Energy Trust: NERA’s 2025 Report on Customer Loyalty

There’s so much bad information out there about energy price swings and how they affect customers. Knowing how these dynamics actually work is the only way you’ll keep your clients’ trust.

Myth 1: Customers only care about the lowest price.

So many people in this industry think it’s all about having the lowest price. It’s not. While cost is a big deal, it’s rarely the only thing that determines if a customer is happy or stays loyal. A 2025 report from the National Energy Retail Association (NERA) showed that things like reliability of service, bill clarity, and good customer support often matter more than small price differences, especially when the market is volatile. I’ve personally seen a small price hike, when communicated badly, cause a mass exodus of customers, while a much bigger increase explained with transparency and a bit of empathy was accepted with almost no fuss. Your customers aren’t all the same. Some will pay more for green energy, others just want a predictable bill every month, and a huge number just want to understand what they’re paying for. Chasing the “lowest price” sends providers down a rabbit hole of price wars that kill margins and prevent any real, long-term relationships from forming. For the customer, real value is about more than the tariff per kilowatt-hour. It’s the whole experience: how easy is it to see their usage data, how quickly does someone respond during an outage, and do they feel like their provider is actually on their side? Ignoring these things to shave a few cents off the price is a strategic mistake that just leads to higher acquisition costs later.

Myth 2: Customers don’t read communication about price changes.

This is usually just an excuse for lazy communication. Sure, not every single customer is going to read every word of every email, but that’s often the fault of the message itself, not the customer. A 2024 HubSpot Research study (HubSpot Research) found that emails with clear subject lines and short, benefit-focused content get way higher open rates. When it comes to their energy bill, customers absolutely want to know what’s going on. The real challenge is getting them that information in a way that’s easy to digest, understandable, and on time. Good communication isn’t just blasting out a generic legal notice. You have to use segmentation, personalization, and multiple channels. For example, sending a personalized email that shows the exact impact on that specific customer’s average bill, maybe with a follow-up in-app notification or an SMS for people who didn’t open the email, makes a world of difference. I’ve had clients build interactive tools into their customer portals that let people model how the new tariffs will affect them based on different usage patterns, which turns a scary announcement into an educational moment. The idea that customers just ignore these messages usually comes from providers who write in jargon, bury the important info in fine print, or don’t bother to explain *why* the price is changing in the first place.

Myth 3: Transparency about price fluctuations always leads to complaints.

This myth is the most damaging because it makes companies scared to be proactive. The fear is that the second you mention a price increase, the phones will light up and social media will explode. The reality is totally different. You’ll always get a few complaints, but it’s the lack of transparency that creates real distrust and anger. When a customer is surprised by a high bill, they’re not just frustrated about the money. They feel betrayed. An IAB report (Interactive Advertising Bureau) on brand trust shows over and over that people value honesty, even if the news is bad. My experience backs this up completely: companies that take the time to explain *why* prices are changing (like shifts in wholesale costs, new infrastructure projects, or government regulations) and give people a clear timeline and ways to manage the increase (like energy-saving tips) do much better. They still get calls, but the calls are people asking for clarification, not people yelling. The trick is to frame it as an update from a partner. You can even include links to outside sources that verify the market conditions you’re talking about, proving that it’s not just you.

Myth 4: Customer service should only react to inquiries about pricing.

If you just sit back and wait for the calls to come in, you’re going to swamp your call centers and torch customer satisfaction. It’s a terrible strategy. In times of price volatility, a reactive approach means your agents are always behind, leading to long hold times, frustrated staff, and angry customers. And believe me, the cost of handling a flood of reactive complaints is way higher than what you’d invest in proactive communication and some decent self-service tools. Customers today expect you to be ahead of their questions. This means anticipating what they’re going to ask and having the answers ready before they even have to pick up the phone. For instance, right after announcing a price change, you should have an updated FAQ section with deep explanations, a dedicated webpage with an interactive calculator, or even a short webinar. I’ve seen providers get great results by deploying AI-powered chatbots on their sites and apps to instantly answer the most common pricing questions, which frees up human agents to handle the really complicated stuff. According to (Nielsen) data, companies with strong self-service options see a big jump in customer satisfaction and lower operational costs. Moving from a reactive ‘wait for the call’ mindset to a proactive ‘get the info out there’ strategy is essential for keeping your customers loyal.

Myth 5: All customers interpret energy usage data the same way.

This thinking assumes everyone knows what kilowatt-hours are and can make sense of a consumption graph, which just isn’t true. A lot of people find their energy bills confusing, and throwing a bunch of complex data at them only makes it worse, especially when prices are going up. A 2025 study found that almost 40% of consumers have trouble understanding the basic parts of their energy statements. Simply showing them the raw numbers is useless. Communicating usage data effectively means you have to present it intelligently and give people insights they can act on. You need to break down their consumption into categories they understand (like heating, cooling, or appliances), compare their current usage to what they used last year or to similar homes in their area, and give them personalized tips. For example, instead of just showing a usage spike, a smart portal could say, “Your heating use went up 15% last month. Have you checked your insulation or tried setting your thermostat 2 degrees lower?” This turns data into a tool customers can use to control their bills. Providers that invest in good dashboards and AI-driven advice build a ton of goodwill, particularly when prices are unstable.

Myth 6: Digital communication alone is sufficient for all customers.

While digital is efficient and a lot of people prefer it, it’s a huge mistake to think it works for everyone. There’s a big slice of your customer base, especially older folks or people in rural areas with spotty internet, who still rely on traditional communication. Going digital-only can completely alienate these customers, making them feel ignored and adding to their frustration when a price change hits. Think about it: suddenly switching to email-only notifications for a price hike can cause real problems for someone who rarely checks their email. I always push for a multi-channel plan that respects how different customers want to be contacted. That might mean keeping paper statements as an option, sending major updates by postal mail, or using automated phone calls for the most critical news, especially for people you’ve identified as not being very active online. The goal must be inclusive communication. Digital transformation is important, but it can’t come at the cost of leaving some of your customers behind. Real customer experience is about meeting people where they are, not trying to force them all onto one platform. Getting through price volatility while keeping customers happy means having a communication plan that’s proactive, transparent, and empathetic enough to meet individual needs and build lasting trust.