At AESP this week, my colleague Tucker Wright and I presented on innovation, advanced targeting for C&I customers, and inspiration. We showed work that pushed the envelope for the energy industry, and world-class brands that had redefined their category.

We had great conversations with people who see the changes coming and are inspired to act, and act now.

We made a few people uncomfortable.

But you know what comment we heard, again and again? 

“That’s great, but not for this industry.” 

Topics: Customer-Centric Marketing, Utility Communications, Data and Analytics, Digital Transformation and User Experience, Innovation, Marketing Strategy and Best Practices, Audience Segmentation

A few weeks ago we wrote about the now infamous Pepsi ad debacle and the lessons marketers could learn from it.  

 

This week Heineken showed everyone how it’s done with their ‘Worlds Apart” ad.

Some people are calling it the antidote to Pepsi’s mistake.

If you haven’t seen it, it’s certainly worth the watch.

There were no celebrities.

No dancers in the streets.

It had nothing to do with big budgets or stellar production value.

All it dealt with was reality. 

Real people with real differences.

And that’s something that can connect with the masses.

They weren’t trying to end the resistance by handing out a few Heinekens.

They were just trying to start conversations.

And they succeeded.

 

   Download the brief now.

Topics: Customer-Centric Marketing, Utility Communications, Data and Analytics, Digital Transformation and User Experience, Innovation, Marketing Strategy and Best Practices, Audience Segmentation

This week we traveled to Washington, D.C. for the ENERGY STAR Awards to see our work honored and celebrate some big wins for a couple of clients.

Haven’t seen the KSV POV video that was shown during the awards?  Check it out here.

But today we want to talk about wins.  Big wins.

Our partner National Grid won big at the ENERGY STAR Awards for their “Life on the grid” campaign.

Topics: Customer-Centric Marketing, Utility Communications, Data and Analytics, Digital Transformation and User Experience, Innovation, Marketing Strategy and Best Practices, Audience Segmentation

Happy Earth Day!

A day to appreciate this big beautiful planet we all live on. 

It’s when a lot of people and companies (check out these four videos from Apple) show their commitment to keeping this Earth intact.

Which is fabulous.

The only thing is that in order to leave a lasting legacy for our children we should be doing that all the time.

So let’s start living like every day is is Earth Day.

And in the future when Earth Day rolls around we’ll have something truly spectacular to celebrate.

Cheers, Earth!

 

  Download the brief now.

Topics: Customer-Centric Marketing, Utility Communications, Data and Analytics, Digital Transformation and User Experience, Innovation, Marketing Strategy and Best Practices, Audience Segmentation

 

Tucker Wright is a Strategic Lead at KSV. His areas of expertise include brand strategy, digital strategy, and b2b marketing.

 

 

 

 

 

Full disclosure: On May 4 ^th I’m giving a talk at AESP’s Spring Conference titled, “Hyper-Targeting, Native Advertising & the C&I Customer” so writing about why targeting isn’t enough when marketing energy efficiency to businesses seemed poorly timed. But the reality is, it’s true.  

 

Why? While hyper-targeting is incredibly important, it’s also completely useless if you’re reaching the right person with the wrong message.

And in our experience, that’s often what’s happening with most energy providers’ B2B marketing.

Topics: Customer-Centric Marketing, Utility Communications, Data and Analytics, Digital Transformation and User Experience, Innovation, Marketing Strategy and Best Practices, Audience Segmentation

Duane Peterson is no ordinary solar outfit.

 

The former Ben and Jerry's "Chief of Stuff" has an eclectic professional past that has culminated (for now) in clean energy. We sat down to talk about inspiration, what he wishes utilities and state energy agencies knew, branding, Thomas Edison, and yes, ice cream.

 

For those that don't know, SunCommon, a certified B Corp, is a solar company located in Waterbury Vermont, and recently expanded into the New York State market. You can read more about SunCommon's culture, accolades, and approach here.

 

@ashKSV: Duane, thank you so much for taking the time to talk with us. Let's start with inspiration. Where did the inspiration for SunCommon come from?

 

@DuanePeterson: Well, my friend and co-founder, James Moore, and I had a conversation and we said, "Why is it that the adoption of clean energy is pathetically slow?" And then we imagined a better way. SunCommon exists to help people join the clean energy revolution; it's a market solution to climate change. 

 

When he first began, Peterson admits, he knew nothing about solar. But he was an expert communicator, a great storyteller (he still is), and he saw a problem. 

Topics: Customer-Centric Marketing, Utility Communications, Data and Analytics, Digital Transformation and User Experience, Innovation, Marketing Strategy and Best Practices, Audience Segmentation

Next month, at the AESP Spring Conference on marketing, KSV was asked to speak on world class brands, and what energy companies can learn from them.

 

And there is a lot to explore on this topic.

 

But this week a big (BIG) world class brand made a big mistake.

 

Have you watched the now (in)famous Pepsi ad with Kendall Jenner?

Topics: Customer-Centric Marketing, Utility Communications, Data and Analytics, Digital Transformation and User Experience, Innovation, Marketing Strategy and Best Practices, Audience Segmentation

The future is sustainable, with our without the White House.

The Clean Power Plan was introduced in 2015 by President Obama, who called it "the single most important step that America has ever made in the fight against global climate change."

The EPA estimated that the CPP would help to protect the most vulnerable among us, including children, seniors, the sick, and those living in poverty, as well as future generations from the dangers of air pollution. 

And the results weren't just platitudes. 

From the EPA website: 

• The Clean Power Plan itself is projected to contribute significant pollution reduction, resulting in important benefits, including:
  • Climate benefits of $20 billion
  • Health benefits of $14-$34 billion
  • Net benefits of $26-$45 billion
• Because carbon pollution comes packaged with other dangerous air pollutants, the Clean Power Plan will also protect public health, avoiding each year:
  • 3,600 premature deaths
  • 1,700 heart attacks
  • 90,000 asthma attacks
  • 300,000 missed work days and school days

And this week President Trump signed an executive order instructing the EPA to rescind the Clean Power Plan.

Topics: Customer-Centric Marketing, Utility Communications, Data and Analytics, Digital Transformation and User Experience, Innovation, Marketing Strategy and Best Practices, Audience Segmentation

If you've ever downloaded a KSV brief, you know we ask you what you want to see more of on EnergyWire, and this week we got a great response to that question.

David told us (hi David!) that what he wants to see more of is "digital stories".

First of all, what a great request. Second of all, we're kind of in love with that term. 

Imagine if the way you were interacting with your customers was through digital stories, instead of through ads that weren't aware of the experience your customer had already had with you. 

Imagine if your advertising could be a storyteller for your brand, instead of being tone deaf.

Topics: Customer-Centric Marketing, Utility Communications, Data and Analytics, Digital Transformation and User Experience, Innovation, Marketing Strategy and Best Practices, Audience Segmentation

Happy St. Patrick’s Day everyone!

This week Irish company Solar 21 won the award for Best Renewables Project/Installation in the Humber Area at the Humber Renewables Awards in Hull.

Everyone’s Irish on St. Patrick’s Day, so let’s celebrate our collective win.

The project that won this prestigious award is a biomass plant that will produce the cheapest renewable energy from biomass of any comparable facility.

There are three things we can learn from this.

Topics: Customer-Centric Marketing, Utility Communications, Data and Analytics, Digital Transformation and User Experience, Innovation, Marketing Strategy and Best Practices, Audience Segmentation