The effect of brief in-survey product experience on preferences for smart energy technologies

Survey research on the adoption of smart energy technologies is growing rapidly, generating important knowledge about factors on the consumer side that may help facilitate transition towards sustainable energy systems. However, much of this research uses survey measures to elicit consumer preferences without explicit consideration of whether and how in-survey experience with the technologies affects preference estimates. For this reason, we experimentally test (for the first time) whether brief in-survey product experience, mainly in the form of additional time spent deliberating about relevant products, influences stated consumer preferences for smart energy monitoring and management apps. Findings obtained in our first experiment conducted in the United Kingdom suggest modest effects of in-survey product experience on consumer preferences, where consumer preferences can be both strengthened or weakened depending on the type of in-survey product experience. These findings are, however, not replicated in our second experiment conducted in Spain. The Spanish experiment, nonetheless, suggests that brief in-survey product experience can help participants make more reasoned choices better reflecting their environmental concern and income constraints. Our results point to possible ways how to improve the reliability of stated preference surveys by providing respondents with adequate in-survey experience with unfamiliar products.