Fort Collins Efficiency Works
Tools of Charge   Nov 14.2018
Description Maps

Introduction

In a pilot from the fall of 2015 to the fall of 2016, Fort Collins Utilities doubled enrollment rates, converted 44% of energy efficiency assessments to comprehensive upgrades, and doubled average project energy savings. In 2017, this pilot received both Landmark designation and the American Public Power Association Energy Innovator award. The pilot offered a streamlined, turn-key service for homeowners that overcame key barriers to participation such as lack of time to select and meet with contractors, too many complex technical scope of work decisions, homeowner distrust of contractor proposals, and concerns about paying for improvements. The campaign also used a propensity model to target the neighborhoods with the highest potential for saving, and then direct mail marketing to neighborhoods with the highest propensity to participate. This case study was designated Landmark in 2017.

In 2016, Fort Collins created the Efficiency Works Neighborhoods pilot program to increase the scale and comprehensiveness of energy efficiency and renewables projects needed to meet its Climate Action Plan in the existing home sector. The pilot aimed to increase the rates of participation, achieve higher energy savings, and make the upgrade process as simple as possible for homeowners.

Reason to Be Selected

The program improved on the home energy visit models used to-date across North America by incorporating the four innovative components below.The customized visit models give a clearer understand about the most efficient way to improve ‘voluntaary’ public particitation.

Highlights:

Simplification of Choices: Recommendations were narrowed down to only three custom packages and focused specifically on whole home retrofits. This increased participation and also savings per household. Those with a “do-it-yourself” mind-set or wanting more options could use the utility’s already existing home retrofit program instead.

Standardized Pricing: Standardized pricing was the most difficult piece of this new model to create and implement. However it was also one of the most critical parts of streamlining the process and gaining trust with the customer. It eliminated customers having to meet with and then decipher proposals from multiple contractors to obtain a scope of work that was in their best interests. The customer could review pricing and discuss it with the independent auditor while the Home Advisor was still in the home.

Quality Assurance Using Photo Documentation: The pilot also developed a new 100% Quality Assurance process using photo documentation on all major improvements for every project, without the time and expense of a site visit.

Performance Improvement Certificates, Real Estate Listings: Fort Collins’s discussions with the local MLS to provide home efficiency information to realtors, buyers, and appraisers makes efficiency a direct value-added feature, not just a possible time-based return on investment.

Details

Using the two factors of Potential energy savings and Propensity for participation as criteria, Fort Collins scored and ranked neighborhoods, and used color coded dots that corresponded to the rankings to plot these ratings on a Google map of the City.This enabled the program to visually determine clusters of neighborhoods to target and to track those previously and currently targeted. Each dot representing a neighborhood could also be clicked on to see the average household income, building age, and education level used to rank that neighborhood.

Recommended

The program contacted potential participants three times, using carefully targeted and tailored communications that were timed to control the enrollment rate so as to not overwhelm staff and contractors.Then,it tried and evaluated a number of communication methods for the third touch point, including a door-to-door porch light campaign, digital ads, NextDoor app, and neighborhood homeowner association newsletters.

The most effective approaches leveraged social norms and peer diffusion.These kind of approaches proved very successful in creating neighborhood buzz about the program / word-of-mouth promotion.

In contrast, having participants post their experience on the “Next door app” to create a buzz didn’t gain any traction in the targeted neighborhoods, and was determined to be inconsistent with City Neighborhood newsletters and geo-fenced digital ads were also found to be effective.

Conclusions

This pilot tested three promotion channels against conventional low cost channels like utility bill stuffers: (1) direct mail, (2) norms appeals and word of mouth / peer diffusion, and (3) social media. Together, the first and third cost 35% more in the pilot than using the conventional low cost strategies like utility bill stuffers in the Homes program. However, in conjunction with the other outreach channels used they also produced more than a 50% higher response rate. Of those people who responded to the promotions, 70% enrolled in the program and booked a home assessment. The conversation rate from assessment to project was slightly less than 50%.

 



Lat: 40.585
Lng: -104.915
Type:
Region:
Scale: District
Field: Infrastructure
City: Fort Collins
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