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Sample Event Ideas and Promotional Items

Take the ENERGY STAR Challenge

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There are a variety of ways — large and small — to promote your involvement in the ENERGY STAR Challenge and celebrate your energy efficiency achievements. Promotional activities are an important way to educate the community about energy efficiency and to reward outstanding efforts to save energy, money, and help prevent climate change.

Get started with these ENERGY STAR ideas and tips:

Challenge Kickoff:

  • Announce your participation in the ENERGY STAR Challenge with a special mailing to affiliate organizations, business partners, and vendors.
  • Launch your participation in the ENERGY STAR Challenge at a national industry/association meeting or at a local community event.
  • Spotlight your participation in the ENERGY STAR Challenge through all of your available communications channels, such as your Web site, Intranet, and newsletters (please see "Sample Text for Communications" in this ENERGY STAR Challenge Toolkit).
  • Send a press announcement to local media highlighting that you’ve joined the ENERGY STAR Challenge and identifying specific community benefits of saving energy (see ENERGY STAR Challenge Toolkit section “Sample Press Releases”.

Involve the Community:

  • Host an energy awareness fair. Distribute ENERGY STAR materials, including consumer tips for saving money and energy, activity books for children, magnets, posters and other items to all who attend. Encourage the local radio station to broadcast on-site to share your energy efficiency message with the community (See the Planning Tips section below for more information).
  • Encourage students and families to calculate their personal carbon footprint.
  • Invite younger students to help motivate others by decorating community buildings with energy/environmental-related pictures.
  • Distribute energy efficiency tips and hand out compact fluorescent light bulbs (CFLs) at your local library.
  • Hold a special event at a scheduled District School Board meeting that press typically attend.
  • Write a letter celebrating your energy-saving efforts to your town councilperson, the Chamber of Commerce, Board of Education, or other official body, and to your state congressperson.

Involve Your Whole Organization:

  • Hang posters that illustrate your efforts for protecting the environment through improved energy efficiency in lobbies, supermarkets, employee break rooms, and doctor's offices. See the posters included in the ENERGY STAR Challenge Kit for easy-to-use templates.
  • Dedicate a portion of your annual report to sharing information about your ENERGY STAR efforts, your savings to date, and what this means for the environment.
  • Participate in trade shows/conferences to spread the word to industry colleagues.
  • Encourage school districts to challenge each other to be ENERGY STAR Leaders within cities or states.
  • Hold workshops to educate members/constituents about the benefits of energy efficiency.
  • Place ENERGY STAR information and materials at all attendees' place settings at an existing event/dinner.
  • Participate in ENERGY STAR campaigns to increase understanding of energy efficiency: Change a Light, Change the World; Cool Your World; First Frost; Home Electronics; and Earth Day.

Promote buildings that earn the ENERGY STAR:

  • Hold an organization-wide employee meeting and present the ENERGY STAR plaque to an official of your organization. Take photos for your newsletter and send a captioned photo to your local newspaper.
  • Install the ENERGY STAR plaque in a prominent place at your building site — the entrance or main reception area are much better choices than the storage room or basement!
  • Distribute certificates of recognition/appreciation/participation to organizations or individuals who contributed time and efforts to earning the ENERGY STAR.
  • Reserve a special parking space for your energy manager for a month in recognition of his/her achievement and publicize this among your staff.
  • Make plans to announce that your building has earned the ENERGY STAR at a scheduled meeting where press typically will be in attendance (i.e. an announcement of a K–12 school earning the ENERGY STAR could take place at a District School Board meeting).
  • Invite local government officials, regional EPA officials, and members of the press to tour your ENERGY STAR building(s), along with your top officials. Present a certificate of achievement to these officials.
  • Write a letter celebrating your achievement to your town councilperson; to the Chamber of Commerce, Board of Education, or other official body representative of your organization; and to your state congressperson. Challenge them to encourage other organizations like yours to earn the ENERGY STAR.

Planning Tips for Promotional Events

Consider these helpful planning tips when hosting or organizing a promotional event.

1. Define your event

  • Will your event be large or small? Approximately how many attendees do you expect? Will this be part of a larger occasion (e.g., school board meeting) or a stand-alone event?
    • Larger events are more likely to attract media presence. Can the recruitment/recognition message be part of an existing larger event?
  • Where will the event be held?
    • Consider venues with the ENERGY STAR label to demonstrate what can be accomplished.
  • What other publicity efforts should you consider for this type of event?
    • Media spaces like newsletters/bulletins, online bulletin boards, local papers, etc., are good places to communicate with the local community.
    • Invite local media to your event or let them know about the details with a news release and a phone call.
  • What is the event plan?
    • Incorporate your goal into the event agenda. For example, if the goal is to obtain strong presence with local media, make sure the event activities/conversation is newsworthy.

2. Determine who will attend

  • Who will attend? Consider inviting:
    • Regional/local government officials (e.g., mayor, county commissioners, city council, school board members)
    • State officials (e.g., governor, lieutenant governor, state senators or representatives, state energy commissioners or officials)
    • Federal officials (U.S. senators or house representatives)
    • Influential industry leaders
    • Press/media — TV, radio, print, online
    • Photographers
  • Which members of the press should you call? What should you tell them about the event?
    • It is very important that the press understands how the agenda is relevant to their readers and that they are given correct information on the purpose, date, time, and location of the event.
    • It is often valuable to arrange for a non-press photographer to attend to help capture the event for future promotions, planning, or event considerations.
  • Who is attending on behalf of the recognized ENERGY STAR Challenge participant?
    • Organizations that helped you become more energy efficient may appreciate an invitation (e.g., energy consultants, utility and regional Energy Efficiency Program Sponsors (EEPS), regional EPA representatives, etc.).
  • If you host a school event, who should be included?
    • Will students participate? In what way?
    • How will parents and the community at large be included?
  • Parents and Community stakeholders have a vested interest in improvements to schools and municipal buildings and are likely to want to participate in the event. Remember: Influential guests are likely to help you secure media coverage and overall interest in your event.

3. Plan the Details

  • What are the details? (Remember, this may influence the event’s attendance.)
    • Date?
    • Time?
    • How long will event last? (Recommended timeframe: 30–45 minutes)
  • Will there be formal invitations or will you rely on word-of-mouth to generate interest?
    • Depending on the type of guests you hope to attract, one tactic may be more effective than the other.
  • Who will write materials unique to your event such as:
    • News releases
    • Agenda
    • Talking points
    • PowerPoint presentations
    • Case studies/best practices
    • Leave behinds/take ones
  • Who will participate in the event and how will they contribute?
    • Consider the event as a whole story where each speaker and activity is a chapter. Keep in mind how each presentation topic contributes to the overall message.
    • If speakers are present, a podium will be needed.

4. EPA and ENERGY STAR can help!

  • Send supporting collateral for the press and attendees. Take a look inside the ENERGY STAR Challenge Kit for a great variety of materials, including:
    • Statistics and factoids about energy use and greenhouse gas emissions, and the impact of saving energy through energy efficient buildings
    • Easy-to-understand brochures, fact sheets and posters
  • Create certificates for the event.
  • Provide a quote from an EPA regional/national spokesperson for press releases and general press.
  • Help arrange attendance for EPA officials.

For assistance with ENERGY STAR events, please call 1-888-STAR-YES, or visit www.energystar.gov/Challenge.