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Soybiodiesel
Marketing and Research
For biodiesel use to continue to grow and
expand in North Carolina it is essential to undertake and evaluate the
effectiveness of various marketing strategies. This project directly
supports the goal of expanding soybean use by increasing demand for
biodiesel- a value added product made from soybeans. Different
marketing strategies will be implemented to increase awareness about
the benefits and availability of Biodiesel with the effectiveness of
these methods evaluated through comparative analysis, surveys and other
subjective and objective criteria.
Year 1: Biodiesel Billboards (2006)
In order for markets to grow for renewable, cleaner burning fuels such
as soy biodiesel, the public must become more aware of the availability
and use of these fuels. North Carolina is proud to be the home of
several retails stations for biodiesel blends, however, sales must
increase in order to attract other marketers to offer new sites and for
current stations to continue and prosper.
NC Solar Center’s Clean Transportation Program will work with the North
Carolina Outdoor Advertising Agency (NCOAA) and NCSU’s College of
Management to develop and evaluate a public service campaign featuring
“biodiesel billboards”. NCOAA will donate the billboard display space
located throughout North Carolina to help deliver a message to the
motoring public about the benefits and availability of biodiesel. It is
anticipated that fifteen billboards will be displayed for three to four
month each highlighting the benefits of biodiesel and the NC Soybean Producers
Association website which
features locations and distributors of biodiesel around the state. NCSC
will work with the NCOAA to site billboards around the state close to
existing distributors or proposed retail sites, and graduate students
of the College of Management will develop survey tools to research the
effectiveness of the billboard campaign.
Promotional material for this campaign is found on Biodiesel in North Carolina
Year 2: Bioheat® is Better
(2007)
The “Bioheat® is Better” project will research the
effectiveness of implementing a consumer and industry campaign to
increase the use of biodiesel blended fuel oil as the heating oil of
choice for North Carolina residents and marketers. Bioheat, or fuel oil blended with soy biodiesel, is
an environmentally preferable choice for consumers and attractive for
fuel distributors alike due to a federal tax incentive that provides a
one dollar per gallon credit for every gallon of soy biodiesel blended
with heating oil.
Following the lead of northern states and other organizations a “Bioheat is Better” campaign will be implemented in
North Carolina. The campaign will include the development of print and
web based materials and four meetings around the state to educate
consumers and fuel distributors about the attributes of bio-heat.
Bioheat is better for heating
systems because biodiesel contains virtually no sulfur and sulfur is
the leading cause of maintenance issues in home heating systems. It
also reduces NOx emissions, is less toxic, and is less likely to catch
on fire accidentally.
NC Solar Center’s Clean Transportation Program will oversee the design
and printing of “Bioheat is
Better” brochures and marketing materials. Materials will be
distributed through Clean Cities Coalitions in the Triangle, Charlotte
and Asheville regions and sent to members of the NC Petroleum Marketers
Association. Four meetings geared toward heating oil fuel distributors
and facilities managers will be hosted in various parts of the state
before the winter “heating oil” season. Press releases will be sent to
local media to launch the program at the advent of cooler weather. The
effectiveness of this campaign will be researched and evaluated through
follow up surveys with recipients of educational materials and meeting
attendees and the demonstration of increased biodiesel sales to home
heating oil distributors.
Promotional material for this campaign is found on Bioheat is Better
Year 3: Biodiesel Bus Wrap (2008)
The biodiesel bus wrap project would evaluate the effectiveness of
raising interest and awareness of biodiesel use by covering a bus or 2
smaller vehicles in colorful graphics that ‘tell’ viewers a story about
soybeans being used for fuel. A theme for the story may be “fuel for
thought” and highlight the four E’s associated with biodiesel use- Ease
of use, benefits to the Environment, Emissionsreduction and benefits to
NC’s Economy. The vehicle wrap will feature the NC
Soybean Producers Association website.
A potential site for the Biodiesel bus wrap project is Raleigh Durham
International Airport (RDU). All RDU diesel equipment (including buses)
have been using B20 for the past few years. Wrapping vehicles that are
operating on biodiesel is presumed to be an effective way to increase
awareness. Vehicle wraps attract a lot of attention and the color fuel
graphics hold up under normal wear for two years or more.
NC Solar Center will work with the NC Soybean Producers Association to
determine the most effective vehicles to host the vehicle wrap and will
also work with College of Management students to research the
effectiveness of vehicle graphics to raise awareness and interest in
soy biodiesel.
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