Problem

Air sealing and insulation are high-impact but invisible home upgrades. Unlike flashy kitchen remodels, they don’t impress the neighbors, making them easy to ignore. Traditional mass media campaigns failed to drive adoption because they didn’t address real customer barriers—lack of understanding, perceived complexity, and low social motivation.

Solution

I designed the Energy Impact Party, an interactive, community-driven approach that leveraged social proof to drive action:

• Hands-on demonstrations – Contractors used infrared cameras and blower doors at live home energy assessments, making the benefits immediate and tangible.

• Neighbor-to-neighbor influence – Homeowners invited their community, creating a bandwagon effect as they saw their peers react positively.

• Host-driven momentum – Attendees often became future hosts, organically scaling the movement.

• Win-win for contractors – Free assessments were highly effective in converting leads, making the model sustainable without mass advertising.

Result

• 650 hosted parties, 1,000+ community meetings in one year

• 6,000+ energy assessments and 3,600 retrofits, leading to $15M+ in energy savings

• Beyond measurable impact – The model scaled organically, with additional home retrofits occurring beyond what we could track.

• National adoption – Cities across the country have since replicated this approach.

Takeaway

Customers don’t take action just because something is logical—they need to see it, feel it, and see others doing it. By shifting the focus from information to experience, I transformed home energy efficiency from a boring task into a contagious social movement.