SOLAR TODAY - March 2009

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TACKLING CLImATE CHANGE:
Getting the Green message Out
Smart marketing will play a key role in the success
of the new renewable energy economy.

By CHUCK KUTSCHER

Chuck kutscher is a principal engineer and manager of the Thermal systems group at the National Renewable energy Laboratory. He is a past ases chair and was chair of the soLaR 2006 conference, which resulted in the ases report, “ Tackling Climate Change in the U.s.” (Free download at ases.org/ climatechange.) He teaches a course at the University of Colorado entitled “Climate Change solutions.”

While oil prices swing wildly up and down, the atmosphere’s carbon dioxide content continues its relentless climb. Fortunately, after years of federal inaction, President Obama has assembled what looks like a dream team to address climate change. He has also recognized the tremendous potential for renewable energy to create jobs. But the successful deployment of clean energy technologies will depend to a great extent on how well we market them.

At the 2008 ASES National Solar Energy Conference in San Diego, Van Jones, author of The Green Collar Economy, observed that those of us in the renewable energy field have been underdogs for so long that we have not yet fully come to grips with the fact that the energy transition we have all envisioned is finally upon us. The changing times really struck me when the Detroit automotive CEOs pleaded with Congress for taxpayer support. Their companies have lost so much market share that reporters wryly observed it is no longer appropri-

The opinions expressed here are solely those of the author.

Right, green marketing is not only aimed at promoting renewable energy technologies but is also taking on the pretenders.

This is the print ad version of a TV spot funded by a group of environmental organizations.

ate to refer to them as the “The Big Three.” When asked why they had not invested more in fuel-efficient vehicles, the CEOs all gave the same response: “We give the customers what they want.” While that might meet Stephen Colbert’s standard of “truthiness,” it is far from the whole truth.

Most of us like to think we aren’t influenced by corporate ads. But billions of dollars wouldn’t be spent on advertising if it didn’t work. It’s no secret that the Detroit automakers can make bigger profits selling SUVs and trucks than they can selling lighter-weight, fuel-efficient vehicles. So they lobbied Congress for lax fuel-efficiency standards that favored big vehicles, which they then promoted like there was no tomorrow. This is, after all, the same industry that, when faced with the arrival of lightweight Japanese imports in the 1970s, turned to TV ads like the one proclaiming, “The Ford Pinto, with more road-hugging weight!”

It is ironic that it was Detroit engineers who actually led the way with an advanced electric car in the form of the General Motors EV1, but GM never backed it up with a marketing commitment. Today the hybrid Toyota Prius stands out not only for its excellent engineering but also for its smart marketing. Promoted as the ultimate green vehicle, there are now more than a million of them on the road.

Why has the Prius sold so much better than other high-gas-mileage vehicles, even better than other well-engineered Japanese hybrid sedans? The answer seems clear. It’s because it looks like…well…a Prius! That is, the designers purposely gave it a distinctly different appearance from other cars on the road, and people who drive a Prius like to project an image of being environmentally responsible. The success of the Prius makes it clear that, properly marketed, green products now have wide appeal. As taxpayers, we should insist that as Detroit uses our money to recover, they should focus on producing and marketing environmentally friendly vehicles that benefit all Americans, like the promising Chevy Volt.