With the energy crisis, market conditions changed radically. Prices soared. At times, energy prices in the south, where E.ON was the dominating actor, were 5000% higher than in the north. Attitude towards all the energy companies changed overnight.

With creative strategy and an immediate hands-on approach, we had to help people lower their energy consumption and show empathy toward our customers situation. Above all, in all urgency, give them real solutions and hope.

Competitors were focusing on crisis communication, we went the other direction.

Background

By the winter 2022, Europe was thrown into a full-scale energy crisis with skyrocketing energy prices and unforeseeable consequences. Over consumption was a real threat to power shortages in the electricity grid.

In Sweden, the electricity grid market is regulated and E.ON is one of the biggest grid owners in the country. Suddenly everyone was interested in energy prices, but the understanding of the energy system was very low. The blame game arrived quickly, and the brand took a real beating.

Brief

Let people know that E.ON understands their consumers situation and give them a sustainable solution in lowering their energy consumption with the product ELNA.

Objectives

Restore and build consumer trust while guiding our costumers to reducing their energy consumption.

Sweden has a unique set-up for energy, with the country divided in to 4 different electricity price regions. When the energy crisis hit us, the region where E.ON is the domination actor was hit the hardest. It was the no 1 region in Europe, where the ratio between capacity (supply) and availability (demand) was the worst. Because the energy sector is traditionally a low-interest sector, there was no public knowledge about this, or the legislation behind it.

When people found out that they were paying sometimes 5000% more in the south, E.ON was suddenly in both public and media sentiment, the villain.

E.ON:s brand was therefore hit extremely hard, much harder than their local competitors.

The citizens of Sweden started to compare prices with each other and it became clear that in the southern parts of the country you could sometimes pay up to 5000% more for your consumption.

Sweden's politicians stepped in and promised that residents would receive financial compensation, but no one had a solution as to how this would happen. The ignorance and facts about how energy companies actually work made people extremely insecure and worried. And angry! With daily negative media coverage about how this affected the daily lives of all citizens, it couldn't get much worse.

The business challenge was immediate. Attitude towards the brand dived in direct correlation with negative media coverage and increases in energy prices. Every day, in real-time, major media outlets reported price differences between regions in the country. Competitors that offered flexible hourly rates recruited customers immediately, many of them from E.ON. And, suddenly, 2/3rds of the market were considering changing their energy provider.

The desired outcome? A turn-around. We had to stop the bleeding and find a new angle of communication where we were directly on the consumer’s side.

Built on the insight that there isn’t a conflict between the consumers wallet and saving the environment, we created a new efficiency premise – We can reverse the negative brand trend and improve attitude towards E.ON if we can help consumers lower their energy consumption and save money. We decided to, for real, lower people’s energy consumption.

Strategic process: We needed to find out:

1. Immediate consumer needs and how E.ON were lacking to fulfill these (Data: Customer satisfaction (sNPS), consumer segmentation and strategic positioning models (Odyssey), BrandTracker (YouGov))

2. The main trust factors. (YouGov)

We found an increased worry for affordability and price and capacity issues were main trust factors. Attitudes towards sustainability were stable, but not primary reason for choosing.

We also found positives; electrification as a trend and adaptation to new technique and digitalisation was growing.

The breakthrough moment came when we realized that we might be able to reverse the negative brand trend and improve attitude towards; if we can help consumers lower their energy consumption and save money. E.ON had the technique to do this, if we could break through the negative sentiment and find a way for people to listen.

To break through the noise, we needed a highly recognisable idea and to prove that we could solve everyday problems here and now.

We turned a 100% authentic energy experiment into a reality show on YouTube that followed the everyday life of a real, nine-person family of heavy energy users living in together in a house. Screens in every room, mini fridges, popcorn makers, hot dog machines and a fully equipped Twitch streamed night club garage.

Each episode of the reality show, The Jarnys, revolved around an energy saving mission using only E.ON’s products to follow energy consumption in real-time. We followed the devoted Papa Jarny, struggling to get the rest of the family onboard. Which is quite logical since they all love electricity gadgets, long hot showers, and a well-heated house.

Creative strategy and execution: if they could to it, anybody can do it!

Brand Strength: From 3.4 for the full year 2022 to all-time high 5.7 in June 2023, as our biggest competitors weakened and despite extremely negative media coverage. (YouGov BrandTracker)

17 833 082, minutes of content watched

+4 700 000, total reach for the series on YouTube

YouTube 6,30 minutes avg episodes:

View rate 72%, completion rate 30%

+90% completion rate for 15 second videos

Ad Awareness: Broke a 4-year record among residential customers (30.5%) and was the highest in a year among all Swedes (11.4%) without TV or OOH in the media mix.

Behavioral change: reduction of energy consumption in the most critical months (Nov 22–April 23): National average: 6.3%/E.ON's customers: 14.5%. (Via Reuters)

+43% in sales of E.ON Elna compared to target

Meta: Engagement rate for all Meta ads, all episodes: 23%

vs. E.ON benchmark of 9%. (This was the main KPI for E.ON on Meta)

Before the energy crisis, E.ON's brand communication focused on long-term visions linked to the green energy transition, and on encouraging people to contribute to it. To continue in the same way would be impossible. People were worried and angry, and attitudes towards E.ON and other energy companies changed overnight. We had to adapt quickly. But we realized that going by the book and focus on controlled and correct crisis communication, like many competitors, would risk to increase the distance to our customers. So, we did the opposite, by handing over our communication to a “worst-case”, struggling family. We went from long-term, abstract visions, to an immediate hands-on approach. Through the Jarny family we could show empathy and understanding with our customers situation, give them useful tips on energy savings, and above all, give them hope. Because if this family could make it through the crisis, any family could.