The Challenge

npower wanted to ascertain what influenced their clients' decisions when selecting a contractor, what the key service points were whilst the contract was on-going, and to gauge the satisfaction of their social housing customers with account management, complaint handling and the overall level of service, as well as to highlight any areas for improvement. This was the second wave of a multiple-wave research project.

The Approach

DJS Research Ltd conducted semi-structured telephone interviews with npower’s social housing clients. The interviews were approximately thirty minutes in length and were conducted with individuals responsible for dealing with npower on a daily basis but from a range of client types within the social housing spectrum – i.e. housing associations, local authorities etc. In total, we achieved 17 interviews during this wave of the research.

The Results

DJS Research were able to provide npower with a detailed explanation of the energy provider’s satisfaction scores. Overall satisfaction with npower increased markedly between waves 1 and 2, with scores for customer service rising most notably. In addition, npower was rated more highly against a main competitor in this wave of the research, particularly in relation to the politeness of engineers. Satisfaction with account management, tenant satisfaction and value for money all also improved between waves 1 and 2.

The difference between the two waves highlights the value of market research to improving customer facing services and, through identifying areas of weakness, npower has successfully improved satisfaction with the service they provide.

Testimonial

"DJS are easy to work with. They understood what we were looking to achieve. The research was set up quickly and the results delivered on time and to budget."

Head of Marketing, npower