The residential energy landscape is changing fast. Across the country, homeowners are embracing potential distributed energy resources (DERs)—installing rooftop solar, adopting electric vehicles, integrating smart thermostats, and upgrading to high-efficiency appliances like smart water heaters. These technologies don’t just reduce consumption, they offer the flexibility and responsiveness that today’s grid needs.
As utilities continue to modernize and evolve toward a distributed energy future, a key opportunity is to engage residential customers who are already making energy-smart decisions. Helping them understand the value of enrolling in programs to realize the DER potential of their devices isn’t just good for the grid—it’s a chance to deepen relationships and reinforce the utility’s role as a trusted energy partner.
When customers invest in devices with DER potential, they’re moving toward energy independence and sustainability. They’re motivated, curious, and ready to engage. There’s an opportunity for utilities to meet these customers right where they are—helping them see how their devices can do even more when enrolled in grid-friendly programs.
This is about finding where customers’ interests overlap with those of the utility. After all, why should a customer help out their utility? It’s about aligning with their values. Whether it’s reducing peak demand, supporting local reliability, or receiving incentives for participation, potential DER owners are often eager to contribute when they understand the broader impact of their choices.
What’s needed is a clear, compelling, and consistent message: your utility is here to help customers maximize the benefits of their new devices while strengthening the resilience and affordability of the grid.
Customer engagement starts long before enrollment. It begins with product research, online “window shopping,” and conversations with contractors. Each of these touchpoints is a moment to educate, inspire, and build confidence in your programs.
Imagine a homeowner exploring your utility’s online marketplace for a smart thermostat. Instead of simply seeing a discounted price, they’re welcomed with a short, engaging video that explains how enrolling the device in a peak demand program supports grid stability—and earns them rewards in return. Add testimonials from local customers and a simple overview of how enrollment works, and suddenly a customer becomes a collaborator.
These moments matter. They shape how customers perceive their utility’s role in the clean energy transition—and how motivated they feel to be a part of it.
Storytelling is one of the most powerful tools utilities can use to drive engagement. Not just the story of savings and incentives—but the story of how individuals, neighborhoods, and entire communities can come together to power a cleaner, more reliable future.
By illustrating the tangible impact of participation—how smart devices help balance demand on the hottest days, or how a network of EVs can relieve strain during a peak event—utilities can make the value of these programs real and relatable.
This approach doesn’t just inform—it inspires action. And it reinforces the utility’s role as a community-focused, forward-thinking partner that’s leading the way in grid transformation.
At Franklin Energy, we work closely with utilities to design outreach strategies that build trust, educate effectively, and make enrollment easy. From digital marketplaces and personalized communications to in-home education and trade ally management, we help utilities create customer experiences that are as smooth as they are strategic.
We believe that every residential customer who enrolls in a DER program is opening the door to deeper collaboration. With the right message at the right moment, that door leads to participation—and to a smarter, more flexible grid.
Ready to engage your DER-participating customers more effectively? Let’s work together. Franklin Energy is here to help you turn interest into impact—one story, one connection, one enrollment at a time.
What's Coming Next in the Series →
Get ready to explore how experienced implementation partners can help you scale programs, support customer engagement, and transform DER potential into grid-ready performance with speed and confidence.