Let’s face it, we are all busy. And busy people prioritise. Making the effort to proactively engage with my energy retailer doesn’t come very high on my to-do list right now.

In the 15 months that I have been a customer of my latest electricity supplier, I’ve never found time to visit their website until today (and only then to research this blog). Wow, they have launched new feed-in-tariffs and information on solar power subsidies. There are smart metering rollout plans for my area and they have some cool new loyalty program partners.

But somehow, I do find time to book (low cost) flights for an impulsive weekend away and buy too many (not so low cost) new shoes.  It’s the age of the smart phone. Information pushed to me, customised to my preferences and above all, instantly actionable.

If you want me to engage with you, it needs to be on my terms. Give me an app.

Start with the easy stuff.

I’m over estimated bills. I’d like to read the meter for you - with my phone of course.
Let me view my consumption, check how I did against last month, and pay with one click now, before I forget.  Bill query? A ‘click-to-call’ function with context would be great so I don’t have to give all my details to the call centre rep.  British Gas, Bord Gais and TXU are continually revamping their apps to include more of these ‘must have’ features.

Power out at home? An alert would be nice, with some idea of when it might be back on. Why not include a handy guide for what to do in a power cut. Can’t find a torch? Link me to a flashlight app.

Or let me report an outage, a suspected gas leak or a power line hanging dangerously close to a tree. I can even send you a photo. The DTE Energy Outage Center app  is a great example.

Let me know you care
Yes, I’m creditworthy and an average power user. But you know me better than that. I live in the sunniest part of the country. How much might I save with those solar panels and a feed in tariff? Tell me, I won’t get around to asking. That much? Now I’m interested. And I’ve got 5 minutes to talk. Connect me straight through to the solar specialist.

I might have been a forgetful payer in the past but my last 12 payments have been on time. Reward me. Send me a cinema voucher. No not by post, I always misplace those. In fact, load up my rewards and loyalty points on my smart phone and let me spend my voucher or points on the go. Just like the Starbucks app.

And now, as I like you so much, make me an ambassador. Check out Bounce in Texas who reward their “Ambassadors” if they let Bounce post new energy promotions or blogs on their Facebook page. Soon, Bounce’s customers will be able to refer friends through their app with credit loaded on their account for every successful switch.

Help me to help myself

Smart meter installed. Now what? A daily view of consumption?  Powershop in New Zealand has a nice little app for that. Targeted at consumers who buy prepaid electricity, the app even lets you buy energy when you want, tells you how much you have left and ‘pushes’ special offers out to loyal customers.

How about an alert when a peaking event is imminent or I’m close to my low tariff threshold? And give me some suggestions on how to keep consumption down. Even better, track my usage and show me, on a nice graph. US based People Power has a new app that does just that in real time. The customer can set targets, monitor progress and is given actionable energy efficiency tips.

But I want specifics. How much I should I be able to save by lowering my air con thermostat by 2 degrees, insulating my water tank or opting for a different rate or package. Click. Tariff change done and water tank wrap ordered. But I don’t know how to wrap my tank properly. A link to a youtube video with step by step instructions would be great.

Pat me on the back for my efforts. Even better, make it fun. SDG+E and Simple Energy in California have turned energy savings into a social gaming experiment with neighbours competing for daily prizes. 

Of course you can’t stop there. There are already smart phone apps available to remotely control thermostats such as this one from TXU in Texas, or apps that even manage all the power appliances in the home. 

But let’s face it. The vast majority of homes don’t have that degree of connectivity, yet.

But the time to engage me is now. Let me use my smart device to do the little things better. And at the same time, learn how I use it to interact with you. So when ‘Smart’ energy management enabled homes is a reality, we are both ready.