Most businesses usually switch their business energy suppliers at least more than once after the expiry of their current energy contracts. They usually do this because they tend to make significant savings for their businesses. But it can be hard to choose the right business energy supplier for your business considering that there are many of them on the market.
These energy suppliers tend to offer unique services, so it makes sense to choose the one that meets the needs of your business. Besides, most business owners also worry that something may go wrong in the switching process. Worse still, switching business energy suppliers can be too much hassle and time-consuming. This article discusses switching business energy suppliers.
Choose a competitive business energy tariff
When you consider switching business energy suppliers, you should always focus on getting the right energy tariff that offers the best value for your business. With the energy crisis, there is a chance that energy prices will be increasing, so you have to think about the energy price before you make the switch. This is especially true now with the Russian invasion of Ukraine that has led to increased energy prices.
This applies more to small businesses that consider business energy as a huge cost to their businesses. In most cases, small businesses lose out by paying more on electricity and gas than the average costs across all business sectors.
This is usually because most small businesses are placed on their energy supplier’s standard deemed or default energy contracts. This can happen when your fixed-rate tariff expires, and you fail to shop around for a new tariff or even relocate and fail to agree to a new energy tariff for your business premises. Therefore, it’s crucial for a small business to contact its energy supplier or new energy suppliers so that it can get the right deal.
This can also be because the current business energy supplier is not offering you the best energy tariff when renewing your energy contract. In most cases, business energy suppliers may not offer loyalty, and can instead charge you a higher energy price when you decide to renew with them. Hence, if your business energy contract is about to expire, you should consider contacting an energy broker for help. In such cases, you can visit www.utilitybidder.co.uk to see how they can assist you in finding the right business energy tariff for your business.
You can also shop around and compare business energy suppliers and tariffs. In this way, you can check if your current business energy supplier is offering you the best energy rate before you decide to sign another contract.
Look for favorable payment options
Besides the initial energy price quote, favorable payment options can help your business energy tariff to be competitive. For instance, you can find some business energy tariffs that allow you to have more control over your energy management like flexible payment options. This can include having the option of how and when you need to top up your business energy balance. This can help you to manage your budget effectively and save money.
Remember that this can include the various payment options offered by the energy supplier. For instance, you can choose a business energy supplier that allows you to pay for your energy before they even receive the payment instead of a regular amount to be deducted monthly.
Some technologies like energy usage apps and smart meters can also work alongside certain business energy tariffs, making sure that you can save enough cash for your business. For example, a smart meter makes sure that you pay only for the energy your business actually uses. Incorporating strategies from Small Business Digital Marketing consultation can further optimize your business’s online presence and attract potential customers.
Opt for a business energy supplier with great customer service
As a business owner, there are some things that you can expect from a potential business energy supplier. This includes an easy-to-understand energy bill and access to your energy supplier when you want their help. Therefore, customer service should be one of the things that you don’t want to overlook. You should remember that poor customer service can lead to some problems for your business and wasted production time. This is the reason why you need to find out whether or not the potential energy supplier offers good customer service before you decide to make the switch.
Ofgem reported that the proportion of satisfied or very satisfied business energy consumers has decreased recently. This is especially true when it comes to customers’ experience with how easy it is to get in touch with their business energy suppliers. At least half of surveyed consumers stated that it was hard to contact their business energy suppliers.
Hence, you need to check the contact options for the potential business energy supplier before switching. For example, check if the energy supplier has an online live chat on their site or check if they have an energy app that is dedicated for communication. This can make it easier and quicker to contact an energy supplier.
But in some situations, it makes sense to pick up your phone and talk to a person. You can find some business energy suppliers that provide digital contact options. And, if you desire to speak with a human but cannot do it, it can be frustrating. Therefore, you should always make sure that the potential business energy supplier has contact numbers.
Billing is another area where most business energy suppliers fail to satisfy their customers. Whether you want to know how your billing works, have accurate bills, or have clarity on your billing, you need to make sure that the potential energy supplier can help. For instance, an energy app can provide 24/7 access to your billing, payments, and energy usage. You can also easily see everything in one place so that you don’t have unexpected surprises.
To figure out whether or not the potential business energy supplier offers good customer service, you need to check how they deal with you when talking about your needs. Ideally, you should see if there was a long call wait time or their friendliness while discussing the business energy quote.