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Solar Ads: The Good, the Bad, and the Stupid

According to a spokesperson from solar installer SolarCity , "Advertising is more effective when it can educate, and solar has an education problem. Everyone knows that solar power is better for the environment than fossil fuels, but most people don't realize that it can be less expensive than electricity from the grid. The differences between various panels are too subtle to matter to most consumers, so in our advertising we focus on what consumers care about most: dollars and cents."

And here's a problematic data point:

In a survey performed by San Jose State University in cooperation with Solartech , 63 percent of respondents could not accurately recall any solar company that provides solar systems for residential use. Those that could name names came up with Akeena, SunPower, and SolarCity. Akeena is now Westinghouse Solar.

Here's a look at some recent solar advertising and market campaigns:

Just being sloppy.  You often hear that kind of ‘megawatts per year’ mix-up of units when speaking of renewable energy.  For most average folks, the difference between power and energy is hazy at best.  Here, the important thing is to communicate that there’s a boat load of solar power available, regardless of whether the units make literal sense. 

In this case, they’re referring to the total power emitted by the sun, which is just under 4x10^26 Watts.  For those who are interested, that’s equivalent to the sun converting over 4 million tons of matter into pure energy every second - which it’s been doing for the last 5 billion years, and presumably for the next 5 billion.  The sun is HUGE and hugely powerful:  what a kick-ass source of energy for any civilization…

Chris is correct!  The power emitted from the Sun is unbelievable… and to make the point about SolarWorld’s sloppiness: it’s like when Han Solo was telling Obi Wan he made the Kessel Run in less than 12 parsecs; when we all know a parsec is an astronomical distance measurement, not a measure of time.  I mean, we get his point - the Millenium Falcon can kick ass.  But you know, technicalities…

I remember seeing the Solon thing at SPI in 2010 and at first thought it was hilarious, but quickly figured it would seem an afront to those not using solar…  But I’m SICK of the Ed Asner radio ad for Verengo, especially since they’ve abandoned DWP territory… I know they’re reaching out to SCE customers, but every hour?  geesh.

Thomas register of American manufacturers and Thomas register catalog file

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