A recent report from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory was written with one goal in mind: improving the success of energy efficiency home improvement programs. Hundreds of millions of dollars in public money currently fund home energy efficiency improvements across the country. Driving Demand for Home Energy Improvements provides analysis and advice to ensure the maximum impact of these funds by examining what motivates homeowners to seek out home energy improvements.
"Convincing millions of Americans to divert their time and resources into upgrading their homes to eliminate energy waste, avoid high utility bills, and help stimulate the economy is one of the great challenges facing energy efficiency programs," says co-author Merrian Fuller. “This report supplies a key element often missing in policy discussions—how to motivate consumers to take advantage of home energy upgrade programs.”
More than 2,000 towns, cities, states, and regions working to develop clean energy programs receive American Reinvestment and Recovery Act funds. This report examines the best incentives to encourage people to make comprehensive home energy improvements and energy efficiency-focused upgrades to residential buildings. It covers improvements such as air sealing, insulation, window replacement or enhancement, duct sealing, furnace or heat pump replacement, water heater replacement, air conditioner replacement, solar thermal water heating, and high-efficiency lighting.
Highlights from Successful Programs
The authors examined 14 residential energy efficiency programs throughout the country, conducted an extensive literature review, interviewed industry experts, and surveyed residential contractors. The resulting report discusses lessons learned by first-generation programs, highlights emerging best practices, draws numerous conclusions about successful home energy improvement marketing and outreach, and suggests methods and approaches for design, implementation, and evaluation.
Targeted Marketing and Familiar Benefits Yield Results
"It's important to find an appealing draw such as health, comfort, energy security, competition, or community engagement," says Charles Goldman, a co-author, "It's not enough to provide information about energy efficiency—programs must sell something that people already want." Programs also need to use terms familiar to homeowners, such as "home energy improvements" or "upgrades" instead of "retrofits," and "energy assessment" instead of "audit.”
Successful Program Design Requires Keen Understanding of Motivations
The authors conclude that for energy efficiency programs to be successful, program administrators will need to rely on multifaceted approaches as well as a deeper understanding of what motivates homeowners and contractors. The authors also found, “Effective programs tend to be tailored to the location, are thoughtfully researched and piloted, are personalized to the target audience, and are more labor-intensive than simple incentive programs." Because contractors are a key point of sale for home energy improvements, it’s also essential to design a program that contractors want to sell.
We’ll be posting more from the report in the future that will examine specific case studies and strategies for motivating demand for energy efficiency improvements. Slides and audio covering lessons learned from the report are available by linking to the online Webinar.
If you have questions or would like to share your experiences regarding residential energy efficiency programs, please submit a comment below or contact a Technical Assistance Provider.
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Content for this Blog post courtesy of Allan Chen, Lawerence Berkeley National Laboratory