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National Hydropower Association’s (NHA) top goal is to support and grow the water power industry, which includes communicating regularly with federal agencies, helping to shepherd bipartisan hydropower reform bills through Congress, connecting stakeholders at NHA events, and much more.
As important as these efforts are, they are mainly tailored to people who already know and value water power, so how are we reaching others?
Enter NHA’s digital persuasion campaign. Since 2022, NHA has worked with a renowned digital advertising firm to share hydro’s benefits with the public. The firm created videos and still ads that aired on social media and streaming platforms. This communication is vital because when the water power industry can rely on the awareness and support of friends and neighbors, then it makes it easier for NHA to secure lasting reforms and improvements for hydropower. Some of the groups NHA has made inroads with include the millennial cohort in ten key states, agenda setters in the Washington D.C. area, and climate thought leaders nationwide.
While NHA has invested in diverse communication tactics to broadcast water power’s immense value statement, the strategies employed are replicable, scalable, and valuable. Communicating to customers, the public, and legislators is in the best interest for all of water power, as it supports the industry’s work in the form of favorable legislation, funding, and community support.
The messaging of NHA’s most recent ad-campaign; click for video.
SPREADING AWARENESS
Over the course of the last two years, NHA has made major headway in spreading critical awareness of water power’s many benefits, gleaning insight into how average Americans view this renewable resource.
NHA’s ads have honed in on distinct yet overarching messages, such as:
- There’s more to hydropower beneath the surface
- Hydro supports clean living
- Hydro is the clean energy solution right in front of you
These messages have been seen millions of times online, but their success doesn’t just lie in the number of people NHA has reached; the favorability uncovered has also been telling.
In a crowded energy landscape, one undergoing rapid acceleration, NHA’s data shows hydropower is viewed positively amongst Americans – with an approval rating hovering well above 70% amongst many of NHA’s surveyed groups. This popularity, however, is often tempered by a lack of awareness and appreciation for water power’s many benefits to the communities it serves. NHA’s digital ads help to combat this problem by reaching key cohorts with a narrative instead of numbers.
A small, rural hydropower project in Hood River, Oregon, a part of Farmers Irrigation District’s mission to provide sustainable agriculture.
Storytelling is pivotal to the long-term success of the water power industry, and the data reaffirms this approach. In polling conducted for NHA’s , which ran this past spring, we found that amongst those surveyed, who viewed and recalled our ad, favorability of hydropower increased across our metrics.
This result was remarkable because NHA launched the campaign in a competitive digital environment – one inundated with election-year calls-to-action on a litany of priorities. Yet, amidst the many different messages flashing across people’s screens, hydro was resonant.
CRAFTING IMPACTFUL MESSAGING
NHA believes our campaigns are well-received because hydropower embodies many of the qualities people value in energy grids. When crafting messaging about the importance of hydro assets, NHA has found the following to be effective communication points
- Hydro is clean and reliable
- Hydro supports other renewables
- Hydro has a record of success while being primed for innovation
- Hydro provides additional value through benefits like recreation
In an energy landscape that’s as crowded and competitive as the political and media arenas where NHA competes, the aforementioned benefits are helping hydro’s story break through to folks who care about grids but don’t always know what’s powering them, and that’s encouraging news.
While large firms, like the one NHA has employed, offer robust polling and bespoke digital tools that help get key results and insights, the cost is often prohibitive for many. Thankfully, the wide availability of free resources, such as social media, are more than capable of spreading your own messaging on a local and national level – a core part of NHA’s National Hydropower Day – to great effect regardless of your organization’s size.
An ad developed by NHA using generative-AI, which allows for creation of professional-looking graphics.
Establishing a presence on a platform like LinkedIn has countless benefits beyond basic networking opportunities.
For instance, maybe your organization recently completed a multi-year update, one that doubles your project’s generating capacity while bringing affordable, renewable, and reliable energy to customers; how do you plan on sharing this story?
Traditional media mentions still carry a lot of weight, and the benefits of establishing strong relationships with local press can pay dividends, but affordable, “DIY” tools like “boosting” social media posts on networks like LinkedIn offer targeted efforts with big results.
By “boosting” a post, an organization can share it with a larger universe of users based on pre-selected geographic regions, professional backgrounds, and much more. These micro-investments have the potential of dramatically increasing public awareness of your work, and by utilizing some of the identified messaging points listed above, your organization can share its story, building greater support and awareness of your work in the community you serve – and beyond. Each of these small investments creates a critical mass of momentum on a national level, so don’t be afraid to give it a go.
WHAT’S NEXT?
While hydropower doesn’t receive the recognition it deserves, NHA’s digital ads have shown how hydropower can demonstrate that it’s meeting the energy needs of Americans.
If the industry keeps telling our story while crafting compelling narratives underscoring how critical water power is to 24/7 reliable grids, then it makes easier work of convincing stakeholders in government, media, and business that hydro deserves a seat at the table.
As we head into a new year and a new presidential administration in Washington D.C., NHA will continue to find new and compelling ways to share water power’s story with all stakeholders. Our digital ads have been a great start, but we can’t rest simply on the sentiments about water power they revealed. We must continue talking to Americans about their energy needs and develop new strategies to share how hydropower provides solutions. Digital outreach will remain a core component of those plans, but there are many other opportunities to explore.
For too long, hydropower’s benefits have been taken for granted, but that can all change if the industry shares why our story is still being told.
