Enhanced weekly electricity reports

Every week ComEd, my electricity company, sends me a report on how much electricity I’ve used in the past week. This report is very helpful, because it compares this week to last week. If I changed any of my electricity habits, like not running the dehumidifier, I can see the impact right away.

Why weekly electricity updates work fantastically

1. Weekly frequency is key

If this was the normal monthly report, you could attribute the change in electricity to anything—most likely, the weather. Thus, you wouldn’t be able to isolate any of your behavioral changes to a reduction in electricity consumption. But with the weekly, I can see the impact right away. Like if I took down the Christmas lights, I can see next week what happens.

2. Percentage difference

Seeing that I used 143 kWh instead of 169 kWh is nice, but what does that really mean? Giving the percentage makes it a consistent method of comparison. 15% less! Wow! That’s incredible!

3. Social competition

Every Wednesday, these reports are emailed to customers. A friend of mine likes to message me a screenshot of his report when his electricity usage drops. That makes me immediately check my email to see my report so we can compare.

4. Encouraging messages

They even give encouraging messages like, “Great job! You used 15% less electricity this week than last week.” Hearing these positive reports makes me continue my good habits of turning off lights.

Now if they would just drop in fun background images for when my usage drops below 100 kWh, then that would make this all the more fun. And even worth sharing on social media!

How to further enhance the electricity update reports

When my friend was bragging about his usage dropping 10%, I said, “that’s nice”, and then shared this with him:

He had to ask if I was messing with him. Although, this is not an appropriate image, because this is a nuclear bomb. Not something to joke about. So let’s use something a little bit nicer, like some fireworks.

See how the center of the burst is intentionally placed right behind the “15%”? OH YEAH!

Interpret the meaning behind the fireworks in two different ways:

1. This could be a celebration. You did it! Hoooray!
2. The fireworks could ironically point to energy usage.

Either way, imagine opening up your email, and seeing this incredible message from your electricity company! Yippee!

Bigger award

I was thinking this fireworks explosion wasn’t big enough. In the background, it would be funny to photoshop in a trophy. Because it would be like saying, “Oh Matt Maldre,” *pats me on the head* “You did such a nice job! Here’s a trophy.”

What sort of trophy? Maybe the world’s biggest trophy ever! I googled: world’s biggest trophy

Look at the third image result. Ok, so it’s not the biggest trophy in the world. But it’s pretty darn close to being one of the BEST! Monster Victory Trophy. Get one for just $12. NO WAY.

Here’s what I would put on that plate:

15% electricity reduction
Mar 8, 2021 – Mar 14, 2021

May this week always be remembered.