Heat Unveils New Campaign For Sunrun
Energy costs are ridiculous but hey, you’ve got to pay the man, right? No, not really. San Francisco advertising agency Heat (sfheat.com) just launched an integrated campaign including TV, outdoor, and an online instructional animated short for Sunrun, the nation’s leading home solar energy provider. The campaign has an empowering message: Be your own power company and charge yourself less.
Before creating the campaign, Heat—Sunrun’s agency of record—got up close and personal with their target audience by hanging out with current Sunrun customers, as well as folks considering going solar. They learned that while solar power is good for the planet, Sunrun is really great for the pocket book, too, and that plays a huge role in people’s decision to take the plunge to go solar.
The three new TV spots, released May 4, feature a presumptuous voiceover who incorrectly assumes that all solar customers are environmentally motivated. Despite his insistence that folks are motivated by “becoming one with the land” or “saving dolphin babies,” the spots come to a halt and he’s promptly corrected. The net takeaway is that Sunrun understands that environmental concerns aren’t the only reasons to go solar—saving money and going solar without huge setup costs are pretty important, too.
“Sunrun is the nation’s leading home solar provider,” explains Heat president John Elder, “but with all the clutter in the category, it’s hard for consumers to decipher which providers can be trusted partners and which will be gone tomorrow. This advertising is designed to rise above the noise, command consumers’ attention, and further establish Sunrun as the leader in home solar.”
“We wanted to be a little provocative with the tone of this campaign,” says Heat chairman and creative director Steve Stone. “Lines like ‘Goes both ways’ catch your eye—you laugh a little, and there’s real truth to it. Those meters do go the other way as well.” The headlines are catchy, but the messages in all the work remain focused on value and practicality. “Yeah, it’s green and all that,” Stone continues, “but at the end of the day, the main reason people are doing it is because they’re saving a lot of dough.”
Heat recently rolled out the first phase of the campaign to six markets, which includes five billboards, two banners, and animation for the giant LED ring inside Boston’s TD Garden. The campaign’s second phase builds upon this momentum with the TV spots and upcoming digital marketing, sponsorships, and social media efforts. And starting May 7, Sunrun’s website will feature a 60-second animated video, created and animated by Heat, that explains how easy it is to go solar.
Billboards and targeted banners feature taglines like “Driving a hybrid is great. Living in one is better” alongside the slogan, “Home solar for little or nothing down.” Heat and Sunrun gently rib the Southern California Edison utility company, suggesting to residents: “Tell SCE you want to see someone else.”
Click the link to view the work http://bit.ly/IyR1zu
Credits
Agency: Heat
Client: Sunrun
Campaign: Let’s Be Honest
TV Production Credits
Spot Titles & Length:
“Dolphin Babies” :30 TVC, “Organically” :30 TVC , “Best Part” :30 TVC
Executive Creative Director: Steve Stone
ACD / Art Director: Mark Lawson
ACD / Copywriter: Jeff Guenther
Art Director: Mark Potoka
Copywriter: Ben Salsky
Content Producer: Vera Kacurova
Executive Content Producer: Brian Coate
Group Account Director: Teri Miller
Account Manager: Matt Huntington
Assistant Account Manager: Lauren Kostka
Production Company: Biscuit, LA
Executive Producer: Colleen O’Donnell
Director: Mike Maguire
Director of Photography: Ulrik Boel Bentzen
Editorial Company: Arcade Edit, LA
Producer: Kirsten Thon-Webb
Editor: Greg Scruton
Assistant Editor: Doug Scott
Color Correction: MPC
Colorist: Mark Gethin
Music: Beacon Street Studios, LA
Composer: Andrew Feltenstein
Music Producer: Leslie DiLullo
Recording Studios:
Beacon Street Mix, LA
Engineer: Paul Hurtubise
Producer: Caitlin Rocklen
One Union Recording, SF
Engineer: Joaby Deal
Producer: Lauren Mask
Print/OOH/Online Credits
Executive Creative Director: Steve Stone
Creative Director: Nei Caetano
ACD/Copywriter: Jeff Guenther
ACD/Art Director: Mark Lawson
Copywriter: Ben Salsky
Art Director: Mark Potoka
Executive Content Producer: Jaime Chiang
Print Producer: Kristin Van Praag
Content Producer: Anna Askew
Content Producer: Doug Beck
Senior Designer: Cheryln Quan Read
Group Account Director: Teri Miller
Account Manager: Matt Huntington
Associate Account Manager: Lauren Kostka
Web “Tutorial Video” Credits
Executive Creative Director: Steve Stone
Creative Director: Nei Caetano
ACD/Copywriter: Jeff Guenther
ACD/Art Director: Mark Lawson
Copywriter: Ben Salsky
Art Director: Mark Potoka
Illustrators: Mikey Sison and Yalda Zakeri
Animator: Yalda Zakeri
Content Producer: Anna Askew
Music: Pico Sound
Composers: Lucas Field and Ellis Hawes
Audio Mix: One Union Recording, SF
Audio Engineer: Joaby Deal
Sound Design: Joaby Deal
Producer: Lauren Mask
