“IN JUST
FIVE MINUTES YOU CAN
SAVE MONEY”

In 2021 Mijnenergie.be helped 178,112 people to get a better energy contract. That is 18 percent more than in the previous year. “Because of high energy prices and suppliers that ceased trading, the interest in our website increased enormously and gave us a boost,” says Business Manager Kristof De Paepe.

The price comparison website was founded in 2007 by Bertrand Rochez and was acquired by DPG Media in the spring of 2018. “That was a great success,” says De Paepe. “The turnover started to grow substantially from the moment that we joined DPG Media. In just a couple of years we have achieved a substantial market share of the price comparison website market.”

The figures speak for themselves. In 2018 Mijnenergie. be had 100,000 visitors per month. The website really took off after the integration into DPG Media. Last year visitor numbers rose to 186,000; and 178,112 contracts were concluded via the website, in comparison with 109,000 in 2019.

De Paepe does not need much time to think about an explanation for the growth. “Our presence on the platforms of DPG Media, which reach a very wide audience, has enabled us to make large numbers of people aware of opportunities to save money. We are running campaigns on VTM and Qmusic, for example. The message always stresses the potential for making savings. That catches people’s attention. It persuades people that they can and should do something about their contract.’’

“We created examples that explain why people have switched. For example, there is someone who says, ‘I helped my mother, it took five minutes and now she’s saving a lot of money’. And someone else says, Football star ‘Kevin De Bruyne earns so-and-so euros per minute, in five minutes you can also earn money by switching to another supplier’. As soon as we appear in the media, we see further growth.”

A satisfied customer generally comes back. That is not the case with Mijnenergie.be, but of course it is not necessary either. “Conclude a better contract and then come back a month later to see if you can get something even cheaper? No, not a good idea. When you switch, you also pay a sort of subscription fee, which you don’t get back. So the advice is switch, make the most of the discounts you get via Mijnenergie.be and then do it all over again a year later. Our customers are satisfied and are not afraid to say so. They refer to Mijnenergie. be regularly on social media.”

It is only a slight exaggeration to say that Mijnenergie.be is actually a supermarket for gas and electricity. After all, the website compares the prices of all the suppliers on a daily basis. Just as a supermarket looks at the competition and guarantees the lowest prices, Mijnenergie.be puts forward the keenest prices on the energy market.

“We keep our eye on rates and promotions every day, so our prices are always up to date.” Just like a supermarket? De Paepe laughs. “It sounds like it, doesn’t it? But a supermarket also sells products, we only make comparisons. When someone signs up, they do it directly with the supplier, not with us. So how do we earn money from it? When a visitor to the website takes advantage of an offer via the link, we get a commission from the supplier.”

Visitors to the website come in all ages, from 18 to 98. As a visitor you get an offer based on the information you give about where you live, your current consumption and type of meter, and whether you have solar panels installed. A calculation is then made. “Many people are extremely worried about energy prices at the moment. Comparisons help people to make savings: there can be hundreds of euros difference between the cheaper contracts and the more expensive ones.”

Because of the energy crisis 2021 was an auspicious year and Kristof De Paepe believes that further growth is possible. It is a question of convincing people to surf to Mijnenergie.be and make a comparison.

In fact, a lot of people do not. There are a lot of possible reasons for that. “Uncertainty, doubt and ignorance, for example,” says De Paepe. “The fear of being without electricity. There are still people who think they run that risk if they switch suppliers, although in reality it isn’t possible. However, during the lockdown lots of people found their way to a comparison website. They were staying at home, they had time and salespeople were not allowed to come to the door. Moreover, energy prices were low at the beginning of the COVID crisis, in contrast to today. People go looking for interesting offers at times like that, too.”