The Challenge

United Utilities came to DJS to help it understand how best to communicate with customers in a manner that would reduce alarm when faced with a change to their water supply.

The organisation supplies over 7 million people with clean water via 42,000 kilometres of pipes. For a range of reasons, including maintenance work and the need to move water around their integrated network at times of drought or dry weather to ensure supply-demand, they sometimes need to supply customers in a slightly different way. On such occassions United Utilities may use and blend water from another treatment works which processes water from a different source.

As a result, some customers in pockets across the North West might have seen an impact on the taste, smell and appearance of their tap water.

The Approach

DJS were commissioned to qualitatively co-create the ideal messaging, tailored to specific audiences, with the aim of enhancing customer acceptability of water supply changes.

The project began with a rapid review of the literature, including UU’s past research, in order tounderstand more about key recurring themes that might aid this research.

This was followed by a staff workshop designed to educate United Utilities’ design staff on the benefits of behavioural science and to enable them to design iterations of customer comms, drawing on a set of key behavioural principles.

These comms were then tested with customers via a programme of reconvened focus groups and in-depth interviews across its operating region.

The Results

The research provided United Utilities’ comms team with clear guidelines and content and format changes that would lead to reduced alarm across its customer base and how to tailor comms for different audiences.

United Utilities