New Hampshire | Brand Awareness & Lead Generation
NHSaves®
Overview
NHSaves®, a well-established energy efficiency program supported by four major utility companies (Eversource, Liberty, New Hampshire Electric Cooperative and Unitil), embarked on a mission to amplify brand awareness and engage customers of the utilities in energy-saving initiatives.
In recognition of their need for an agency with profound understanding of regional intricacies and market dynamics, the NHSaves utility partners chose EVR Advertising.
Challenge/Objective
Having been in the market for 20 years with steady growth, the NHSaves brand had stagnated. The utility partners initiated a growth plan with aggresive goals that required additional marketing expertise and resources. The ultimate goal was to reinforce NHSaves as the leading source for energy savings and efficiency statewide.
Strategic Approach
To successfully established the NHSaves brand and programs as valuable assets for New Hampshire communities, EVR’s strategic approach began with evaluating the two major customer segments—commercial and residential. A product matrix was developed to match the needs and wants of the marketplace to the puducts and services of NHSaves.
Tactics
Rebranding efforts encompassed the introduction of a brand descriptor (“Your Source for Energy Efficiency”) and a new logo mark, as well as the development of a progressive brand color palette, visual and verbal identity, design system and messaging. Extensive brand research informed the entire development process.
The media approach, aimed at boosting brand awareness, utilized both traditional and digital channels. Annual campaigns incorporated a strategic blend of radio, paid search and display ads, Facebook, Pandora, print, YouTube, Instagram newsfeed ads and boosted social posts.
Creative tactics included the design of a new visual brand identity, messaging and a brand platform, all seamlessly integrated into annual campaigns, employing diverse media channels and unique content. The existing website was revitalized to enhance user experience while social media channels were optimized with the addition of video, animation, quizzes and interactive 360° content for increased engagement. Public relations efforts were employed to deliver fresh content and expand exposure in conjunction with media buys.
Results
Since the launch of the refreshed brand campaign, website sessions doubled across the board, with the aid of both paid and organic marketing efforts. To boost brand awareness, channels such as Pandora, YouTube and programmatic native and display proved ideal due to their low average cost per impression and highly targeted delivery. The 5.5M+ impressions aided in increased brand awareness, resulting in over 40,000 clicks and nearly 2,000 high-opportunity actions on the website, including rebate requests. Community-building on social drove engaged traffic to the website and increased the number of Facebook followers by 33% over the previous year. In addition to traffic, site engagement also increased: Time on site was up 13% while the overall bounce rate decreased 22%.
