The utility CIO said: "Your software looks interesting. But we're regulated by the Public Utilities Commission. Any technology investment that affects rate payers requires PUC approval. That process takes 18-24 months. And they might say no."
I'd prepared for a 6-month enterprise sales cycle. I hadn't prepared for "we need government approval to buy your software."
"Also," he continued, "we're a monopoly. We don't have competitive pressure to move fast. We plan investments on 5-10 year timelines. Your startup is three years old. Will you even exist in 10 years?"
I'd come from competitive tech markets where companies moved quickly. Utilities didn't face competition. They moved deliberately. Very deliberately.
Welcome to selling to energy and utilities, where "move fast" means "complete this project before the end of the decade."
Why Energy & Utilities Tech Marketing Is Uniquely Challenging
After three years selling to utilities, power companies, and energy firms, I learned this industry operates unlike any other:
Regulatory Approval Affects Everything
Utilities are regulated monopolies. This creates unique dynamics:
Why regulation exists: Utilities are natural monopolies (building duplicate power grids or water systems isn't economically viable). Regulators ensure they don't abuse monopoly power.
What this means for software: Technology investments that affect operating costs or customer rates often require Public Utilities Commission (PUC) approval.
The regulatory approval process:
- Utility files application with PUC
- Public comment period (customers, advocacy groups, competitors all weigh in)
- PUC hearings and investigation
- PUC decision (approve, deny, or modify)
- Implementation (if approved)
Timeline: 12-24 months minimum.
I lost deals not because buyers didn't want our software, but because they couldn't get regulatory approval:
"We love your platform. But the PUC denied our application because they think the technology is unproven. Come back when you have 10+ utility customers and can demonstrate proven results."
Catch-22: Can't get utility customers without proven utility results. Can't get proven utility results without utility customers.
We had to completely rethink our go-to-market:
Old approach: Sell to the largest utilities first (biggest budgets, most credibility).
New approach: Sell to municipal utilities and co-ops first (less regulated, faster decisions), build proven results, then approach investor-owned utilities with regulatory requirements.
Decision Cycles Measure in Years, Not Months
Utilities plan on infrastructure timelines:
- Power plants: 40-60 year lifespans
- Transmission infrastructure: 50+ years
- Distribution systems: 30-40 years
Software purchased today needs to fit into multi-decade planning.
A VP of Engineering told me: "We're planning grid modernization through 2045. Your software needs to be part of that 20-year roadmap. Will your company exist in 20 years?"
This creates conservative decision-making:
"Unproven startup technology" feels risky when the deployment timeline is measured in decades.
We had to prove longevity:
- Demonstrated financial stability (VC backing from established firms)
- Showed enterprise customer base beyond utilities
- Provided source code escrow agreements
- Built partnerships with established utility technology vendors
There's No Competitive Urgency
Most B2B software benefits from competitive pressure: "Your competitors are using this, you should too."
Utilities don't have competitors. They're regulated monopolies.
I tried creating urgency: "Other utilities are already using our platform and seeing results."
The response: "Good for them. We serve our territory exclusively. What they do doesn't affect us."
Traditional competitive positioning didn't work.
What created urgency instead:
Regulatory mandates: "The state requires 30% renewable energy by 2030. Our platform helps you track and report renewable integration."
Grid reliability requirements: "After the 2021 blackouts, NERC requires improved grid monitoring. Our platform helps you meet new reliability standards."
Customer expectations: "Customers increasingly expect digital tools like mobile apps and usage dashboards. Failure to provide these leads to customer complaints to the PUC."
External mandates created urgency that competition couldn't.
Buyers Are Engineers, Not Marketers
Utility executives are typically engineers:
- Electrical engineers who designed power systems
- Civil engineers who built water infrastructure
- Mechanical engineers who managed generation plants
They think in technical terms:
- Load factors
- Peak demand
- Distribution losses
- Transmission capacity
- SAIDI/SAIFI (reliability metrics)
Marketing jargon doesn't work. Engineering specificity does.
Bad messaging: "Our AI-powered platform optimizes grid performance." (Too vague, sounds like marketing fluff)
Better messaging: "Our platform reduces peak demand by 8% through automated load balancing across distribution feeders, improving grid stability while reducing transmission losses from 6.2% to 4.8%." (Specific engineering outcomes with measurable improvements)
Projects Span Decades
Utility technology deployments aren't quick implementations:
Planning: 1-2 years (regulatory approval, stakeholder alignment) Pilot: 1-2 years (test in limited territory) Initial deployment: 2-3 years (roll out to portion of service territory) Full deployment: 3-5 years (cover entire territory)
Total timeline: 7-12 years from decision to complete deployment.
This requires completely different customer success thinking:
We couldn't measure success in 90 days. We had to think in multi-year phases:
Year 1: Pilot success in limited area Year 2-3: Initial deployment meeting KPIs Year 4-5: Expansion to additional territories Year 6-10: Full deployment and ongoing optimization
Our customer success team needed to support accounts for a decade, not just through initial implementation.
What Actually Works in Energy & Utilities Marketing
After three years of failed pitches and decades-long sales cycles, here's what works:
Start With Municipal Utilities and Co-Ops
Don't target the largest investor-owned utilities first. They have the longest regulatory approval processes.
Start with:
Municipal utilities: Owned by cities, less regulated, faster decision-making
Rural electric co-ops: Member-owned, responsive to member needs, more flexible
Public power districts: State or regional entities, some regulatory flexibility
These organizations can move faster (12-18 months vs. 24+ months) and provide proof points for larger utilities.
We built our first 10 utility customers from municipal utilities and co-ops, then used that proof to approach investor-owned utilities.
Build Regulatory Approval Support Materials
Utilities need help getting PUC approval. Provide it.
We created:
- Economic analysis templates: Showing customer rate impact and cost recovery
- Case studies from other jurisdictions: Proving the technology works
- Risk mitigation documentation: Addressing PUC concerns about unproven technology
- Rate case language: Draft filing language utilities could use
These materials helped utility customers make stronger PUC applications.
When PUCs saw well-documented, low-risk technology with proven results from other jurisdictions, they approved more readily.
Create Long-Term Partnership Programs
Utility relationships last decades. Build for that.
We created multi-year partnership programs:
- 5-year technology roadmaps: Showing how our platform evolves with utility needs
- Joint innovation programs: Co-developing features for emerging utility challenges
- Executive relationship building: Regular CTO/CIO engagement beyond sales
- Grid modernization advisory: Helping utilities plan long-term technology strategy
These programs built trust that we'd be around for the long haul.
Position Around Regulatory Mandates
Create urgency through regulatory requirements, not competition.
For renewable integration mandates: "Your state requires 40% renewable energy by 2035. Our platform helps you integrate distributed solar and wind while maintaining grid stability."
For reliability requirements: "New NERC standards require improved outage management and restoration. Our platform helps you meet CIP compliance while reducing SAIDI/SAIFI metrics."
For customer engagement mandates: "PUC customer service standards now require digital tools. Our platform provides mobile apps and usage transparency that meet new requirements."
Regulatory mandates created urgency that competition couldn't.
Demonstrate Grid-Specific Expertise
Utilities won't trust software from people who don't understand power systems.
We hired:
- Former utility engineers who understood grid operations
- Power systems experts who could speak to electrical engineering
- Regulatory specialists who knew PUC processes
This expertise built credibility:
Our sales engineers could have technical conversations about load factors, VAR compensation, and distribution automation. Utility engineers trusted us because we spoke their language.
Build Slow But Compound Growth Strategies
Accept that utility sales cycles are multi-year. Build accordingly.
Year 1: Education and relationship building (no sales expectation)
Year 2: Pilot projects and proof of concept
Year 3: First contracts and implementations
Year 4+: Expansion and referrals
We measured success in 3-5 year cohorts, not quarterly targets.
But once a utility commits, the relationship lasts decades and expands continuously.
Managing regulatory approval materials, long-term partnership programs, and engineering-specific messaging across different utility types (municipal vs. investor-owned vs. co-ops) required organization. I used tools like Segment8 to maintain messaging frameworks and competitive intelligence by utility segment—being able to quickly access regulatory-specific materials vs. technical-spec materials helped sales navigate complex stakeholder conversations.
The Unexpected Advantages of Utilities Marketing
Despite the slow cycles and regulatory complexity, utilities have advantages:
Contract values are massive. Utilities serve millions of customers with billion-dollar budgets. Average deal size: $500K-$2M annually.
Retention is perfect. Multi-decade deployments mean once you're in, you don't get displaced. Our retention: 100%.
Expansion is continuous. Utilities constantly expand to new territories and add new capabilities. Our net revenue retention: 180%.
Stable revenue. Utilities don't go out of business or have budget cuts. Revenue is extremely predictable.
Three years after the CIO explained the regulatory approval process, we closed the deal.
Not in months. In years.
Year 1: Education and relationship building Year 2: Pilot project in one service territory Year 3: PUC approval for full deployment Year 4: Began multi-year rollout
Current status (Year 5): 60% deployed, expanding to remaining territories
The relationship will last decades.
Energy & utilities tech marketing isn't about moving fast. It's about moving deliberately and building for multi-decade partnerships.
The playbook:
- Start with municipal utilities and co-ops (faster approval)
- Build regulatory approval support materials
- Create long-term partnership programs (5-10 year horizon)
- Position around regulatory mandates, not competition
- Demonstrate grid-specific technical expertise
- Build slow but compound growth strategies
Utilities move slowly for good reasons. Infrastructure lasts decades. Regulatory oversight protects customers.
Respect that reality. Build for long-term partnerships. Accept multi-year sales cycles.
That's how you win in energy and utilities.