I’m Melting: Death Star – or...

Here’s a true energy-efficiency advocate’s quandary: Are energy-efficient home windows melting hybrid vehicles? According to Heather Patron of Studio City, California, the answer is yes. When the plastic side-view mirrors on her Prius began to melt, she took it to the Toyota dealer. The car checked out. Then, according to sources including...

When marketing home energy efficiency, d...

  “Small is the new success story.” KSV attended the Behavior, Energy and Climate Change conference in Washington D.C. a few weeks ago, and it got us thinking about energy efficiency programs, and how to market them effectively. One of the threads we heard again and again was that people were having success, all over the country...

2012: The Year of the Positive Deviator

If 2011 was the year of “The Protester,” according to TIME, then let’s declare 2012 the year of “The Positive Deviator.” Recently, I’ve had a few instances where I told people what I did for a living. My answer: “I’m in marketing.” Their response: “What do you sell?” Let me suggest that, while we are all...

Walking the Talk

With a client list that ranges from large utilities to energy efficiency agencies and renewable technology companies, it’s safe to say that KSV is deep into energy issues. We spend a lot of time crafting messages advocating for energy efficiency improvements and the like.  Calling us “energy nerds” would not be far off the mark. It’s bad...

Bringing the Apple Touch to Home Energy ...

We blogged last summer about Nest Labs, a start-up boasting Apple alums Mike Matas and Tony Fadell. Now Nest Labs has revealed its bid for the smart thermostat market. Their device – the Nest –  is “the world’s first learning thermostat – a thermostat for the iPhone generation,” says Fadell. In line with its Apple lineage, the...

We’re Number 51!

North Dakota has a lot going for it. Theodore Roosevelt National Park. The North Dakota Lewis & Clark Interpretive Center. The Dakota Dinosaur Museum. Unfortunately, energy efficiency is not on the list. The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) recently published its 2011 State Energy Efficiency Scorecard. We have 50 states...