A Case Study: West Florida Electric Heats Up Back Burner Projects

May 6, 2021 by Julie Elliott, President

"Good luck getting John to leave the beach for a trip to Hickville!"*

On a trip to Florida recently, I made plans to stop by and see friends at West Florida Electric Cooperative (an Inside Info client for more than 20 years). Terry Mullen, Manager of Marketing and Communications, didn’t believe my husband would make the trek a couple of hours inland, but he did. The conversation and fried crab bites were worth it.

I wanted to share some insight about WFECA that I think should inspire us all.

In recent years, the co-op has been less active in using Inside Info’s research and communication services. Storms and their aftermath along with other pressing matters led to derailed intentions, but WFECA didn’t stay in that place. The team regrouped, identified next steps and began again. In the past three months, their impressive results have included:

• Premiering an online version of their monthly publication
• Promoting ways to pay, to help members take advantage of online bill payment options
• Targeting members who haven’t purchased WFECA surge protection with a special offer for May
• Promoting outage notification for spring storms
• Launching an all-member survey to gain insight into member preferences, attitudes and needs
• Scheduling monthly meetings with us to keep projects on track

The team at WFECA has proven that back burner projects can most certainly move up on the stove.

When you think of your wish list, do you feel dread or excitement? A bit of planning combined with determination to take the next step can move you quickly from the former to the latter.

If you’d like some help planning ways to better understand and engage with your customers, we’d love to brainstorm and share the good ideas we’ve gathered from co-ops from Florida to Washington!

*PS and Disclaimer:

Terry shared how he and his bride of more than 40 years had moved back to the area – her home – in the early days of their marriage which had been a wonderful decision for their family, so his reference to “Hickville” is a term of endearment.