a move. Not surprisingly, brand loyalties become vulnerable during a move. After all, you try new things when you move. If that move is cross country, then almost every business relationship is a new one. That makes the move call the most optimal time for revenue from your programs, as well as customer acquisition and renewal of your programs.
At the same time, a 2019 Updater study found that 70% of movers say that a top goal of their move is to “settle in quickly.” Getting into their home and getting back to normal life is important to movers. New routines need to be established. It’s no surprise that when surveyed, movers say things like, “I care most about the things that make my adjustment easier.”
In their quest to get back to normal, a whopping 85% of movers will choose the first brand presented to them when making a decision. Few people enjoy living in the chaos that comes with moving. If it means settling in more quickly, customers are happy to try a new brand or service offering. We know that energy decisions can be made in a matter of seconds – we need to make sure that your programs, products, and services are front and center at this critical time.
Keep in mind that 85% of all large purchases made during a move are made pre-move. Things that need to kick in on day one in the new home must be purchased in advance, like internet, energy, a security system, a refrigerator, and so on.
So here is the opportunity: movers can only prioritize so much. As one of the first calls that a mover makes, you can enhance a customer’s loyalty, make that all-important good first impression—and enhance your utility’s bottom line with a new revenue stream—by offering mover services.
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