Ever wondered what a typical energy experience might look like for consumers in five years’ time? With climate change, volatile energy prices and technological development all unfolding at pace, the energy market is being completely redefined and we are relying on retailers to lead the way forward. Much of this will be in reshaping their relationship with customers and supporting them on the path to decarbonisation.

Imagining the future reality of an energy customer can help retailers prepare for the spectrum of changes they need to make in order to deliver the services modern customers will come to expect. In this article, we picture Rob, a marketing professional living near London. Let’s explore what his energy consumption looks like on a typical day…

Wednesday 13th March, 2030

7.30am

Rob sips and savours his morning coffee as he gazes out of the window. Gone are the days when he hurried out of the house at high speed to avoid spiralling heating costs. He hops into the shower. With his heat pump providing plenty of hot water, he no longer needs to schedule it to be available at specific times – a huge relief given his ever-changing routine.

8am

Thanks to his washer dryer running automatically overnight when electricity was cheapest, his clothes are clean and dry for one third of what it would have cost on a Saturday morning, and has slashed the amount of carbon emissions that would have otherwise been produced. Using an app that links his smart devices with his energy company, Rob loves how he can set and forget about the running of all the appliances in his home. He feels safe in the knowledge that his home’s smart energy system, installed and managed by his energy company, will do the hard work for him in picking the cheapest and greenest time to use energy, which fluctuates depending on how much wind and solar energy is available. After all, he doesn’t have an in-depth knowledge of the energy system – he has enough to think about!

With his energy company optimising his energy use, Rob has saved hundreds of pounds on his energy bills despite swinging energy prices.

8.15am

Checking the weather, Rob sees it will be a sunny day which means that, even in winter, some of his heating will be from the electricity generated through his solar panels – reducing his energy bill even further. During the summer, Rob is able to cool his home for free with his solar panels and connected heat pump. Without this tech, Rob would have had to move up north to cooler climes due to the intensity of southern summer heat waves.  

Not only have summers got hotter, they have become more changeable too. Rob’s smart home system adapts to temperature changes to keep his environment just right without having a major impact on his energy costs.

8.30am

Rob has to drive 25 miles to visit a client. Pressing his car on, he notices the full green battery light up on his dashboard. There’s a new feature that connects his car with his calendar and calculates how much charge his car will need to get from A to B – with an additional 20% in case his plans change. Like his washer dryer, Rob’s EV is optimised to charge overnight, minute by minute, based on when energy is lower in price and more likely generated by renewables.

Rob is pleasantly surprised when he finds out that, not only is the car fully charged, but he has credit on his account – there was excess wind generation at his nearest wind farm last night and his car was able to export spare power to help keep the network balanced. He’s not really sure how it all works, but it’s helping him pay back the cost of the charging point he had installed and he’s happy to be using green energy. The cost of the charging point, his EV charges and energy consumption are all combined within a single bill which makes his life admin so much easier to manage.

6pm

Arriving home, Rob plugs his EV in and calls his parents. He helps them get set up with a new V2G scheme for EV drivers in their area. This will enable them to sell their unused energy back to the grid. They love the idea of further savings on their EV and helping to wean the grid off dirty power. He advises them to go onto their energy company’s website to find out more. There’s plenty of information on there and even a chatbot which helps them understand their eligibility and suggests a call back from an agent to talk them through the process.

Rob has been impressed by how knowledgeable and helpful his energy company has been in setting up his home with new tech, which is why he encouraged his parents to get in touch with theirs. A few years ago, he had never really thought about ways he could be more energy efficient… paying his bills was always a chore that he wanted to complete as quickly and as painlessly as possible.

After getting an email about a free energy efficiency consultation, he took up the offer. Next thing he knew he was on his way to solar and heat pump installation – he was, at first, sceptical of the upfront expense but the mobile app from his energy company was able to break down the costs, specific to his household, so he could clearly understand his repayments over time and when he would start saving. It even suggested direct debit changes so he didn’t have to create different payment methods.

All in all, Rob feels empowered to make smarter decisions around his home energy which save him money and help protect the planet.

What can we learn from future Rob?

To reach net zero, today’s passive energy consumers will need to become active prosumers like Rob. How we engage these customers and guide them through the steps to decarbonising their homes is the challenge of our generation. Technological advancements from demand response to more user-friendly digital experiences and AI are proving powerful tools for retailers in personalising their customer interactions and innovating impactful, low-carbon products. Onwards to 2030!