Energy.com, Columbus, OH, will drop close to a half a million copies of its Energy Values Guide to Atlanta residents in June, shortly before the deregulation period in that city comes to a close.
The Energy Values campaign is run by the year-old company in cities throughout the country when states are either starting or ending the deregulation process. Programs ran last year in Atlanta, Chicago and central Ohio.
According to Tammy Cardoso, the public relations manager at Energy.com, Atlanta is the first city to impose a deadline on consumers. If they fail to choose an energy company by August 11, they will be assigned one.
“A lot of other cities are waiting to see what happens in Atlanta and how their deadline approach works to see if they will try it,” Cardoso said.
Energy.com, which primarily serves as a marketing channel for energy providers to reach consumers, will drop 450,000 copies of The Energy Values Guide, a 16-page tabloid, which will include information about energy companies in the area, questions consumers should ask when choosing a supplier, energy tips, information on why deregulation is occurring and what deregulation means to the consumer.
Consumers also will be directed to the Energy.com Web site (www.energy.com), where they will be able to find more information on prospective companies as well as energy-related products that they can purchase. Companies that don't provide consumers with the ability to register for their services via the site will have a phone number listed.
Energy.com receives a customer acquisition for every consumer that signs up with one of the participating energy providers.
Each guide averages between five and six advertisers, according to Cardoso, made up mostly of energy and energy-related companies, with other home care companies i.e., landscapers, expected to be included in the future.
The campaign is going to be accompanied by a radio ad campaign that will begin two weeks prior to the mailing and will continue for two weeks after the drop to let consumers know the mailings are out there.
Advertisers mentioned within the Energy Values Guide also will be mentioned in the radio commercials and at the site, Cardoso said. “That's what makes this campaign completely integrated for participating advertisers,” she said.
Energy.com will be conducting mailings in New Jersey and Ohio in the near future.
