.
James Reilly
Electric Ireland
‘Powering Rewards –
small ways to energise our
customers’
The Electric Ireland story
2009
2011
2013
 100% of the electricity market under ESB Customer Supply.
 Competition was introduced – BGE, SSE Airtricity.
The Electric Ireland story
2009
2011
 Deregulation of the electricity market
 Launching a new brand name … Electric Ireland.
 While… launching into the gas market.
 And… launching campaigns to win back customers.
2013
The Electric Ireland story
2009
2011
2013
 Achieved our market share threshold.
 More competitors entering the market – Prepay Power, Energia.
 Created a stronger retention strategy including a loyalty programme.
Customer loyalty & retention
Competitive
Prices / Offers
Great Service
 Accurate, timely billing
 Contact centre excellence
 Self care, social care
Home Energy
 Advice on energy saving
 Energy usage info
A Loyalty /
Reward
Scheme
Bundling
 Dual Fuels
 Gas Boiler Service, Smart
Heating controls
 Best offers for existing
customers
Simplicity
 Simple offers
 Simple language
Why launch a loyalty programme?
 Reduce High Value customer churn.
 We listened - our customers wanted
value and be rewarded for their loyalty.
 We wanted to reframe value in the
customer’s mind – not just about price.
 Improve NPS scores.
 Offer something unexpected from an
energy company.
Developing our loyalty strategy
Series of workshops
with internal and
external
stakeholders.
Extensive
strategic planning
process over nine
months.
START
Review customer
segmentation &
data to identify
target groups and
potential offersand
rewards.
Research
customers
groups on
different
propositions.
MONTH NINE
What our research told us!
 Keep everything simple!
 Offer rewards that are genuinely of use
and of value.
 Importantly, the programme had to allow
customers save money on electricity and
gas bills!!
 Keep it fresh and updated!
Our challenges
 No retail presence so no face to face engagement to grow our
loyalty base!
 A large, diverse customer base with different interests and
expectations.
 Needed to deliver an online only solution.
 Making a utility interesting and relevant.
Finalising our framework
Our framework
Reward customers
when they participate.
Integrate the loyalty
programme into
all customer facing
business areas.
Use communication
to show relevance &
understanding
Offer rewards that
are better than they
can get anywhere
else.
Activate our
sponsorship activities
& bring them to loyal
customers.
Update regularly to
keep the programme
fresh.
Three key pillars to the Programme
Powering Rewards
SuperValu
Real
Rewards
partnership
Competitions
incl.
Sponsorship
activations
Regular
3rd Party
treats & offers
3rd party offers needed to be….
Ideally Irish.
Available nationwide.
Unique offers OR the best available on the market.
Seasonal & relevant to our customer segments.
Mix between free rewards and strong offers.
The right brand fit for Electric Ireland.
Offer a simple idea to make life better!
What offers have been available?
Competitions incl …
Free rewards from
Woodies
 VIP trip to the Graham
Norton Show
 Bedding plants.
 The ultimate VIP trip to
Electric Picnic
 Energy efficient lightbulbs
Offers with brands incl ..
Other rewards incl …
 Bosch
 Free €20 SuperValu gift card
 Eason
 Free Lindt chocolate at
SuperValu
Powering Rewards
 Christmas decorations.
 Lifestyle Sports
 Irelandhotels.com
 Free Ice cream at your local
SuperValu
Launching Powering Rewards
Think of all your touchpoints!
 Ensure support and buy-in from senior
management.
 Identify all customer touchpoints across
the business and integrate into your
programme.
–
–
–
–
–
Call centre staff
Social media channels
Sales teams
Billing
IVR
 Keep all internal stakeholders updated
on progress before, during and after
launch.
Launching Powering Rewards
TV
campaign
Outdoor
(SuperValu)
Social
Media
Radio
Launch
SuperValu
CRM
March 2014
POS at
SuperValu
stores
Internal
launch
Public
Relations
Digital
Our website – poweringrewards.ie
Powering Rewards
Sample of our campaign creatives
Public Relations - KOI campaign
 Engaged with influential customers
on Twitter.
 Ran a surprise and delight
campaign using the hashtag
#poweringrewards.
 Amplified awareness of the
programme among their social
media followers.
 Campaign reached 4.5 million
people and trended on Twitter.
Impact & engagement
How have we done?
 Over 100,000 customers registered within the
first nine months.
 €1.5 million saved by Electric Ireland
customers on energy bills.
 Engagement levels are double original target.
 Churn rate for members 30% better than
standard business.
 NPS score significantly higher than standard
business scores.
The future
 Evolving our programme for the future.
 Stay in tune to what our customers want
to ensure the programme can deliver.
 Grow customer numbers and engagement
levels further in 2016.
Thank you.