Winter advertising – how energy suppliers plan to win over consumers

The competition amongst energy suppliers to win the hearts and minds of consumers has picked up a gear as temperatures plunge and winter adverts start rolling out across the UK’s TV screens. But what tactics are suppliers using to distinguish themselves from the pack? Lucinda Dann investigates.

How do you engage consumers in what has traditionally been a functional service sector without a visible product and delivered with little difference by each supplier? Judging by the recent launch of the sector’s winter advertising push the answer may be in focusing on new innovative product offerings and building brand recognition.

There are at least four energy adverts currently being shown, and one by British Gas’ active heating control product Hive. Each is very different as suppliers push to carve a unique identity, and engage a largely distrustful consumer, using classic mechanisms such as humour or mascots to draw the viewer in.

While many of the themes in the five adverts are similar, the adverts are trying to achieve very different aims strategically, according to brand consultancy firm Thebrandwalk’s Robert Salmon. British Gas is enforcing the brand positioning strategy of a greater consumer focus, and others include calls to action to move to a smarter way of controlling your energy use. Meanwhile SSE has harnessed the mass appeal of the rugby world cup to promote awareness of its brand.

The use of mascots in advertising is undergoing a renaissance, Salmon says, thanks to the polularity of adverts such as Compare the Market. Many of the most memorable adverts from the last thirty years, such as the Smash aliens, have featured mascots, making it a proven method for winning over consumers.

But it is also very difficult to argue with a penguin. That’s why cute and cuddly characters are a great way of communicating a brand’s message Salmon says.

“Cartoons and mascots are used as walking talking metaphors for the brand and help customers to connect with the utility in a different way”. Using a character allows brands to appear in disguise, and makes it difficult for consumers to attach their own poor customer experiences and cynicism to the message they are receiving.

Unsurprisingly energy suppliers, subject to a continuing lack of trust by consumers, have embraced this notion. Three of the TV adverts feature an explorer penguin, an amazed orangutan and ‘zingy’, the EDF flame that merrily jiggles about in the freezer in one advert and takes a dive into a bowl of grapes in another.

SSE’s advert heavily features an ape – named Maya – which may mystify many with her unobvious link to energy. But the endless close-ups on her eyes encourages consumers to look upon energy with “fresh eyes”, wiping away their own past experiences Salmon says.

But not all energy supplier have chosen this tact. Eon, in its advert promoting the new Eon Smart Pay As You Go smart phone product, has not hidden behind a likeable character but instead put a customer service representative front and centre. This is a key part of its branding message Eon’s head of marketing Daren Carter said. “For a while we have had a brand essence around the customer being at the heart of what we want to do, but also it’s our staff members that really bring that to life.

“We are not using a gimmick or mascot to deliver the message, we are trying to use a representation of what customers will experience with us.”

Following up on advertising messages with real-life experience is important, they cannot merely be “window-dressing,” drawing the viewer in to find empty promises. “Whatever you do must be authentic and credible to you who you are and what you do,” Salmon says.

The classic mechanism Eon has chosen to employ is the use of humour. Its “whenever, wherever” smart prepayment advert starts out in a completely relatable plausible scenario – a customer’s kitchen – but moves to increasingly bizarre and amusing situations.

Carter says “We are not using humour to be frivolous we recognise the whole energy market is a serious issue, but if you want to engage people, it’s a good way to get people’s attention. That’s why there is a humorous element without being slapstick or silly.”

Prepayment smart metering may be a technological revolution within the energy market, but could pale in significance amongst the barrage of competition for consumer attention during advert breaks. Ovo has therefore also chosen to use humour to grab attention with its own advert promoting a similar product.

Despite winter fast approaching only one advert makes reference to the changing seasons. British Gas’ “wondrous homes” advert features an explorer penguin wandering into a warm, lit home from the snowy cold.

The use of seasons Salmon says “creates a sense of continuity and being part of the natural rhythm of daily life.” This is key to the concept British Gas’ has been developing in recent times. It has positioned itself as the supplier dedicated to looking after consumers’ homes though its home services.

British Gas’ director of brand marketing Margaret Jobling said: “The warm and working campaign is a warmer, more customer-focused evolution of the Planet Home creative – demonstrating how much British Gas cares about helping its customers look after their homes.”

Staying clear of seasonal references also allows suppliers to extract maximum value from costly advertising campaigns which, in the context of a market where so few consumers actually switch, may be hard to justify. But Salmon says TV is a cost-effective medium for promoting consumer engagement. From his own experience at Yorkshire Water, Salmon knows that advertising does work for utilities. Website hits spike at the end of a TV advert.

Of course these TV adverts are just “the tip of the iceberg, to achieve real penetration they need to be part of an integrated multi-channel experience,” Salmon says. Carter says TV commercials are just one part of their campaign, they use a “whole host of digital channels.”

And having an exciting and engaging advert is just the first step Salmon warns. “You can’t make promises that aren’t true or backed up by your customer experience or the way you operate – even if it does comes from the lips of a cuddly animal or CGI animation.”