Snohomish County PUD #1
In 2013, Snohomish County PUD #1 (SnoPUD) was having difficulty meeting their residential efficiency goals. A call went out and C+C came in to create a program that would achieve those goals. Lo and behold, in five years’ time C+C had built a robust network of retailers, measures, and delivery methods that smashed forecasts on a regular basis.
But what of the next five years? Easy efficiency wins were growing scarce, customer’s needs were changing, and e-commerce was coming into its own. Well, SnoPUD once again tasked C+C with building the next generation of efficient products program. And off we went…again.
Take a deep breath, there’s a lot. First C+C needed to create a direct-to-consumer program designed to increase SnoPUD’s capacity to grow measures and execute multiple midstream and downstream programs directly to all 350,000 residential customers. We engaged with internal stakeholders in planning, researched trends and opportunities regionally and nationally, and gathered our strategic partners to come up with a futureproof plan.
We started by launching the first midstream heat pump water heater (HPWH) program in Puget Sound region, with our eyes set on growing it to become a regional utility program. The team then launched an instant HPWH rebate at retail to ensure both the wholesale and retail channels were optimized. Then came an instant discount appliance program offered by our key independent appliance dealers and manufactured home retailer program to increase the sale of more efficient new homes.
But wait there’s more. To meet the growing online shopping demand, C+C developed a robust online marketplace offering instant rebates on efficient lighting and advanced power strips, and midstream rebates on smart thermostats and EV chargers. In 2023 we improved the customer experience by adding instant validation for all measures, and in 2024 went even further to add dynamic instant rebates, which gave our client the ability to show different rebate amounts based on income eligibility while the customer shopped. (exhale)
The Results
• A dynamic and future-proof platform (including a robust e-commerce solution) that is active in more than 40 retailers and distributors
• 3.3 million+ efficient products delivered to customers, nearly $14 million in incentives, and 70 million kWh savings to SnoPUD customers since 2019.
• And more to come…C+C was chosen yet again to oversee their efficient products program through 2028, and is working on helping SnoPUD to deliver over $3 million worth of free appliances to overburdened customers through the Washington State Home Energy Appliance Rebate program.