Everyone “Diggs” 1 Block Off The Grid (1BOG.org)
Big news just announced from 1 Block Off The Grid (1BOG.org)
With 1 Block Off The Grid (aka 1BOG.org) San Francisco residents can save up to 48% off the cost of a solar system for their home (total cost for low energy users would be about $3,200 for a system). The deadline for taking advantage of 1BOG’s offer is September 15, 2008 so check out 1BOG’s web site soon for more details.
I just heard this news from Sylvia Ventura, co-founder of 1BOG, and I’m mentioning this to my blog readers because this seems like a particularly unique opportunity for my fellow San Franciscans to receive low-cost solar power - and I’m a supporter of affordable renewable energy.
San Franciscans can currently benefit from the largest government-sponsored rebates that have ever been available, but some of them will soon no longer be unavailable. Between 1BOG’s discounts and the rebates, this is likely the lowest price opportunity for solar available in San Francisco this year. In addition to securing volume pricing, the team at 1BOG helps guide and educate its members through the process, making getting solar power less intimidating than going it alone.
The background on 1BOG
1BOG’s mission is to accelerate the adoption of renewable solar energy in residential homes. Their primary tool for doing this is to make solar power more accessible financially by negotiating deep discounts in the price of solar systems. 1BOG’s unique business model involves bringing together a large group of homeowners in a given city, and then using group purchasing power to negotiate volume pricing so that everyone in the group benefits.
According to Sylvia, 1BOG aims to take the equivalent of a city block off the San Francisco grid by the end of the year. This isn’t an actual city block - it’s more like a “virtual block”, the aggregate of all the participating solar homes in San Francisco. Afterwards, their goal is to reduce San Francisco’s electricity demand by many blocks, and then to repeat this in cities across the country.
Taking a block off the grid, or roughly 50 homes, in San Francisco would be a real achievement, given current numbers. According to 1BOG’s site “The city has set a goal of 10,000 solar roofs by 2010; to date less than 700 residences have solar on their roofs.” This low level of adoption is largely due to cost, but also due to inadequate information (e.g. about government incentives and tax benefits).
You can see a visual image of the demand for 1BOG in San Francisco:
A Bad Time to Take a Vacation
Another story from Sylvia - her family was taking her kids on a 10-day summer vacation in Tahoe last week that they had planned 6 months in advance, including family visiting from out of town. This soon turned into an entrepreneurial working vacation when unexpected promotional pandemonium broke loose…
When 1BOG put an announcement on the news wire on August 19 (during their family vacation) that they had selected Real Goods Solar as their solar power installation partner, a CleanTechnica blog post about the news suddenly became a popular story on Digg. By the next day, there was 100 Diggs, and the story hit the front page on Digg, and became the top story with over 600 Diggs in just a couple of hours!
Within hours, 1BOG.org was flooded with thousands of visitors, and this led to 80 new registrants, bringing their total number of members to 340.
Why did this get so popular on Digg out-of-the-blue? Sylvia isn’t sure, but she suspects that Digg is very much community-oriented, and that 1BOG has an inspiring community-oriented concept.
Where to Next? Going National
Though 1 Block Off the Grid is focused on completing their first round of community solar installations in San Francisco, the word has gotten out nationally. According to Sylvia Ventura, they are now considering the next cities they want to serve. My guess is they will go to the cities with the largest number of registrants at 1BOG’s site, so that should be motivation for people outside of San Francisco.
1BOG has signed up 40 people in Washington DC, 15 in Las Vegas, 6 in Portland, and a number of people in other Bay Area cities such as San Jose and Sacramento.
Interview with Mo Chicarro and Anthony Oram, Founders of Male Organics
-
“The Cleanest Men in London”
Male Organics is a UK-based internet store that’s a one-stop shop for organic and natural grooming products for men aspiring to be chemical-free and earth-friendly.
The two founders of Male Organics share why they seized upon the idea of starting a store for men - and surprising things they’ve learned along the way.
INTERVIEW HIGHLIGHTS
- Why Male Organics was told off for being sexist….
- …and a surprising fact: 50% of the customers at Male Organics are women!
- What from the marketing toolbox is working? Offering discounts is working to attract people to their site
- Find out the #1 bestselling natural grooming product purchased for men
LISTEN NOW (press play below)
TRANSCRIPT
PATRICK DOMINGUEZ: This is Patrick Dominguez from Green Business Innovators.com and I am here speaking with two gentlemen from Male Organics. Why don’t you introduce yourselves and tell us a little bit about what your company does and its history.
MO CHICARRO: Sure, I’m Mo Chicarro.
ANTHONY ORAM: And I’m Anthony Oram.
MO CHICARRO: We started out Male Organics almost a year ago and the idea was we were looking ourselves for products on the internet - to wash with or brush your teeth with, a toothpaste, shower gel, stuff like that and previously you would only find them on websites that were mainly female orientated and a very small men’s section. So, we spent about a year researching a wide variety of products and then put them all in one place which is now Male Organics. Guys can go there and the whole website is laid out for men’s idea of shopping.
Interview with Chris Bristow and Harvey Jones, Founders of Smartly Green
Smartlygreen.com is an innovative shopping portal/loyalty program/social network that allows people to offset their carbon footprint for free while they shop online at 400+ top retail stores. The site serves customers in the US (with stores in the US including the Gap, Apple, Orbitz, Macys, etc), the UK, and Australia. The two founders of Smartly Green, based in the UK, share the story behind the founding of the site and their vision for its growth.
INTERVIEW HIGHLIGHTS
- The Smartly Green story of two “normal guys” (actually with extensive business experience) making a choice to give back through their business
- How they were able to enroll so many top retail brands in their program
- The thinking behind Smartly Green’s international expansion
- Does Smartly Green encourage people to do more shopping? The founders address this question
LISTEN NOW (press play below)
TRANSCRIPT
PATRICK DOMINGUEZ: Hello, this is Patrick Dominguez from Green Business Innovators and I am here with the two founders of Smartly Green. Why don’t you introduce yourselves and tell us what Smartly Green does.
HARVEY JONES: My name is Harvey Jones.
CHRIS BRISTOW: And my name is Chris Bristow.
HARVEY JONES: First of all, Chris and I thought we needed to do something which was environmentally sustainable and living in that way. Because we had spent the last 25 years working for large corporates in different parts of the world and it was now time to put something back in. We came up with the idea from looking at a series of studies that had been in the UK that indicated that in between 70 and 75% of the population actually did have an environmental conscience, but were doing nothing about it. They were doing nothing about it because (a), they found the information confusing or worse, they were actually finding the information coming downstream contradictory. That was a major issue. That resulted in them doing absolutely nothing. We came up with the idea saying, okay let’s do something for that part of society. Let’s make it easy for them and let’s start them on the journey to a more sustainable lifestyle. And let’s make it in such a way that they don’t even have to think about it. They don’t have to change their lifestyles to begin with and they certainly don’t have to spend any more money.
We came up with a retail portal called Smartly Green and people are encouraged to do their normal shopping through us, not to spend any more money and certainly not to do anymore shopping.
To Be a Liberal (Hilarious)
I loved this video from Roy Zimmerman. It reminded me not to take myself, the success of my business nor the green movement too seriously. Have fun!
Video Interview with Michael Dwork, CEO, VerTerra
Compostable Dinnerware - Made from Fallen Leaves
In this interview, VerTerra CEO Michael Dwork shares how he came up with the idea for VerTerra’s compostable dinnerware while traveling in Asia, and behind-the-scenes details of how they produce sustainable products.
VerTerra produces compostable dinnerware (such as plates and bowls) made from just fallen leaves and water pressure. No chemicals are used (such as coatings, glues, plastics) and no trees are cut down. And no recycling is needed, since the products are made of leaves - they are biodegradable and the material used naturally returns to the earth within 2 months.
In addition to reducing waste and energy use, they offer fair-wage jobs to the many people they employ in developing countries in Asia where the leaves are sourced.
Last but not least - VerTerra’s products are very attractive and stylish! These amazing products are a great way to help “green” your next event.
Interview with Clare Harris, Editor, New Consumer Magazine
New Consumer, a UK-based magazine and web site, helps people around the world channel their purchasing power choices and actions to make a difference through ethical living and support of fair trade. Top-notch content (passionate, irreverent, positive and fun) and a strong commitment to their values are two linchpins of New Consumer’s success.
New Consumer’s Editor Clare Harris takes us on a behind-the-scenes tour of the business and editorial strategies that guide New Consumer’s successful growth.
INTERVIEW HIGHLIGHTS
- Note how clear New Consumer is about what strategies they are using to attract and grow their audience. (Do you have a clear plan for growing your business?)
- The power of partnerships to spread word-of-mouth
- What New Consumer does to provide an antidote to “green fatigue”
- Where to find out about vegetarian and fair trade condoms!
LISTEN NOW (press play below)
TRANSCRIPT
Patrick Dominguez: This is Patrick Dominguez with Green Business Innovators and I am interviewing the editor of New Consumer, Clare Harris. Thank you, Clare for agreeing to do this interview.
Clare Harris: Thank You.
Patrick Dominguez: Clare, to get started why don’t you tell us about New Consumer.
Clare Harris: Well, New Consumer started out about 5 years ago and it was originally set up as a publication that reflected the growth of the fair trade movement in the UK. And we covered a whole range of fair trade issues, what new products were out there, what the effect on producers was, and since then we have grown with the sector to cover all areas of ethical living, whether that’s organics, eco-electricity, whether it’s fair trade products. So, we have widened partly in response to the fact that the more people are aware of shopping ethically and want to shop ethically. There is an appetite for knowledge out there.
Video Interview with Rick Batia, Managing Director, Bauer’s Intelligent Transportation
From Bachelorette Parties to Green Transportation Leader
Rick Batia shares how Bauer’s Intelligent Transportation grew from a 6-vehicle limousine company to the largest private eco-friendly fleet in the country. Bauer’s Intelligent Transportation provides employee commuter shuttle programs for many top technology companies (such as Google and Yahoo) in the San Francisco Bay Area.
This interview was held at the Sustainable Brands 2008 conference.
IDEO’s 7 Rules of Brainstorming
Next time you’re ready to brainstorm, try out these “rules” of brainstorming from IDEO, which Steve Bishop from IDEO shared at the Sustainable Brands 2008 conference. According to Steve, these brainstorming guidelines appear everywhere at IDEO, from conference rooms to business cards.
THE SEVEN RULES OF BRAINSTORMING (FROM IDEO)
1) Defer judgment
Don’t dismiss any ideas.
Any idea is a good idea, no matter how crazy.
Nothing can kill the spirit of a brainstorm quicker than judging ideas before they have a chance to gain legs.
2) Encourage wild ideas
Embrace the most out-of-the-box notions because they can be the key to solutions.
The whole point of brainstorming is coming up with new and creative ideas.
3) Build on the ideas of others
No “buts”, only “ands.”
Sometimes people say crazy and bizarre things, like “make it on Mars”, but there is some element of truth in it. When you build on the ideas of others, you might bring those crazy ideas back down to earth and make them real innovations.
4) Stay focused on the topic
Always keep the discussion on target.
Otherwise you can diverge beyond the scope of what you’re trying to design for.
5) One conversation at a time
No interrupting, no dismissing, no disrespect, no rudeness.
Let people have their say.
6) Be visual
Use yellow, red and blue markers to write on big 30-inch by 25-inch Post-its that are put on a wall.
Nothing gets an idea across faster than drawing it. Doesn’t matter how terrible of a sketcher you are.
7) Go for quantity
Aim for as many new ideas as possible. In a good session, up to 100 ideas are generated in 60 minutes.
Crank the ideas out quickly.
TAKE ACTION: What is the next situation in your business when you’ll be able to apply these brainstorming practices?
—-
Want to learn about related brainstorming strategies from IDEO? Check out this blog post with 7 ways to help brainstorming and Six surefire ways to KILL a brainstorm.
Notes from Jacquelyn Ottman’s keynote presentation at Sustainable Brands 2008 conference on marketing your green business initiatives in a credible and effective way.
Jacquelyn noted in her talk that the first 3 green marketing strategies given below are great examples of what’s working now. The final 3 strategies will be necessary for building a sustainable brand in the future - but some of these may be challenging, some may even hurt.
“Skip the babies, kill the daisies, pulverize the planets.”
Consumers are so tired of seeing the same trite images in green marketing. It’s one reason why consumers have green fatigue.
They also know that the products can’t be as green as they are depicted to be when surrounded by these images.
Focus on consumer concerns
According to Gallup polls (such as The People’s Priorities: Economy, Iraq, Gas Prices, May 30, 2008), people consider the environment a lower priority than the issues of economy and the availability/affordability of health care.
[Related link: Deflating a Myth - Consumers aren't as devoted to the planet as you wish they were (AdWeek)]
EXAMPLE: Successfully avoiding daisies and babies: Toyota Prius
The Prius may have been inspired by green considerations, but Toyota has focused on benefits such as fuel economy and a quiet ride - more meaningful and relevant to consumers than saving the planet.
Key takeaway
You can make your marketing messaging more relevant to consumers by linking environmental product characteristics (or your company’s corporate social responsibility efforts) to priorities such as monetary savings or health benefits. For example, highlight product benefits such as organic certification (good for health) or Energy Star rating (saves energy and money).
2. BE TRANSPARENT
Success example: Timberland unveiled this year a label with detailed environmental metrics - energy use, community impact, resources used.
Coming soon - labels that link consumption to carbon footprint. The issues with bottled water show what happens when consumers link carbon footprint with consumption.
Imagine the pandemonium that will break out when someone figures how to compare the carbon footprint of other products to yours!
3. START FROM THE INSIDE OUT
Greening a business from the inside out will help ensure the credibility of a campaign.
Success examples: the advertising industry has created in 2008 the first Green Effie award to recognize eco-marketing efforts that are effective and making a difference. The strong campaigns from the 3 semifinalists (HSBC, Wal-Mart, GE) are all campaigns we can learn from.
EXAMPLE 1: HSBC - “no small change” campaign
4 Challenges of Building Sustainable Brands
1. Awareness of green issues and product environmental impact is growing in the US - creating risk for certain products
Why is this a challenge? This growing awareness has implications for brands that begin to be perceived in a negative light due to sustainability issues.
One indicator of this increasing awareness: there has been a 50% increase in buzz around sustainability on blogs (according to a Nielsen study) since last year.
EXAMPLE: Bottled water and plastic bags are coming under attack for their environmental impact.
EXAMPLE: Disposable diapers the next product to come under fire may be - because of G-diapers.
EXAMPLE: the American car market has been affected by high gas prices, and continues to shift to more fuel efficient cars.
- The number of drivers on the road has declined to the 1940 levels when gas was scarce during the war
- Prius sales are up 54% since last year
- GM has recognized that it must “Live Green or Die”, according to the Business Week cover story (May 2008) (while cutting 19,000 jobs last week)
EXAMPLE: Clorox launched GreenWorks, a product which sits on the shelf next to products from Seventh Generation and Method, to address consumers’ concerns about toxics.
- Related links: a Green Works analysis, Sierra Club explains its unusual partnership with Green Works, and a contrarian blogger’s view
Major ad agencies and PR agencies are ramping up to support green products - and some have started green divisions such as Saatchi and Saatchi S.
- However, not all of their clients being well served - fuzzy terms are being used in marketing that consumers don’t understand well, such as “sustainability” and “renewable”
2. Greenwashing is a big issue
Green marketing claims are being made that can’t be substantiated.
- Carbon offsets - a $54 mil industry that’s unregulated and drawing fire for lack of accountability
- More marketing campaigns than not are considered to be greenwashing. In The Six Sins of Greenwashing study, TerraChoice found that of 1,018 common consumer products, 99% were guilty of some form of greenwashing.
- Green marketing being compared to the Wild West
- FTC has moved up its review of the Green Guides by a full year
Related link:
3. Green Fatigue - a new term has entered green marketing lexicon
Consumers are so inundated, they can’t figure out what’s authentically “green” and what’s a gimmick. Related links:
- Have you got green fatigue? (The Independent - UK newspaper)
- One Energy Pulse study claims that “What consumers are often fatigued about in 2007 is the price differential - or at least the perceived price differential”
4. How many of you are confused about how to market your products in a legitimate way?
How many of you are worried about being labeled greenwashing? Or being sued for false claims?
How can we keep the green marketing revolution going? And the hope for conducting business in a better way?
If we don’t fix the issues associated with greenwashing and green fatigue (with activists bashing our companies for not doing homework and not being walking the talk) then the green marketing revolution will screech to a halt.
Jacquelyn Ottman offered key strategies you can use to market your green initiatives in a credible and effective way.