CHARGE is not primarily a utilities & energy conference but is also meant for companies that are actively pursuing to create value for their customers with energy branding; that is creating a competitive advantage with branding and marketing energy that they use. Energy efficiency is a big part of energy branding since the most valuable and sustainable energy is the energy that is never used.

The growing number of companies participating in initiatives such as RE100 has shown that sustainable brands are a part of the mainstream, sustainable brands are not primarily a part of niche marketing preaching to the already converted. Sustainable brands have become brands that have already established themselves in the homes of the everyday consumer.

Sustainable brands are pushing for access to 100% renewable energy and are either switching their supplier to secure sustainable energy or producing energy on their own. Some of the sustainable brands that have just entered the energy space are producing energy to offset their own usage due to the fact that they can’t procure 100% renewable off the grid or are simply producing renewable energy on-site.

These invaders to the energy space have not all the sudden become interested in becoming energy companies but are acting on the demand of their customers. Consumers today are concerned about the energy used to produce the products or services they use but the utilities have not acted quick enough to meet the demand of the sustainable brands. Instead of waiting for the utilities, the sustainable brands have acted to meet the demand of the consumer today or demand that sustainable brands foresee tomorrow.

Good brands are not reacting to the situation as it is today. Good brands try to predict the future and are quicker to market than the competition. The key lesson utilities and the energy industry in whole should learn from the sustainable brands is that if you don’t shape the future of your market, someone else will and the future will be theirs.