Tipmont REMC has already created a useful interactive page that allows customers to conveniently pay their energy bill online and track energy consumption from month to month. Indiana and Tipmont REMC currently have a few incentives available for personal energy savings tax credits. By using Energy Star qualified air conditioners, furnaces, programmable thermostats and water heaters, one is able to claim against state income tax, insurance premium tax, or financial institutions tax. Through previous case studies conducted, Princeton University Dept. of Psychology found that there must be a need to solve a negative situation, particularly in energy consumption environments. In a New Jersey city, a particular area was mailed information to implement a pre-programmed set-back thermostat in their homes. The expected reduction was only 10%, while the actual savings incurred was 18-47%. They found that by social diffusion, more people wanted to participate. We hypothesize once the E-Bill enhancements will take into effect, friends will tell friends of their online experience with the Tipmont REMC. We suspect active E-Bill users will be the first to adapt more quickly than users who will participate through the direct-mailing CD-ROM. This will be a simplified product that will show immediate value to the consumer and will catch on quickly between Tipmont REMC customers.
SUCCESSFUL INCENTIVES
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