Picking an energy broker is one of those decisions commercial buyers tend to rush through because the pitch sounds the same from everybody. "We shop the market for you." "We've got relationships with all the major suppliers." "Our service is free." Everyone says this. None of it is actually useful.

The difference between a good broker and a mediocre one will show up in your rate — typically 10-25% on a well-run procurement versus a lazy one. Over a three-year contract on a million-dollar energy spend, that's $300K to $750K. So it's worth spending 45 minutes on the phone actually vetting candidates. Here are the ten questions to ask.

1. How Are You Compensated?

Get the answer in writing. Specifically: what mils per kWh (or per therm on gas), what's the total dollar commission over my expected contract term, and is the commission fixed or adjustable at your discretion?

Good answer: "We take X mils, we'll disclose it on the signature page of every contract, it's fixed at the rate we quote you, and here's what it works out to in total dollars for your volume."

Bad answer: "Our service is free to you — the supplier pays us." This tells you nothing. Everyone "gets paid by the supplier." The question is how much and whether you can see it.

2. How Many Suppliers Are You Working With?

You want a broker who has contracting relationships with at least 10-15 suppliers in your state (more in Texas, where 100+ REPs compete). Fewer than that and you're not really "shopping the market" — you're shopping their preferred panel.

Good answer: A specific number with a list of supplier names. Bonus points if they tell you which ones tend to be most competitive for your usage profile and why.

Bad answer: "All the major ones." Ask them to name 15. Watch what happens.

3. How Many Bids Will You Solicit for My Account?

The answer should be double digits. For any meaningful commercial account, 10-20 competitive bids is what a real procurement process looks like. If the broker is only going to ask three or four suppliers, you're getting an expensive illusion of competition.

Good answer: "We'll solicit 15-20, present you a side-by-side of the top 5-7, and negotiate the top 3 down to final best offers."

Bad answer: "We already know which suppliers are most competitive, so we'll focus on those." Translation: "We'll ask the people who pay us the best and call it a market."

4. Will You Normalize the Contract Terms Before I Compare Bids?

This is the one that separates professionals from hobbyists. Supplier contracts differ on bandwidth provisions, pass-through mechanisms, early-termination fees, REC obligations, change-of-control language, and a dozen other provisions. Two contracts with identical headline rates can have radically different effective costs. A broker who's just handing you the supplier's standard contracts isn't doing the work.

Good answer: "We push all bidders onto a common contract template or we adjust pricing to normalize terms. You'll see an apples-to-apples comparison, not raw bids."

Bad answer: "The rate is the rate — just pick the lowest."

5. Have You Done Work for Businesses Like Mine?

Industry matters. A broker who primarily works with small offices is going to be out of their depth on a manufacturing portco with 24/7 load, demand charges, and bandwidth risk. A broker who mostly serves national restaurant chains may not know how to handle a single-site industrial facility.

Good answer: Specific examples of comparable clients, types of facilities, geographies, and the strategies they typically run.

Bad answer: Vague generalities and confidentiality dodges. Confidentiality is legitimate for specific pricing; it's not legitimate for describing the kinds of clients they serve.

6. What Happens After I Sign the Contract?

The work isn't done at signature — or at least it shouldn't be. Good brokers stay engaged: monthly bill audits, market monitoring, early warning on renewal windows, response to operational questions. Mediocre brokers disappear until six weeks before expiration.

Good answer: A specific cadence — monthly bill review, quarterly market update, 12-month-out renewal planning, defined account manager contact. You want to know what the relationship looks like in month 14, not just month one.

Bad answer: "We'll reach out when it's time to renew." Pass.

7. Do You Audit Utility Bills, or Just Supply?

The supply portion is 40-60% of your electric bill. The rest — delivery, capacity, transmission, riders, taxes — is a minefield of potential overcharges. A broker who only looks at the supply side is leaving half the savings on the table. Rate schedule errors, demand ratchet mistakes, sales-tax misapplication, and misapplied riders typically find 3-8% in recoverable costs that have nothing to do with who supplies your electricity.

Good answer: "We audit the full bill, not just supply. Here's our audit process and the types of findings we typically uncover."

Bad answer: "That's a separate service we don't offer." That's a broker, not an advisor. For larger accounts, look for both.

8. Can You Show Me a Sample Bid Summary?

Ask to see a redacted bid summary from a previous engagement. This tells you what their process actually looks like — how many bidders, how bids are normalized, how the recommendation is framed, what kind of analysis backs up the final selection.

Good answer: A clean, multi-bidder analysis with normalized terms and clear reasoning.

Bad answer: "I don't have anything I can share." Everyone has something they can redact and share. Reluctance here usually means their process isn't actually very impressive.

9. How Do You Time the Market?

Pricing varies dramatically based on when you lock. A broker who insists on going to market the week your contract expires is setting you up to take whatever the spot market is doing that week. A broker who monitors forward curves and flags windows — "rates have pulled back, this is a good moment to lock" — is genuinely advising.

Good answer: A description of their market-watching process, how far in advance they start tracking your renewal, and examples of when they've advised clients to accelerate or delay a lock based on market conditions.

Bad answer: "We go to market when the contract expires." That's execution, not advice.

10. What Happens If I'm Not Happy With the Result?

Every broker arrangement should have an off-ramp. If the relationship isn't working, can you end it? What's the commitment period? Can you terminate without cause? A broker who locks you into a long-term advisory agreement with punitive exit terms is protecting themselves, not you.

Good answer: No long-term advisory commitment, ability to switch suppliers and brokers at contract expiration, transparent terms.

Bad answer: A multi-year advisory contract with early-termination fees. Walk away.

Bonus: The Gut Check

Beyond the questions, listen for tells. A broker who talks mostly about "their relationships" and very little about your load profile isn't going to dig into the details that actually matter. A broker who pushes a specific supplier before they've seen your bills isn't advising — they're selling.

Conversely, brokers who ask detailed questions about your operations, your risk tolerance, your budget cycle, and your growth plans before proposing anything are the ones who are going to get you to a better outcome. The work is in the specifics.

Our Recommendation

Interview three brokers. Ask them all ten questions. Compare the answers. Don't pick the one who promises the lowest rate — rates depend on the market, not the broker. Pick the one who has the most credible answers to the questions above. They'll save you the most money over the life of the relationship, which is what actually matters.