The Story of Stuff
Thanks so much to Marc Vendetti for recommending the website The Story of Stuff. That is truly brilliant stuff. I hope everyone will do as he suggests, take 20 minutes, and check it out.
Tagged with: The Story of Stuff
Marketing's Job Sometimes: Do the Obvious
As a marketing consultant, sometimes my job is to avoid making a stupid mistake. As I mentioned the other day, we’re doing a project for an importer of natural and sustainable silk bedding, and discussing the enagement of a celebrity spokesperson who actually favors silk over polycotton.
In my recommendations, I wrote: The choice should be made in favor of an attractive woman with a youthful appearance, preferably one who is known for a considered, deliberate (rather than frivolous, irresponsible) approach to life. Though the initial list of candidates is fairly long, it’s gets short quickly once this criterion is applied. As much as we may admire Dustin Hoffman, I think it goes without saying that the world would much rather imagine Scarlett Johansson lying on a silk sheet; the reader is invited to review this photographic comparison if he’s having trouble agreeing with me here.
Free Report: The Tough Realities of Renewable Energy — Latest in the Series
Here’s a video that describes the most recent in our series of “Tough Realities” reports. I hope you find it valuable; you can download it here: The Tough Realities of Renewable Energy. (more…)
AeroVironment's Deal with Nissan to Provide Electric Vehicle Home-Charging Stations
Last January, AeroVironment closed the deal with Nissan to supply electric vehicle home-charging stations and installation services to customers of the LEAF. Since that time, they’ve been particularly difficult to get on the phone to discuss an appearance on the 2GreenEnergy Report, or my other favorite topic, advertising on EVWorld.com. Fortunately, I ran into my old friend and long-time AV exec Charlie Botsford at the Alt Car Expo in Santa Monica last weekend; he had drawn “booth duty” and he gave me some new names to contact.
I never quit.
Globe-Net Covers "The Business of the Environment"
I just got a glowing note from the editor of Globe-Net.com, a wonderful website on the business of the environment from a Canadian perspective, asking permission to reprint one of our white papers. The answer is always yes. Of course, we appreciate a backlink in the attribution — it never hurts to build up those little puppies.
2GreenEnergy Client is Smooth as Silk
I thought I’d mention that a friend has asked 2GreenEnergy to perform a small marketing project for a company called Chrysalife, an importer and distributor of high-end silk bedding.
To be honest, I knew next to nothing about silk bedding and its numerous health benefits; if you Google the subject, you’ll learn all about the idea that silk enables the human body to rest and rejuvenate more thoroughly when we sleep. Silk, often called “nature’s perfect bed,” is a smooth, non-irritating protective fiber, resulting from billions of years of evolution as Earth’s most comforting and soothing substance.Here’s another point: where polyester is one of the zillions of substances that is derived from petroleum, silk is natural and sustainable.
Smart Grid Technology Has Long-term Importance But Too Much Useless Chatter
I just pulled back into my driveway from a few hours at the Smart Grid Conference at the Los Angeles Convention Center. I’m a huge believer in the long-term importance of smart grid technology, but I have to say that there is altogether too much chatter about it at this point. The result of a 40-minute talk on network standards for smart grid communication? There are no standards; they’ve yet to emerge. Oh really? Couldn’t that have been summed up in a 15-word email? Or skipped entirely? (more…)
Bill Paul, 2GreenEnergy's Senior Investment Advisor on PBS
2GreenEnergy senior investment advisor Bill Paul appeared on PBS’s Consuelo Mack’s show WealthTrack, which is airing on about 200 PBS affiliates in North America this week. Needless to say, the traffic on the site – and one my phone – is fairly intense. It’s wonderful to hear so many great questions and opportunities in the renewable energy space. Check out the show (linked above); he did a fantastic job as always.
Smart Grid Conference at the Los Angeles Convention Center
I’ll be hitting the Smart Grid Conference at the Los Angeles Convention Center over the next couple of days, and I hope to see numerous 2GreenEnergy readers there.
If you want to meet for coffee, please hit “contact” and let me know.
What Will It Take to Achieve a US Renewable Portfolio Standard?
I was keeping a tally sheet at last week’s Renewable Energy Finance Forum, so I could let readers know the issue that was brought up most often and granted the most overall prominence. The clear winner: China is eating our lunch in the migration to renewables. Inexplicably and tragically, the US is content to drop further and further behind in the development of energy technology with each passing week. While China is hiring, researching, developing, importing, exporting — and dominating the world of 21st Century energy, we seem to be content to argue and point fingers at each other.
