It’s an understatement to say that energy messages targeting consumers come from all sorts of places – manufacturers, retailers, electricity providers, government, etc. – and through a variety of media, including email, TV, social media, mail, radio and more.

To learn more about consumers’ awareness of these messages and what leads them from awareness to engagement, the Smart Energy Consumer Collaborative (SECC) recently released the “Modern Energy Messaging: Transactions to Relationships” report, which was based on an online survey of 1,500 Americans who are responsible for household energy decisions.

Despite the noise in today’s landscape, the new research showed that consumers are most likely to recall energy-related advertisements or communications from their electricity providers. Fifty-five percent of consumers recalled messages from this source, followed by 30 percent who recalled messages from manufacturers, 28 percent for retailers and 18 percent for government.

In this month’s blog, we share three takeaways from the new research that highlight how consumers feel about communications from their electricity providers:

1. Most consumers find messages from their providers interesting.

Among the 55 percent of respondents who recalled messages from their electricity providers, the vast majority – 84 percent – found them to be either somewhat or very interesting. However, as seen throughout the new research, there’s a significant discrepancy between the Comfort Seekers, a consumer segment that represents 12 percent of the U.S. population and is mostly uninterested in energy-saving programs and services, and the other four consumer segments. Only 14 percent of Comfort Seekers found their providers’ messaging very interesting, while 53 percent of Connected Pragmatists and 47 percent of Green Pioneers – two younger segments that value technology and the environment – felt the same. While there’s certainly room to improve overall awareness of utility messaging, the messaging that’s out there today seems to be hitting the mark with consumers, particularly the younger demographic.

2. Nearly two-thirds say these messages gave them a positive impression.

Along similar lines, the new research found that messaging from electricity providers is leading consumers to think more positively about their providers. Among consumers who recalled messages from their providers, 61 percent said that these messages gave them a more positive impression, while 36 percent said there was no change and three percent said it led to a more negative impression. Again, we see similar trends with SECC’s five consumer segments – only a quarter of Comfort Seekers said that the messages led to a more positive impression, compared with 73 percent of the Connected Pragmatists and Green Pioneers. When looking at the data by age, we see that 80 percent of respondents from 18 to 34 years old said that their providers’ messages gave them a more positive impression.

3. There is a desire for more information on products, programs and services.

While electricity providers’ communications are resonating with many consumers, there is still room to offer additional information. Fifty-seven percent of survey respondents said that their providers currently offer enough information, with 21 percent saying “no” and another 21 percent being unsure. While we previously saw that the Connected Pragmatists are very receptive of their providers’ current messaging, this segment was slightly more likely to say that providers are not currently offering enough information (25 percent vs. 21 percent for the general population). When asked what other information on energy products, programs, or services they would like to see from their providers, respondents selected “a tool that shows all of the options that apply to me” and “more detailed cost analysis” as their top options, reflecting consumers’ desires for personalization and assistance evaluating the financial benefits of a program or technology.

The new research shows that, in general, electricity providers have done well in crafting and delivering messages that connect with consumers. However, there is still ample opportunity to improve messaging and its relevance to consumers’ concerns and help consumers move along their journeys from awareness to engagement.