October is National Popcorn Month and National Book Month.
Oh, yeah. It’s National Energy Awareness Month, too.

Reality check: Imagine you’re a utility about to transition to smart meters across your territory. You assume that most people understand, and embrace, the associated benefits. After all, you’re handing customers the power to purchase electricity when it’s cheapest. And over time, that spread in demand will reduce prices.
Easy sell, right?

A decade ago, a city looking to improve its sustainability efforts might have retrofitted City Hall, started a recycling program, and run a public awareness campaign. “A” for effort and results.
No more.

New Findings from Consumer Reports (http://bit.ly/9cLKhD) indicate that Energy Star standards are not as helpful as they could be to consumers when shopping for energy efficient appliances.
The report says that 75 percent of appliances actually qualify for Energy Star, which makes selecting the absolute best appliance quite the task.

The economic downturn has devastated housing markets, but there are a few positives. One is the growth of the green building movement – it’s getting a boost from homeowners eager to economize on energy costs, and builders looking to pull apart from the rest of the pack.
Green homes are no longer a niche product for high-end buyers. National certification programs such as LEED and Energy Star now have counterparts in many states. Energy-efficient measures could soon become a staple of all new homes, if consumer and industry trends are any indication.

Thought leaders and behavior influencers in the energy efficiency space have a narrow path to tread. They must educate, motivate, and build trust and credibility. All without sounding preachy, shrill or unrealistic.
We’re giving the U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE) newly redesigned web site, Energy Empowers (www.energyempowers.gov), high marks for the way it delivers in these categories.

2011 Planning and a Good Bourbon
Most of us are deep in the weeds of the projects we are working on.  There are fewer and fewer people to support us. And the demands for success are ever greater. We know that we are in the New Normal, but we don’t know what that means. And come January 1, when the past year's slate is wiped clean , we start all over again. Is it a beginning? It certainly is a very large blank slate, creating a huge hole in my stomach as I look out at 2011, and yet as marketers, it is our job to carry a great deal of the weight to make 2011 successful.

The consumer backlash toward California’s Pacific Gas & Electric’s (PG&E) smart meters is apparently unwarranted, according to a new independent study.
When PG&E installed smart meters, many consumers complained that their energy bills were inaccurate and that they were not properly informed about smart meter installation.

We’re wrapping up our look at “Understanding Consumer Preferences in Energy Efficiency” (http://bit.ly/9zMTSh), an essential survey of responses to smart metering programs.
A new, more active energy consumer is emerging – one with the potential to fundamentally reshape the relationship we’ve traditionally had with utilities and electricity providers.

General Electric is teaming with utilities for a $5 million program to evaluate whether energy savings in homes is possible using smart appliances and renewable resources to make homes 30% more efficient.
The program, funded by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), will be deployed at houses in the western U.S. that will incude a combination of retrofit and new construction.