As mentioned earlier in this series, Inside Information began as a simple idea jotted on a napkin. Through hard work and tenacity—one of our core values—we’ve grown to serve more than 50 actively subscribed cooperatives. One of these co-ops, Lake Region Electric Cooperative (LREC), has been with us since the very beginning.

As both Inside Information and LREC have grown, our partnership has evolved. Over the years, we’ve worked with many wonderful people there, as team members have retired, been promoted, and new faces have joined. This summer, our long-time contact Larry Mattes was promoted to Director of Marketing and introduced us to Kristen Mallett, who has since stepped into his former role. We’re grateful for the opportunity to continue collaborating with both of them and the entire LREC team.

Most recently, LREC’s fiber subsidiary expanded its network in Fort Gibson, Oklahoma. We worked with their marketing team to develop emails and postcards informing members about the fiber timeline. Other notable projects include their Value of Electricity campaign—highlighting the consistent value of electricity even during a rate increase—and the annual legislative appreciation dinner they co-sponsor with the Electric Cooperatives of Green Country.

At Inside Information, we’re honored to support LREC and all our cooperative partners. Thank you for the trust and collaboration that power our shared success.

Warm wishes for a happy and restful Thanksgiving,
The Inside Information Team

Featured Idea: Legislative Appreciation Dinner Email

Earlier this year, LREC, along with several other cooperatives—including some of our subscription co-ops, Cookson Hills Electric Cooperative, East Central Oklahoma Electric Cooperative, and Ozarks Electric Cooperative—hosted a Legislative Appreciation Dinner. This annual event is a wonderful opportunity to thank local legislators and strengthen relationships with those who advocate for cooperatives on Capitol Hill.

Preview the email >>>

At Inside Information we’re always looking for ways to stay ahead of emerging threats and protect the information that matters most. That’s why we’ve partnered with Blue Tree Technology, a trusted leader in cybersecurity, to strengthen our systems and ensure your data remains secure.

We’re committed to taking proactive steps—like enhancing our threat monitoring and reinforcing data protection practices—so you can have confidence that your cooperative's information is in safe hands.

Thank you for trusting us as your partner. Together, we can keep security top of mind this month and beyond.

If you are interested in partnering with Blue Tree Technology for your cooperative's IT/security support needs, learn more about them by visiting their website.

Featured Idea: Cybersecurity Awareness Month Email

Showcase the ways your cooperative is protecting members from cyberattacks and provide your members with practical tips to stay safe online. Reach out to the Inside Info team, and we will personalize this email for you!

Preview the email >>>

To make it easy, we have created four pre-written templates that are ready to use and easy to customize with your co-op’s logo and local updates.

The emails are designed around timely themes, with each week highlighting a different aspect of the cooperative difference.

To make them even more engaging, we’ve added an interactive survey that can be dropped right into your message.

Test your Cooperatives Principles knowledge! 

By combining professional messaging with interactive features, these emails are designed to celebrate Cooperative Month in a way that builds awareness and engagement. Whether you use all four or just pick the ones that fit best, you’ll have fresh, polished content ready to share with your community.

Email #1 - What is a Co-op?
Subject: We are Powered by YOU 
Link: https://www.inside-info.com/resources/samples/250915-co-op-month-email-1.html
Preheader: Celebrate National Co-op Month with Oak Hill Electric

Email #2 - Member Benefits/ Capital Credits
Subject: Learn Your Benefits as a Member!
Link: https://www.inside-info.com/resources/samples/250915-co-op-month-email-2.html
Preheader: Celebrate National Co-op Month with Oak Hill Electric

Email #3 - Rates/ Affordability
Subject: Keeping Electricity Reliable & Affordable 
Link: https://www.inside-info.com/resources/samples/250915-co-op-month-email-3.html
Preheader: Celebrate National Co-op Month with Oak Hill Electric

Email #4 - Concern for Community/ Youth
Subject: Lighting the Way for Our Community
Link: https://www.inside-info.com/resources/samples/250915-co-op-month-email-4.html
Preheader: Celebrate National Co-op Month with Oak Hill Electric

Want to know what members are thinking? Instant Polls let you gather one-click feedback right from your email.

• Engage instantly: Members vote with a single click on a CTA link or button in your emails. This component can be added and set up through your Vortex, no separate survey needed.
• Real-time results: Polls display live percentages on a branded landing page with your logo and custom intro text.
• Actionable insights: Export the full list of who voted and how they voted to follow up or re-target messaging.
• Important note: Polls only work in a live send (not in test emails or hyperlinks), and are limited to single-choice responses.

A recent example from Truestream: 

Table of Contents: A Better Way to Navigate Long Newsletters

For emails packed with information—such as board updates, event recaps, or multi-section newsletters—a Table of Contents helps members get to the content they care about quickly.

• Easy navigation: Links at the top let readers jump directly to specific sections.
• Improved readability: Makes long emails feel less overwhelming and more accessible.
• Device considerations: Due to a known Gmail mobile glitch, we sometimes leave the Table of Contents out of the mobile view to ensure a smooth reading experience.

When it comes to email credibility and deliverability, who your message comes from matters just as much as what it says. That’s why using a shared sender address like returns@inside-info.com can hurt your chances of reaching the inbox. Gmail and other providers see generic addresses as promotional—and your members may too.

Why this Matters

• Deliverability – Shared sender addresses are more likely to be filtered into Promotions.
• Credibility – Members trust emails that come from your co-op’s own domain.
• Engagement – A familiar sender address makes members more likely to open and interact with your messages.

The Best Practice

We recommend creating a simple, branded sender address such as hello@yourdomain.com or maybe marketing@yourdomain.com. This approach avoids cluttering employee inboxes with bounce-backs while making your communications look professional and trustworthy. However, you may want to sift through the many auto response emails to monitor for legit communications from your members.

To support this, our team will work directly with your IT department to:

• Set up a subdomain (e.g., contact.yourdomain.com) for clean unsubscribe links.
• Update your SPF record to authorize sending from our servers.
• Whitelist our IPs to ensure messages are not blocked.

Plan B: We Have You Covered

We understand not every IT team can prioritize these changes right away. For clients still using returns@inside-info.com, we have a fallback: we’ll create a dedicated sender address such as yourcoop@inside-info.com. While not as ideal as sending from your own domain, this ensures your members still receive communications under your name instead of a generic shared address.

Your message deserves to be seen—not hidden away in Gmail’s Promotions tab. At Inside Info, we understand that strong deliverability is the foundation of effective member communication. That’s why we continually refine our processes and share best practices to keep your emails front and center.

Here are a few of the factors we watch closely:

• Sending patterns – Large batch emails can look like campaigns to Gmail. We help you manage volume and cadence strategically.
• Content signals – Certain phrases, layouts, and heavy HTML styling are red flags for Promotions. We advise on formatting that keeps your message professional yet member-friendly.
• Sender setup – Using shared addresses like returns@inside-info.com can reduce credibility. We’re actively helping clients transition to domain-specific sender addresses that boost trust.
• Member interaction – Engagement matters. The more members open, click, and move your emails to Primary, the better your future deliverability becomes.

Some might call that crazy. We call it our way of doing business. For 30 years, Inside Information has been about helping cooperatives better understand their members. We bring data together, enrich it with surveys and research, and then use it to craft communication that connects.

Today, many of our clients are taking fiber beyond their electric borders, stepping into competitive new markets. We’re right there with them—conducting market research on existing providers, securing prospect lists in soon-to-launch zones, and building campaigns that cut through the noise. From design and launch to ongoing evaluation, we share best practices from across the industry to set our clients up for success.

So as you head into budget season, remember: we’re here to help you stretch your dollars further while fueling smarter growth. Let’s connect for a 30-minute call to see what other cooperatives are doing and talk through pricing for services that fit your needs, including:

• Survey projects – non-subscriber, satisfaction, energy use, employee feedback and more
• Full-service subscription – unlimited research and targeted communication on demand

Because at the end of the day, our mission hasn’t changed in 30 years: helping you know your members, communicate with impact, and lead with confidence.

Featured Idea: Referral Programs

Have a program or service that you want more members to utilize? Nothing beats word of mouth promotion. Consider a referral program campaign that incentivizes current users and might even gain you a few more!

Refer a Friend to Fiber Examples:

First Electric Cooperatve/Connect2First Sample >>>

Pea River Cooperative Sample >>>

connectSCP Sample >>>

We do. There was a time when our team criss-crossed the country for quarterly client meetings. While there’s nothing quite like an in-person brainstorming session, the journey there could be…eventful. From tornado sirens to winter road slides, our travels were never boring. And neither were the meetings! We shared ideas, laughter and a cold cup of milk if we were in Iowa.

Fast forward to today—and many of those same conversations now happen virtually. Our regular client calls involve more team members, keep projects moving forward, and ensure we’re ready for your upcoming opportunities and challenges.

Still, there’s something special about meeting face-to-face—and fall remains packed with opportunities to do just that.

Catch Us at These Upcoming Events

Inside Info team members will be attending the following conferences this fall:

• PowerSouth Fall Focus
• ODEC Cooperative Exchange
• Corn Belt MEETING NAME
• Arkansas Member Services Association
• Association of Large Distribution Cooperatives
• Georgia Member Services Association

If you’ll be there too—let’s connect!

Save the Date: Insight 2026

Many of you have asked—and yes, it’s back! Our Insight Conference returns March 30 – April 1, 2026—no joke!

Registration: $649. Stay tuned for more details this fall.

Featured Idea of the Month: Meeting Support That Goes Beyond the Agenda

Whether you're hosting a local annual meeting or a topical webinars, we can help promote your event, coordinate email campaigns, and follow up with post-event surveys.

Check out our featured annual meeting email and our featured annual meeting follow-up survey email.

Poll: What’s Your Favorite Meeting—and Why?

We’d love to hear what makes your top meeting memorable. Enter and you might be our next monthly treat recipient – we have 5 chances left to win!

Enter our poll >>>

From those early days of hardcoding to today’s computing power at your fingertips, the tech world has changed dramatically — and we’ve kept pace every step of the way.

So, with all these do-it-yourself tools out there, why do co-ops still choose to work with us?

It’s not about skills — our clients know their way around technology. It’s about time.

By handing off strategic communication and research projects to us, they get more time for things like…

• Strategic thinking
• Talking to an actual co-worker
• Leaving work on time
• Digging into member insights
• Finishing a cup of coffee while it’s still hot
• Planning ahead (imagine that!)

Whatever you do with your reclaimed time, we’re just glad to be part of your solution — and your story — for the last 30 years.

Poll: What's Your Favorite Computer Program?

What's your favorite computer program and why do you love it so much? Let us know your go-to application for saving time. When you do, you'll be entered to win this month's sweet treat!

Enter our poll >>>

Featured Idea of the Month: Emergency Templates

Don't panic in times of emergency! Plan ahead to avoid the sweat! Consider building planned maintenance, severe weather, or energy emergency alert (EEA) email templates ahead of time.

We can even set you up with your own Vortex template for emergency after-hours or weekend communications. You'll gain the ability to create emails on the fly. It's as simple as swapping out the text—no additional design required.

See sample EEA email >>>

Submit a project request or email us to request template designs for your co-op!

The spirit of joy and play has always been a cornerstone of how we collaborate, connect, and create.

It’s so important to our company ethos that our #1 core value is: We are fun team players that don’t take ourselves (too) seriously. We bring a playful spirit to work, work together to get things done, and are genuinely interested in others’ cares and concerns.

Why Play Still Matters

At the recent NRECA Connect Conference in Kansas City, keynote speaker Marli Williams reminded us why play isn't just nostalgic—it’s necessary. Her message? Play is powerful. Especially in uncertain times.

“Play and joy are the antidote to burnout,” she said. “Happiness is a fleeting emotion, but joy comes from within.”

That really resonated with me. As Marli explained, play isn’t frivolous—it’s restorative. It’s a practice, much like meditation. It’s productive, healing, and vital to creativity and well-being. She encouraged us to build a personal “playlist”—a list of activities that bring us joy—and to make them a priority. Mine? Pickleball, water aerobics, LEGOs, painting, video and board games.

It was a great reminder that joy is something we can actively cultivate, not just wait for. She also reminded us that the cleaning and laundry tasks will always be there, so don’t WAIT to experience play, especially when our kids reach out to spend that time with us.

Balloon Volleyball & Surprise Recess

Inspired, I brought a little play into the office. Recently, I showed up after lunch one day with a balloon, and surprised our amazing design team, Trinity and Nicole, by asking them to put down their work so we could have a recess. For around 10-15 minutes, we played balloon volleyball (just like in elementary school). We tapped the balloon around, trying to keep it off the floor. And you know what? We laughed. We got energized. We returned to our work with more focus and fresh eyes. It gave us a chance to talk and reconnect, separate from our tasks at hand.

Later that evening, I tried it at home. My sister gave me a skeptical look and said, “I don’t think anyone but YOU really wants to do this.” So I sat down with my balloon and pouted. But soon enough my sorrow turned to joy, when my son and nephew came out of their rooms, ready to play. What started as an experiment ended in belly laughs and bonding. The balloon comically hit the ceiling fan several times, and the game wasn’t over until it deflated. The boys quickly formed a team to take on the moms and started calling each other “brother” instead of just “bruh.” Play created connection. Magic.

Cultivating Everyday Joy

Marli also shared simple daily practices that can help us build joy into our routines:

• Start a gratitude practice by writing down things you're grateful for each day.
• Turn “have to” into “get to” and shift your mindset.
• Create a “jelly jar of joy” and drop in daily notes of what brings you joy.
• Look for the good—the more you are looking for it, the easier it is to find.

She reminded us that even a one-degree shift can create a ripple effect of positivity in mindset, energy, and perspective.

Poll: What’s Your Recess Game?

If your office adjourned for recess today, which game would you choose to create more joy? To celebrate 30 years of play at Inside Info, one lucky quick quiz participant will be randomly selected to receive a sweet treat! 

Take the poll >>>

Featured Idea of the Month: More Time for Joy

This month’s feature comes from Cullman Electric Cooperative in Alabama. They created a simple email reminder for auto pay members with expiring credit or debit cards, prompting them to update their information.

Subject: ⚠️ Action Required: Your Credit Card on File Is Expiring
Link: https://comm.cullmanec.com/resources/2025-emails/250125-credit-card-expiration-notice.html
Preheader: Please update your information ASAP

The result? Their member service team experienced a significant drop in time spent mailing letters to members and making calls to follow up.

And what happens when you spend less time on tedious tasks? More time for meaningful connections—or maybe a round of balloon volleyball in the breakroom.

Learn more about Marli and her mission to be a facilitator of possibility, purpose and play:  https://www.marliwilliams.com/

Here’s a few insider tips electric co-ops can use to create read-worthy newsletters that actually land in members’ primary inbox – not the promo pile!

1. Start with Member-Focused Content

Content that solves real problems or educates members makes your newsletter a valued resource, not just another marketing piece. Prioritize stories that answer the questions on their minds:

• Why is my bill different this month?
• What’s this new solar project about?
• How can I save on energy costs?

2. Keep It Local and Relatable

Feature employee spotlights, local business partnerships, school sponsorships, and member stories. When members see familiar faces or hear about local events, your newsletter becomes more engaging and community centered.

3. Design for Readability

Here’s where we shine! A great layout goes a long way. With our team of designers, we’re always checking for ample white-space, easy to read fonts and clear section headings, plus appropriate alt text for ADA compliance while adhering to your branding guidelines. Plus, did you know that approximately 67% of all emails are opened on mobile devices? We ensure newsletter layouts adapt to all screen sizes with tap-friendly buttons and image scaling.

4. Provide a Call to Action (CTA)

Every newsletter should inspire some form of engagement with one well-placed CTA. This keeps your newsletter interactive and results driven. Avoid multiple CTAs, especially if they’re buttons, which signal “marketing email” to inbox algorithms like Gmail’s and will land your newsletter in promotions tab. Try using one main button and any other links as underlined text to keep your email from looking too “salesy.”

5. Leverage Member Feedback

Encourage feedback and ideas with a quick survey. Not only does this drive engagement, but it reinforces that your co-op listens.

6. Maintain Consistent Frequency

A well-crafted newsletter once a month is far more effective than a weekly email filled with filler content. Monthly newsletters are often the sweet spot because they provide a regular cadence that members can anticipate and allow enough time to gather meaningful updates, stories, and calls to action.

7. Reduce Inbox Fatigue

Members—like everyone else—are overwhelmed with emails. If your co-op emails too often, valuable content can start to feel like clutter leading to:

• Unsubscribes
• Ignored messages
• The dreaded “mark as spam”

Looking to revamp your newsletter strategy? Partner with Inside Information so we can help you develop engaging, mission-driven content that resonates with your members and reflects your cooperative's unique identity.

Let’s Talk

The Necessary Evil We Love to Hate

Ah, unsubscribes. The tiny heartbreaks of the email marketing world. Like leaving a relationship or watching your favorite restaurant close down—painful, but sometimes inevitable.

For our cooperative communicator clients, managing unsubscribes isn’t just about letting people go; it’s about making sure the right people stay connected in the right ways. So, let’s talk about how to make the best of it (and maybe even cry a little less).

The Art of the Multi-Tiered Unsubscribe

Some of our clients are getting fancy with their unsubscribes—splitting them into categories like electric updates, fiber service, natural gas or propane news. We're even currently working on a pilot project breaking it down further into categories like events, newsletters, marketing, news and announcements. It’s a brilliant way to let folks opt out of what they don’t need while keeping them engaged with what they do.

Because let’s be honest—just because someone likes their internet provider and doesn’t want to switch to your fiber service, that shouldn’t exclude them from receiving electric efficiency and news updates. Let’s not throw the baby out with the bathwater!

If you haven’t considered offering multiple unsubscribe options, now might be the time. It helps retain more subscribers overall while keeping your content relevant to those who stick around. It’s like letting people choose their own adventure—except the adventure is emails.

The Frankenstein Unsubscribe List: Why You Should Merge Your Platforms

We know some of you use email services beyond Inside Information. (Gasp, we’ll try not to clutch our pearls!) Maybe you have a Mailchimp or Constant Contact account working behind the scenes. If that’s the case, your unsubscribes might be living in different, disconnected silos.

Here’s the thing: just because someone unsubscribed from one platform doesn’t mean they won’t get your emails from another—and that’s a quick way to irritate your audience. Consider exporting your unsubscribe lists and consolidating them. It’s as simple as sending us that list to add to your Vortex.

It’s like spring cleaning, but instead of throwing out expired condiments, you’re respecting your audience’s preferences. (Really, though, maybe you should throw out that mystery jar in the back of your fridge.)

The Fine Print Matters: Clarifying What “Unsubscribe” Really Means

Nobody likes surprises, especially when it comes to email communication. Some of our clients have recently updated the unsubscribe messaging in their footer to specify that opting out only applies to marketing emails—not critical billing notices or power outage alerts. And that distinction can make a world of difference.

Because let’s face it: no one wants to miss the “Hey, your bill is due!” email just because they got tired of festive newsletter subject lines (even if they were particularly clever). Being transparent about what people are unsubscribing from helps reduce confusion and keeps essential communications flowing.

Critical Messaging: Which Unsubscribe Exclude List Should We Use?

Not all emails are created equal, and not all unsubscribes should be treated the same way. While marketing emails and promotional messages should always respect unsubscribe preferences, there are times when operational or billing-related messages must reach everyone—regardless of their opt-out status.

Before sending, consider the nature of the communication:

• Marketing and promotional emails: Should always respect segmentation and unsubscribe preferences.
• Service updates (fiber, electric, gas, etc.): May require a more nuanced approach—segmenting by service type ensures only relevant customers receive the message.
• Critical operational and billing notices: These should go to everyone regardless of opt-out status. If there’s a planned maintenance or pole inspection notice, billing issue, or safety notice, subscribers need to know.

Choosing the right unsubscribe list for each type of communication ensures compliance while also maintaining trust and engagement with your audience. When in doubt, err on the side of transparency—let subscribers know why they’re receiving a message, and reinforce the value of staying informed.

New Guidelines on Email Engagement and Deliverability

The email landscape is changing, and recent updates to engagement and deliverability guidelines mean it’s more important than ever to maintain a clean email list. Email providers are prioritizing active engagement, meaning that too many unengaged recipients can hurt deliverability for everyone on your list. This makes it crucial to regularly remove inactive subscribers and ensure your content remains relevant and valuable.

To help with compliance, we’ve updated our coding to include the unsubscribe link at the top of most emails, making it easier for recipients to opt out if needed. This small but significant change aligns with best practices and helps prevent your emails from being marked as spam.

PRO TIP: You might want to consider a contact update campaign to reach out to bounced email addresses by mail. Or another possibility is that we can work with you to craft a new reengagement outreach promotion to figure out who your engaged members are (and aren’t)!

Keep Calm and Maintain List Hygiene

Unsubscribes aren’t personal (usually). They’re just part of the email game. But with a little strategy—segmenting options, merging lists, and clarifying messaging—you can keep your email list clean, your audience engaged, and all of our sanities intact.

Regularly pruning inactive emails improves your email deliverability, reduces spam complaints, and increases engagement rates. Think of it as weeding your garden—healthy engagement thrives when you remove the dead weight.

And if all else fails, just remember: every unsubscribe is one less person judging our carefully-crafted hilarious-to-us subject line puns. Silver linings, folks. Silver linings.

This Month's Quick Quiz: Describe Your Inbox

Do you hold on to every single email you've ever received, "just in case?" Do you ignore your inbox with preference to group chat or DMs instead? Or maybe you have filters set to automatically file it all without you even seeing them.

Let us know if your style is more "Ghost," "Bouncer," or even "Zen Master" to be entered into this month's drawing for a sweet treat!

Describe Your Inbox Persona >>>

Join us from 6 to 9 p.m. on Wednesday, May 14 for our Insiders Reception! Don't let the name fool you—this event is open to all who use Inside Information's services AND those who don't know us yet but could benefit from what we offer.

Come enjoy food and drinks. Plus, you'll have the opportunity to tour Kansas City's Negro Leagues Baseball Museum.

This is a great opportunity to meet other cooperative employees and to socialize with the Inside Information team.

Stay tuned for more information!

Honestly, I don’t remember what happened next on the call, but I very much recall my emotions. Those were the days before work from home was widely accepted, so the temptation was to feel embarrassed or to apologize. In that moment, though, I had this overwhelming sense of what really mattered, and that big deal suddenly was no longer THE big deal.

Julie Crook always says, “family first, that’s what we do.”

I joke that nepotism is a core value at Inside Information as we have frequently hired family members. For instance, did you know Michele Cavin is my niece?

We go waaaaay back. That's me, reading to Michele, on Grandpa and Grandma Bressler's couch, circa 1970-something. 

Our family focus is obvious in interactions with clients. As I walk through the office, I often overhear our team checking in on clients and their family members during client calls and it warms my heart. Of course, when Patrick Lane hears of a concern within our client family, he’s quick to add the need to his list, ensuring it will be mentioned in our weekly team prayer huddle.

Callie, our newest team member, faced a challenge as her daycare closed for a week due to bad weather. She shared with me about trying to juggle work around naptime and how her son had hung up on a fellow team member during a call and how she looked away for just a minute and turned back around to find him with not one but two paintbrushes in his mouth. “I’m sorry I have not been able to be very productive,” she said. I just smiled and said, “Whatever project you’re working on that seemed like a big deal is not the big deal today.”

Our new intern, Callie's son Nolan.

Have you had a similar experience? Let us know by entering our monthly poll. You'll be entered to win cupcakes!

Share a memorable conference call experience >>>

Featured Idea

A great way to segment communication is to enrich your member file with age and presence of children. Email Julie Crook at julier@inside-info.com to learn more.

Fun Fact

Continuing our internet theme for the month, take our quick poll which may show your age. But hey, it’s worth it because our drawing this month is for chocolate covered strawberries!

One more fun memory from our archives is when Keith Kaderly called to ask for Inside Info’s help to set up this thing called a website. He described it (accurately for the time) as just an online brochure.

Take our poll to enter >>>

Featured Idea

If you’re wondering why your members haven’t subscribed to your fiber service, ask them! We’ve developed a non-subscriber survey that will help your fiber team:

1. Better understand the competition
2. Discover why members aren’t taking
3. Gain new fiber leads

Request survey details by emailing Lauren at lauren@inside-info.com.

Fun Fact

All the best ideas start with a piece of pie and coffee...

And so it was with Inside Information. After a decade of working for electric cooperatives, Julie Elliott decided cooperatives all across the country could benefit from accumulating and using data to better serve their members. So on a napkin at Peggy's Restaurant in Collins, MO, back in 1994, the new venture was named. After all, who wouldn't want some Inside Information?

Peggy’s has since closed but this month’s giveaway is from a restaurant by the same name in Columbia, MO. Take our quick poll for a chance to win your piece of the pie (actually, the whole thing – your choice of flavors even).

Take our poll to enter! >>>

Featured Idea

We’ve had lots of requests recently to create messaging about the value of electricity.

Check out this hot-out-of-the-design-library sample. >>>

You’ve set your sights on big objectives for 2025, and we’re here to help you achieve them! By aligning your surveys with your established business goals—whether it’s boosting member satisfaction, increasing employee engagement, or refining your products and services—we’ll help you ask the right questions to uncover actionable insights.

Why Survey Data Matters for SMART Goals
Survey data isn’t just numbers; it’s a direct line to the insights that matter most, straight from your members, employees, or key stakeholders. These insights serve as a foundation for setting SMART goals—Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-bound—so your team knows exactly what they’re aiming for, how progress will be tracked, and when results can be expected.

Here’s how survey data drives SMART goals:

1. Specificity: Pinpoint exact issues or trends with granular survey insights.
2. Measurability: Set benchmarks and measure progress over time based on your starting data.
3. Achievability: Use real-world data to set realistic goals that account for current constraints and resources.
4. Relevance: Align your goals with the needs and priorities revealed by your surveys.
5. Time-bound: Prioritize urgent issues with time-sensitive insights from touch-point surveys.

Why It’s Essential
Survey data unlocks hidden trends, unmet needs, and areas for improvement, giving you the clarity and focus needed to set impactful, achievable goals. By integrating survey insights into your strategy, you’re not just setting goals—you’re positioning your team for success in 2025.

Let’s transform your survey data into actionable steps toward your goals. The results will speak for themselves.

Those were the words that weighed heavily on my mind when I walked away from a fantastic job at the cooperative to start Inside Information in 1995.

Others were skeptical too. A colleague within the co-op community was shocked to hear we were still in business after a year:

“I thought she’d have starved by now,”

he told a mutual friend.

At the time of Inside’s launch, I had this suspicion that cooperatives would always have a need to collect and act on information about their members. Nearly 30 years later, I’m happy to report this theory has proven true. I’m more excited than ever to see our clients catalyze the use of data to better serve members and to support their strategic goals.

Here are a few featured projects from this year:

• Targeted communication and promotion to business members
• Fiber non-subscriber surveys
• Email series including fiber journey communication and new member onboarding
• Quarterly contractor newsletter featuring cooperative programs and information
• Strategic plans to grow the list of identified promoters within the co-op database by proactively collecting Net Promoter Scores through ongoing surveys
• Automation advancements to share information across platforms which enables us to streamline processes and enhance analytic capabilities

Our business runs on Entrepreneurial Operating System (EOS), and within our organization, I am the visionary, which is code for I dream up ideas but need help with execution. My vision for Inside Info only works when people embrace our methods and goals. Without our clients partnering with us and entrusting us with their projects and without our team building and executing on every level, I definitely would be starving!

So as 2024 winds down, I want to say thank you to both our clients and employees for your partnership and commitment.

This people focus means our business is much more than checklists and advancements – it’s about relationships. When a retiring client calls to make sure I have his contact information to stay in touch and ends the conversation with,

“I love you guys,”

I know this is not a fad.

Something else that is also not a fad, and which has grown during the past 30 years is my faith. I created a four-week devotional to share with my friends and family this season and am sharing it here too in case this might encourage you.

My holiday gift to you: Come Lord Jesus 4 week devotional by Julie Elliott

Recently, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has introduced significant regulations affecting how electricity is generated and delivered.

Here's what members need to know:

1. Emissions Reduction: The EPA has implemented rules aimed at reducing emissions of carbon dioxide from power plants by 90% by 2032.
2. New Technology Requirements: Existing coal and new natural gas plants will be required to adopt carbon capture and sequestration technology, a technology that is not yet proven commercially available.
3. Impact on your Cooperative: These regulations will affect how electricity is generated in the future, will likely cause retirements of certain generation facilities, and create limitations on future construction projects.
4. Your Commitment to Reliable, Affordable Electric Service: Your commitment to providing reliable electric service remains unwavering, despite the recent EPA regulations impacting the electric utility industry. Members can rest assured your strategic planning and innovative solutions will provide stability moving forward.

By providing clear and concise information, electric cooperatives can help members understand the implications of the new EPA regulations on the electric utility industry. Crafting messages that show your commitment to transparency and openness, while adapting to these changes, fosters trust and improved relationships with members, and creates an informed, key base of your membership to help write their representatives on key issues when needed.

Check out our recent samples on Intermittent Power, Baseload Power Sources, Legislative Grassroots Initiatives, and Legislator Spotlights.

Let us know how we can help. Contact us today!

While navigating these relationships is tricky, some initiatives benefit everyone, and gathering and using data is one of those.

Join us at Insight 2024 where Rob and Ryan will give you an inside look at the multi-faceted ways they are developing this win win model at their G&Ts.

Topics include power supply education, advocacy readiness, load shaping, and using member surveys for more than reports that sit on a shelf.

Encourage your cooperatives to come as a group and everyone will benefit from the traction you’ll gain by putting these ideas into action as a team after the conference.

Register now >>>

Our team is here to guide you every step of the way.

Technology Platforms 

Want access to the latest tools and software, ensuring that your business stays at the forefront of innovation? From advanced analytics tools and customized dashboards, we'll equip you with the means to streamline processes, enhance productivity, and maximize efficiency, giving your strategic plan a significant boost in 2024.

Data at Your Fingertips 

Our subscription services grant you access to a wealth of valuable data, enabling you to make informed decisions backed by insights and analytics. From member behavior patterns to market trends, tapping into data-driven strategies will help you tailor your offerings to meet member needs.

Seamless Communication 

Effective communication is the cornerstone of member engagement. With Inside Information, we’ll help you drive engagement, conversions, and increase brand loyalty with our proven email series, e-newsletters, and print communication.

Access to Top Talent 

Finding the right people for specialized roles can be challenging. By choosing our subscription services you gain access to a network of skilled professionals who work as an extension of your own staff so you can tackle any challenge that comes your way and drive your co-op towards success.

Joe Knows Inside Info!

From our earliest interactions, Inside Information has been exceeding my expectations. During our onboarding, I made a comment about the difficulties I was having identifying key legislators after redistricting. Within days I was presented with metrics that I was able to share with key stakeholders for an upcoming legislative meeting. Not only did they deliver, but they managed to impress immediately their worth. 

As we’ve moved forward, I see they treat Canoochee as if it is their own cooperative. I am amazed by the shear amount of options they give, as well as the better member communications and experiences they’re helping to deliver. I’m sad we waited this long to begin our journey with Inside Information. 

Joe Sikes, Communications Specialist at Canoochee EMC

Don’t forget about our conference in 2024!

Kansas City Here I Come! 

As you plan your budget for 2024, investing in subscription services is a strategic move that can elevate your co-op to new heights. Don’t hesitate to request a quote today for our subscription services that includes unlimited email marketing and surveys and take the first step toward a successful 2024!

Not too long ago, I shared the completion of my MBA in management, with a focus on data analytics, on social media. Since then, many have been curious about my future plans, prompting me to answer simply, "I am working." Continuous personal and professional development has always been the guiding force in my life.

Growing up, my mother's dedication to daily crossword puzzles, aiming to keep her mind sharp, left a lasting impression on me. The pursuit of knowledge and constant learning has been my source of inspiration. I am driven to expand my horizons, gain new insights, and apply them to both my personal and professional endeavors.

Over the past 22 years in the co-op world, I have been captivated by its intricacies and daily operations. While the mission of co-ops remains constant, the surrounding world has undergone significant changes. Factors such as technological advancements, government regulations, broadband subsidiaries, and more have reshaped the landscape in which co-ops operate. To thrive in this evolving environment, I believe it's crucial to stay informed and adapt my skills and knowledge accordingly.

Empowering co-ops and helping them succeed is one of my primary objectives. Success, for me, is not merely achieving personal milestones but uplifting and supporting others. My dear friend, the late Mike Beam, from NEXT fiber, exemplified this spirit, consistently motivating both of us to seek new ideas and share them with the cooperative community. Our inspiring interactions set the tone for each week, fostering excitement for the challenges ahead.

As I continue honing my expertise in data analytics, management, and related fields, my ultimate goal is to empower cooperatives by enabling them to embrace change and capitalize on emerging opportunities. My focus remains on personal growth and self-improvement, allowing me to contribute meaningfully to Inside Info and the co-op community.

Completing my MBA is a significant milestone, but it's just the beginning. My commitment to continuous growth drives me to stay ahead in the ever-changing co-op landscape. Through expanded skills and knowledge, I hope to make a lasting impact on co-op success.

In the cooperative environment, we are more than colleagues; we are family. The sense of camaraderie and interconnectedness fosters collaboration, support, and shared success. Just like a family, we celebrate victories, tackle challenges together, and create bonds that extend beyond the workplace.

So, when I say, "I am working," it encompasses my dedication to becoming the best version of myself—a resource for my team and cooperative colleagues. The co-op world and Inside Info hold a special place in my heart, and I eagerly embrace the journey ahead, ready to contribute and make a positive impact.

Photo: Carrie Vugteveen, Sioux Valley Energy, and Julie Crook (OJ) enjoy some time together at the 2022 Insight Conference. Planning has started for our 2024 Insight Conference, get more details. 

We scheduled a company tour so our team members could see the inner workings of the co-op. General Manager David Deihl and Jennifer Grossl, Manager, Communications & Marketing, were our gracious hosts. Like me, Dave started at PCEC right after college. I had the privilege of hiring him and am so proud of the leader he is today. As a member of the co-op, I appreciate his commitment to reliability and affordability.

In reminiscing before our meeting, I found the last column I penned on the way out the door and it brought back many memories (including a flashback to mid 90s fashion). I realized the top task I miss from my days at PCEC is writing a monthly article for the Northland Connection. The top task I don’t miss is figuring out how much food we need for the annual meeting!

Those words brought to mind how difficult it was to say goodbye to a job and people who were so special to me. Little did I know, that in the 10,000+ days to follow, I would be gaining so many new amazing friends and be even more immersed in the co-op world I love. 

Funny Thing About the Water Heater Photo with Dave Deihl...

Back before relational databases were a thing, I wanted to know who had a gas water heater so I could promote our free PCEC water heater program directly to them. Fast forward three decades and at  Inside Information, we're still conducting surveys, accumulating data and using that information to enhance the member experience for our clients nationwide. Pretty cool how leveraging data didn't go out of style, unlike some of the fashion trends of those days! 

Mark Twain said, “data is like garbage. You’d better know what you are going to do with it before you collect it.”

Hopefully, your data isn’t simply dumped into a spreadsheet. I mean, who doesn’t love a good spreadsheet, right? Ha, I’m kidding of course. We all know that data can be overwhelming. There's so much of it, and it's not always clear what to do with it.

At Inside Info, we embrace our inner data enthusiasts, and dig (dumpster dive) into the spreadsheets to make sense of all the information. We have a variety of surveys to help you understand member satisfaction, to determine fiber feasibility, to gauge the impact of electric vehicles on the grid, to determine whether members understand intermittent power and the impact of renewables, and much more. We are a data solutions company solely serving electric cooperatives around the country, and we’ve got a solution for you.

We find insightful details to help with target marketing, social media strategy, grant writing, and employee retention plans. We present the data with easy-to-read charts and customizable dashboards for top executives to monitor KPIs, member satisfaction, and other strategic initiatives all in one place. You’ll be able to visualize trends, make informed decisions to strengthen operations, increase effectiveness of your strategic plan and oversee organizational needs.

By partnering with Inside Information, you’ll know where you stand with your members, employees, and peers, and you’ll have more time and resources to act on that knowledge.

We’d love to discuss your co-op’s needs. Schedule a meeting today!

At Inside Information, we herd the cats, so you don’t have to.

We come alongside your team, as an extension of your own staff, to take pressure off where you need it. Whether that’s from preparing emergency storm communication in advance of the storm, building a new member welcome series with dynamic content to identify interest in products and services, communicating fiber construction, or identifying high-energy users to target for energy efficiency programs – we’ve got you covered. We do the leg work – conducting research so you can make data-informed decisions, pulling and filtering all the lists, and handling printing and distribution.

We wrangle complex projects to combine your ideas with data, communications, and technology so you can stay on track.

Save time by allowing us to crunch the numbers and present your data on customized dashboards. Improve member satisfaction by keeping your finger on the pulse with transactional surveys to view near real-time feedback from recent member experiences. We can highlight your most-important metrics, and you can drill down to specific member comments.

We would be honored to partner with you for whatever lies ahead, or strays from the herd.

Learn more about our process and offerings by visiting inside-info.com/services.

Look No Further

With so many initiatives, co-ops are looking for help in the marketing and communications department. Have you ever onboarded a new contractor or agency and realized it's more work on you because you have to catch them up to speed on cooperatives? At Inside Info, we know and love co-ops. We have more than 50 years of combined experience working for electric cooperatives and nearly 30 years serving them with customized solution services.

 HomeWorks Tri-County Electric Marketing Manager Kacey Thelen said, that we helped her small department expand their marketing efforts and that we “feel like an extension of our own staff members."

{vortex include=13}

Maintain Member Focus with Transactional Surveys

We'll help you maintain your member focus while taking a deeper dive into understanding members' attitudes, behaviors, and preferences with proven data-driven analytics. We can establish transactional surveys to gauge member experiences in areas such as member services, outages, new connections, energy audits, fiber installs, and more. Then, view member data in customized dashboards for simple accessibility and easily contact members who have issues or have expressed concern.

Co-Mo Connect Director of Member Care Corey ten Bensel stated, "Inside Information helped us mine the data and develop a plan to get and interpret the data to improve the experience, enhance the process, and interaction when we add members to the system.”

{vortex include=14}

Develop And Automate Custom Email Series

Through data acquisition and list development, we can establish a robust email marketing program with automated email series for new members, fiber acquisition and retention, and customized monthly e-newsletters reducing your workload. We stay abreast of new design and email marketing trends, so you don't have to. Our proven strategy increases brand awareness and allows you to regularly connect with members while increasing leads and website visitors.

We know you have many goals to tackle this year, and there's no room for slowdowns. Let us be part of your co-op's vision to set you up for success! Contact us today.

It’s that time of year when state legislatures are convening to consider a variety of policy proposals (queue the “I’m Just a Bill” song in your head). Whether or not your cooperative is facing immediate impact from legislation this session, it’s only a matter of time before a state, local or national issue will require action in your area. Good news for cooperative leadership teams – a few simple measures will ensure you’ll be ready next time the gavel falls.

1. Enrich

Step one is to make sure you can access legislative data in your customer information system. With redistricting last year, this is especially important! You can unlock legislative district information through your GIS system or by a simple data append to enhance your file with complete state and federal district details.

2. Analyze

Crunch some numbers. Create a report of how many email addresses you have in each district. The analysis can be used internally or to share with legislators to show them the overlap between your constituencies. The key to using the data is being able to push specific messages by district based on whether you want to thank the legislator for their support or whether you need members to ask them to consider an alternate position.

3. Prepare

Create custom email templates for grassroots messaging. By building a shell which can be updated with specific details when needed, you’ll expedite future messaging.

The better news is that Inside Information can help you complete all three steps in this action plan. We’ve helped cooperatives mobilize members on grassroots initiatives, and we’d love to chat about how we can help you too.

There’s a famous quote by W. Edwards Deming, an American engineer, statistician, and author, that states, “In God we trust. All others must bring data.”

With an all-member survey, you’ll have access to an entire database of information for relationship management to improve operations, target marketing and other communications. Your co-op can measure success as well as identify opportunities and potential issues.

General demographic data is simple to obtain, but what about your members’ true interests and behaviors? We can help identify those and enhance your marketing strategy with a data append. With the additional information, you’ll be able to fill in the gaps, create look-a-like audiences, and much more.

All-member surveys help set a baseline and identify potential strategic initiatives. You can even take your data one step forward with our custom data visualization dashboards for a comprehensive overview of your membership.   

At Inside Info, we know cooperatives and have been serving them for nearly thirty years. Not only will we help you gather your members’ data, but we’ll be with you every step of the way. We provide custom email marketing, member journey mapping, print campaigns and so much more. We can even help you quantify the value of your survey.

We’d love the opportunity to help you gain valuable insights and be an extension of your staff. Book a time below to get started writing your success story.

When it comes to educating and engaging members about what’s impacting their cooperative, it’s imperative to be able to send the right message to the right member at the right time. To do that, you need content, data, and manpower.

Content

We help our clients by creating succinct member communication.

• By breaking big topics into bite-size messages, members are more likely to connect with key takeaways. These messages can be planned in advance and ready to use as needed.
• We focus primarily on targeted communication which supplements mass channels like print publications and advertising for a cohesive approach.
• Not one size fits all, the messages are segmented based on member demographics, interests, engagement, etc., which is where data comes in…

Data

Data drives communication now more than ever, and this idea has been the cornerstone of our business since even before the internet existed when Inside was founded back in 1995. We collect and manage data that is key to our clients’ success. Here are examples of matching message to members:

• Using sub and circuit data to target outage messages.
• Pulling mid-size commercial member list by revenue code and sending a peak alert message tailored to businesses.
• Linking legislative district to CIS data and encouraging members to contact their legislator to thank them for a co-op friendly position or express concern if the legislator has a position that would negatively impact co-ops and their members.

Manpower

The roadblock to being prepared to respond to changing times is not usually a lack of understanding; it’s a lack of staff. We consult and strategize with our clients but instead of advising them what to do, we do the work of continually enriching member data and executing campaigns.

We like how our buddy Terry Mullen of West Florida Electric Cooperative said it: “They (Inside Info) have become a seamless extension of our staff that we can depend on for assistance in many areas of our day-to-day operations.”

Co-ops haven’t been known to shrink back during tough times. In fact, they have a reputation of rising to the occasion. At Inside Information, we would be honored to partner with you to be prepared for whatever lies up ahead.

The old dog adage probably originated from the fact that dogs, young or old, can teach us much about life. At Inside Info, we also became aware – and inspired – by the insights dogs provide to co-ops too. So much so, that we documented what great co-ops and great dogs have in common, and that mailer is headed to mailboxes soon.

Keith Kaderly is a co-owner of inside but he’s also a dog trainer. We feature Keith (and his dogs) along with tips from his training that apply to the strategies of understanding and engaging members, and those axioms include:

We’ll be sharing these tidbits in the future along with photos of our clients and their pups too, so watch for these fun features in your mailbox and inbox soon. In the meantime, catch a sneak peek of one of our dog stories of Keith and “Sparkles” and check out our staff best friend posts.

Everybody loves a good story. Are you telling yours?

We at Inside Information come alongside our clients all the time, and we'd love to come alongside you as an extension of staff and help you control that narrative. 

Let us help you do the things you want to do and truly write your success story. Let's figure out how to do what you want to get done. 

Book a time to talk with Keith below and let's get started writing YOUR success story.

Cheryl was excited to see U.S. swimmer Caeleb Dressel toss his gold medal into the stands to teammate Brooks Curry, who took Dressel’s place in the qualifying heat to let him rest. Of course, she found a connection between Team USA and Team Inside Information.

“I think Inside is like Blake Curry and our clients are like Caeleb Dressel,” she chatted out to our employees.

I love the analogy because my desire since Inside Info’s inception has been that we will be an extension of our client’s staff. How do we do that?

• By putting together an email at 5:00 so our client can make it to a child’s baseball game
• By digging into a co-op marketing plan for the coming year and helping create an action plan to gather and use data to further the initiatives
• By printing and mailing tree trim notices so operations folks don’t have to print labels and run to the post office
• By creating dashboards so our clients can have member satisfaction trends at their fingertips
• By sending out contact update postcards to have more accurate member data
• By automatically generating a monthly or weekly list of new members and sending a welcome series via email, oh and stuffing and sending the mailed packets when needed
• By generating targeted lists for fiber promotion and sending packets and emails

Harry S. Truman said it best, “It’s amazing what you can accomplish if you do not care who gets the credit.” We are just fine fitting into the background with our core focus of helping write success stories.

Success does not just come in the form of corporate goals reached. It’s also important to us to forge relationships with clients and to support them in life, not just in work, which is why we recently launched a prayer portal. Our team meets weekly to pray and has a desire to expand prayer to anyone in need, so the prayer portal idea was born. Requests can be public or anonymous, and we invite anyone to check out and pray over these needs.

Cheryl never made it to the Olympics, although she did make it to the Olympic trials in Omaha earlier this summer. If proofreading ever becomes an Olympic event, however, I am sure she will be a gold medal contender.

Email has become such a cornerstone channel for communication. One of our electric cooperative clients saw a 27% increase since 2018 in members wanting to receive email communication from the utility in a recent study. In their survey, email is now the most preferred method with 55% of members interested in email communication.

So, here’s a question: How many of your members connected before 1995? It’s quite likely there are many folks who weren’t asked for an email at sign up but who are now open to using email to connect with the co-op.

We strongly urge our clients to make email collection a priority. Here are four top suggestions:

1. Create an ongoing plan for collecting emails and make sure it is communicated and followed by all. Remember to include commercial customers – especially local contacts at larger companies since for many accounts, the email is an accounts payable address out of state.
2. As part of the plan, consider an all-member survey. While there will be postage and printing costs, the value of new data can pay for itself in no time and can be used for analysis as well as promotion. One client calculated the savings to the cooperative from one email promoting ebilling was $18,000 annually.
3. If email isn’t a strategic tool in your communication plan, make it one. Consider how you can expand digital engagement by sending targeted emails. Design email series to divide chunks of information into fun size messages.
4. Make sure you have a system to generate email lists effectively. Sometimes the addresses are found in different places, so being able to access the data when needed is critical.

In addition to launching into the worldwide web in 1995, I launched Inside Information with a dream about accessing data and using it for targeted member communication. “Will this be a fad?” I asked myself. Dropping off the keys to my Platte-Clay Electric Cooperative car and saying goodbye to an excellent benefits package, there was a lot riding on that question. Thankfully, the answer was no. While I didn’t know what the future would look like, I could not envision a day when electric utilities would have LESS of a need to have and use customer data for whatever the current initiative might be.

Thinking back to those early days of using email, I would never want to go back to a dial up connection, but I do long for that time when my daily email count was fewer than 10.

On a trip to Florida recently, I made plans to stop by and see friends at West Florida Electric Cooperative (an Inside Info client for more than 20 years). Terry Mullen, Manager of Marketing and Communications, didn’t believe my husband would make the trek a couple of hours inland, but he did. The conversation and fried crab bites were worth it.

I wanted to share some insight about WFECA that I think should inspire us all.

In recent years, the co-op has been less active in using Inside Info’s research and communication services. Storms and their aftermath along with other pressing matters led to derailed intentions, but WFECA didn’t stay in that place. The team regrouped, identified next steps and began again. In the past three months, their impressive results have included:

• Premiering an online version of their monthly publication
• Promoting ways to pay, to help members take advantage of online bill payment options
• Targeting members who haven’t purchased WFECA surge protection with a special offer for May
• Promoting outage notification for spring storms
• Launching an all-member survey to gain insight into member preferences, attitudes and needs
• Scheduling monthly meetings with us to keep projects on track

The team at WFECA has proven that back burner projects can most certainly move up on the stove.

When you think of your wish list, do you feel dread or excitement? A bit of planning combined with determination to take the next step can move you quickly from the former to the latter.

If you’d like some help planning ways to better understand and engage with your customers, we’d love to brainstorm and share the good ideas we’ve gathered from co-ops from Florida to Washington!

*PS and Disclaimer:

Terry shared how he and his bride of more than 40 years had moved back to the area – her home – in the early days of their marriage which had been a wonderful decision for their family, so his reference to “Hickville” is a term of endearment.

If ever there was a year to have an insurance policy, 2020 is it. Let’s face it, you just don’t know what might happen.

Since the dawn of time, or at least for the last 25+ years, I have strongly believed that having accurate and accessible data is like owning a premium insurance policy. While dynamic data may help you execute grand campaigns and lead to strategic organizational accomplishments, at its most base level, it’s there to help you weather a crisis.

Let me share three recent examples of how our clients leveraged their data in a moment’s notice:

Storm Communication

Utility professionals have all been there — a hurricane, a tornado, an ice storm (or in 2020 — all of these combined to create a derecho) rips through the system. At Inside Information, we help clients create plans to gather and update member contact info regularly so it’s ready and available for times like these. We also have platforms in place to use the data once the emergency strikes. For instance, we have email templates built and ready to go. We maintain “dark pages” on websites that can be launched and loaded with crisis information. And we’re able to target messages based on co-op data we have at our fingertips, like contacting members on a certain feeder within a specific substation.

COVID-19

Within 24 hours of shutdowns occurring across the U.S., Inside Information sent more than 200,000 emails to members on behalf of our clients. The total of COVID-19-related member contacts has since grown to nearly 550,000 and includes:

• Up-to-the-minute updates about office closures and social distancing guidelines
• High speed internet service offerings to help members and their children working and learning from home
• COVID-19 surveys to gauge the impact of the pandemic on members and gather feedback about how the co-op performed during this time
• CARES financial resource information targeted to business accounts
• Payment deferral and assistance opportunity emails targeted to members whose accounts were impacted
• Annual and district meetings "gone virtual" communications

Grassroots Activation

In the past year, many states have faced legislative roadblocks to the expansion of broadband internet services by cooperatives. We help our clients enhance their member files with vital data such as legislative districts and voter information. Combining this data with other historical info like annual meeting attendance and program participation yields specific member segments which are then used to conduct effective engagement campaigns.

If you’re discouraged about 2020 (or even if you’re not), I have a suggestion for how to add an accomplishment to your list before the end of the year. Take an inventory of your data and create an action plan to understand, assemble, expand, and use it. Look at what you have coming up in 2021 – whether that’s launching fiber or changing programs  - and think about the data that might play a key role in the success of those initiatives.

We’ve created a super simple cheat sheet to get you going.

No one could predict what 2020 would look like. While I don’t pretend to know what the future holds, I can guarantee there will be a need to activate data, if not this year at some point in the future. So, ask yourself, “Am I covered?” And maybe, like me, you’ll finally feel confident enough to change out those snow tires in August.

Those were the first words out of my client’s mouth when I logged on to the conference call. We weren’t using video chat, so I’m not sure the reason for full disclosure other than working from home may have been a new experience for her.

I did appreciate the honest communication, and in this time of uncertainty, our customers do too. Delivering specific messages to specific groups keeps customers engaged because what you say applies to them. I make this statement frequently (queue broken record sound effect) but now more than ever, having and using data to drive communication is imperative.

In the electric cooperative world, we have had and will have the opportunity to share vital messages with segments of our membership during the coming weeks. Here are four examples of matching the message and the member:

1) Business customers – let them know you recognize they are a commercial account. By breaking out the list by type of business, you can pinpoint messages about how you are working to help them during difficult times. A video message to business customers from the CEO could build rapport.

2) Payment arrangements – consider sharing information with those accounts that will be impacted by changes to collection and disconnect policies. Use data to identify those who make payments in person to customize messages about alternative options.

3) New construction projects – members building homes may be impacted by work schedule changes. Communicating with builders and others involved in construction projects can provide important details about timing that members will need for planning.

4) Government officials and business colleagues – your operation is vital to many in the community so having a list of key contacts in your area can prove important for keeping others in the loop.

While this list is far from comprehensive, it provides food for thought to evaluate options for segmenting messages. Email addresses are so valuable in times like this, so another takeaway is create an aggressive plan to grow your list after the dust settles.

And don’t forget the need to gather data and have it easily accessible. Some might say you can never have too much information. I might agree… except in the case of knowing someone is working in yoga pants.

I’ll be the first to admit that I’ve hopped on the fan bandwagon, but I'm not the only one – the city is full of us. Case in point, yesterday I left my house at 7am and drove 30 miles to a bakery to pick up some Chiefs sugar cookies. Even at that early hour, I was about 20th in line and was lucky enough to nab the last dozen. Chatting with a three-year old and his mom, I learned it was the Patrick Mahomes cookies that brought them in on this early morning jaunt. This young quarterback has captivated our city, and our hearts.

What I’ve observed about our MVP is that the character qualities drawing us to him are worth imitation in our own lives and businesses. Here’s what I see:

He gives others credit.

While Mahomes steals the show with amazing plays, he is quick to give credit to his teammates and play up their highlights reel when interviewed about his own performance. A team, whether on the gridiron or in the boardroom, is made up of players which can only succeed when each is sincerely interested in the success of the others.

He smiles.

Smiling is contagious. His grin makes others smile. It’s a great reminder to me that while it's easy to scowl, this small gesture can make a big difference.

He works really hard.

Obviously Mahomes has talent but he doesn’t rest on his abilities, he hones them. (Or maybe Mahones them, HA!) In a world where taking shortcuts has become the norm, we need to recognize the need for going the extra mile and instituting discipline in our lives and professions.

He doesn’t give up.

If you didn’t see the Chiefs vs. Texans 2020 playoff game, you really missed an amazing comeback. Down 21-0 in the FIRST quarter, the Chiefs ultimately won 51-31. Mahomes did not concede to defeat, and he also inspired his teammates to believe they could win. When odds seemed stacked against us, the spirit of perseverance is vital.

It’s not all the flash and amazing plays that catch our attention; we are equally entertained with the cheesy advertising like “Go Big or Go Mahomes” and “There’s No Place Like Mahomes.” We are having fun with the millions of Chiefs items available for sale and all the hype of the game. I have heard many people say they really don’t care about the outcome of the game – they are just happy to have made it to the Super Bowl. While that sounds good, even bandwagon riders like me don’t really believe that deep down. Let’s go for the WIN! GO CHIEFS!

What I discovered was staggering. Every website I checked had obvious issues, including the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) website – the very agency responsible for ADA compliance – was non-compliant!

Whether or not the government follows its own guidelines, businesses are taking accessibility seriously. For cooperatives, serving members is a priority, and ensuring all have access to information they need is imperative.

But beyond good customer service for those with accessibility issues, businesses are starting to seriously question legal liability of compliance after the recent Supreme Court denial of Domino's petition regarding website accessibility.

So, where do you begin the journey to ensuring your cooperative meets the government’s guidelines? Here are 5 steps that can help you move in the right direction.

1. Understand the guidelines.
   HHS Section 508 requires that all website content be accessible to people with disabilities.
2. Audit your site.
   You can scan each of your site pages using a free online tool like the WAVE Web Accessibility Evaluation Tool. (See example below)
3. Start updating the errors you find.
   While it may seem like a big task, many of the errors will be easy to fix. 

   
   The most common issues are:
   a. Alternative text on images is missing
   b. Not enough color contrast between foreground text color and background color
   c. Keyboard access and visual indicators not available
   d. Vague or meaningless link and button text
   e. Text resizing not legible

4. Create a plan for staying compliant.
   Everyone who updates your website should be aware of best practices to ensure new content meets guidelines.
5. Set up a schedule to re-scan your website (once a year or more often).
   At Inside Information, we audit the sites we host, and work with our clients to create a plan to address Section 508 and WCAG 2.0 guidelines. Remember that links or embedded digital media such as video or PDFs are a bit more complex and require separate consideration and review for compliance.

ADA compliance is like dieting; it must become a "way of life" to keep you successful. Showing good faith that your organization is working toward compliance is important, and remember that you're not alone! Inside Information is here to help you get started and stay on the right path for website ADA compliance.

There are many accessibility checking tools and services available online. WAVE is being used on www.HHS.gov in the screenshot above. It is also an included service for Inside Information website clients. 

Dive Deeper: Recommended Articles and Related Links

		International Day of People with Disabilities (IDPWD) 2019 "The Future is Accessible"
		Information and Technical Assistance on the Americans with Disabilities Act
		U.S. Department of Health & Human Services
		Supreme Court hands victory to blind man who sued Domino’s over site accessibility
		HHS Section 508 Guidelines
		WAVE Web Accessibility Evaluation Tool
		Mattel releases first deck of UNO in Braille

As much as I want it to, the game of baseball hasn’t stayed the same, however. Starting with “money ball,” the sport, as all others, has been inundated with big data. While instinct might not totally be replaced by analytics, the numbers are now a driving force behind decisions.

We see co-ops getting in the game with this trend too. Our clients are looking for new ways to better evaluate, accumulate and use data. Big data sounds overwhelming, but really there are some easy steps to becoming more of a data driven organization.

• Take an inventory of your data

What do you know about your members? Of course begin with your CIS and evaluate what data is there. Beware of fields that seem useful but haven’t been maintained. Consider member meetings, program participation and service order interactions when reviewing and accumulating your data.

• Create a data collection strategy

A data collection plan is a marathon not a sprint. Consider what your key initiatives are and work backwards. Want to engage younger members? Then consider purchasing demographic data to add age to your member file. Launching high speed internet? A survey to collect current provider details and how members use the internet will provide perfect opportunities for segmented marketing. Even if you don’t have a large block of commercial customers, remember to create a plan for gathering information about this important group.

• Plan targeted communications

Matching your data to your communication is the next step. Consider what channels are available and how you will target the message based on what you know about your members. For instance, if your co-op wants to move members to paperless billing, use data on who currently pays by check along with demographic data to customize the message. For instance, younger members might receive a message about how ebilling helps them have more time to do the things they love.

• Assess results and continue building

So here’s the greatest benefit to using a targeted approach to your marketing and communication efforts – you can measure results. One of our clients targeted members for a paperless billing campaign and estimated the annual savings from one email was $20,000. While we can’t measure return on investment for every communication, we are able to see how the entire process supports our clients’ strategic goals.

Check out this guide to help you work through the planning process for next season!
[Downloads as xlsx spreadsheet file with multiple tabs]

I can’t imagine how complex the data analytics process is at the big league level but that’s okay because I’m a simple person. What goes on behind the scenes isn’t important to me – I’ll just be happy when baseball season rolls around again. The only predictive analytics I will be sure of is the high probability that I’ll have a brat and a beer by the time the first pitch is thrown, and the world will be right again.

My earliest memory of a co-op was growing up on the farm where we were not served by the co-op but my Uncle Dale across the road was. I remember when the power would go off, my dad would head to the dining room window to see if Uncle Dale’s lights were on and have some colorful comments if they were.

Fast forward to age 20, now a junior in the Missouri School of Journalism, I wrote a feature article on the 50^th anniversary of Boone Electric and I was officially hooked. I created an internship and worked at Boone through the rest of my time at Mizzou, helping out with communications and mowing the lawn for extra income. The opportunities there cemented my career pathway. Actually, I had two co-op internships – the other with Today’s Farmer Magazine, an MFA publication, where interestingly I wrote a feature article about Cooperative Month.

After nearly 10 years as Manager of Marketing and Communication at Platte-Clay Electric Cooperative, I launched Inside Information and now work with more than 300 co-ops across the country helping them better understand and communicate with members. It’s the perspective of a co-op vendor partner that I want to comment on for Cooperative Month. At Inside Information, we find co-ops to be:

Trustworthy – The people and the co-ops we work with are marked by integrity. The genuine concern for not only the members they serve, but also in the partner relationships like ours is quite evident and much appreciated.

A Joy to Work With – Our staff members who didn’t have previous co-op experience are now co-op people even though they haven’t worked at a co-op! We say we are an extension of our clients’ staff, and our employees truly feel they are part of Team Co-op.

Innovative – Our clients are committed to continually improving processes and services. We have firsthand experience with co-ops leveraging data and technology to better understand and serve their members.

We all have our own co-op stories. As I reflect on mine, I am thankful for all the people who invested in me as an intern, an employee and now as a vendor partner. Cooperative Month is a great time to think about the seeds that have been planted in our careers and in the lives of those we serve.

I recently found the paper I submitted after my internships which contained these prophetic words: “I found it interesting to learn about the cooperative principles of member ownership,” I wrote. “I’ve known about co-ops but never understood how they worked until this summer.” Boy have I had the opportunity to continue learning more about how cooperatives work!

Most cooperatives have now passed their 80^th anniversaries which gives a clue about how long it’s been since my junior reporter days at MU. One of these days I’ll be retiring (not too soon), and it makes my heart happy to think that Inside Information has a vibrant future working with, and for, the cooperatives I’ve grown to love so much.

{vortex include=5}