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Gallagher Group

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Company: Gallagher Group Communications
Company Description: Gallagher Group Communications (GGC) is a full-service public relations agency serving clients in both established and emerging information and networking technologies, cleantech and renewable energy sectors. Our portfolio features category-creating startups, record-breaking IPOs, and high-valuation acquisitions. We turn early-stage players into market-dominating technology leaders.
Nomination Category: Corporate Communications, Investor Relations, & Public Relations Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Communications or PR Campaign of the Year - For a For-profit Purpose

Nomination Title: City Tour for Solar

Tell the story about this nominated campaign since January 1 2008 (up to 500 words). Focus on specific accomplishments, and relate these accomplishments to past performance or industry norms. Be sure to mention obstacles overcome, innovations or discoveries made, and outcomes:

Mission
How do you effectively motivate mayors, energy czars, utilities and the general
populace of municipalities around the country to seriously consider and/or
commit to solar-generated electricity for their communities? You take your case
directly to their “backyard” with tangible proof of concepts in language and
metrics they can understand and easily justify.  SunEdison and industry partners
Evergreen Solar, SMA-America, Uni-Solar and Xantrex set out to accomplish this
in a 54-city solar power educational tour across the western United States in
100 days. http://www.citytourforsolar.com

Strategy
• Generate a call to action among key municipal decision-makers through a
vendor-neutral educational campaign
• Present easy-to-understand environmental, job creation, and economic
stimulation advantages
• Secure significant media presence to provide mayors, city managers or greening
directors a “green bully pulpit” from the Tour stage
• Design the campaign to encourage the increased adoption of solar throughout
each community as a result of the Tour
• Leverage the support of political candidates touting renewable energy as a
growing necessity during election season

Planning
GGC conducted extensive planning sessions with Tour lead SunEdison and its
executive staff to:
• Identify U.S. cities with better than average potential for solar energy
production
• Determine synergistic events to partner with the Tour and host the mobile exhibit
• Secure exhibit venues
• Map out a detailed tour schedule covering parallel geographies
• Recruit event speakers when appropriate
• Coordinate “Solar Energy Roundtable” discussions
• Build a comprehensive media relations outreach plan for each geography

Execution
Exhibit crew members set-up and tore down a stage at each location and for 6–8
hours engaged our target audience (municipal leaders, local elected officials,
teachers, students, universities, SEIA clubs, Sierra Clubs, renewable energy
community groups, firefighters, policemen, media).
Key event elements included:
• Museum-quality exhibit display with posters, photographs, interactive touch
screen displays, a solar intelligence quiz, a solar advocacy touch-screen, solar
fountains, solar-powered toys and solar ovens baking cookies
• Solar Roundtables with municipal and community leaders, led by SunEdison
representatives presenting city-specific rooftop and ground-mount solar potential

Results
1) Our story was covered 144 times in print/online publications, 26 times on
television and 11 times on the radio
2) The Tour generated up to 700 MW of potential sales leads (**strictly
confidential and not for public disclosure**)
3) The Tour attracted over 12,000 onsite visitors at the traveling exhibits
4) Over 2,000 visitors formally advocated their support for solar with email
submissions to their congressional district representative
5) The following political luminaries addressed their communities and media from
our stage: Bill Ritter, Jr., Governor of Colorado; Gabrielle Giffords, Arizona
Congresswoman; Gavin Newsom, Mayor of San Francisco; Len Augustine, Mayor of
Vacaville; Kris Mayes, Arizona Corporation Commissioner; Paul Newman, Arizona
Corporation Commissioner-elect; Desari Strader, Washington County Commissioner;
Jeff Cogen, Multnomah County Commissioner; Dan Saltzman, City of Portland
Commissioner; and Diane Cibrian, San Antonio City Councilor
6) The Tour encouraged entire communities to consider alternative energy
resources in this time of rising energy costs and U.S. dependence on foreign oil

List hyperlinks to any online news stories, press releases, or other documents that support the claims made in the section above. IMPORTANT: Begin each link with http://, and enclose each link in square brackets; for example, [http://www.youraddress.com]:

Broadcast Video Coverage Highlights, City Tour for Solar
http://www.gg-comm.com/images/GGC%20SunEd%20Video%20Teaser.wmv

12.10.08 - CNBC, Powering the Planet
By Hampton Pearson
http://www.cnbc.com/id/15840232?video=957964150

10.30.08 – The Modesto Bee, Solar Power Tour Visits Modesto
By John Holland
http://www.modbee.com/business/story/480787.html

10.16.08 – Prince George Gazette Maryland, SunEdison Spreads the Solar Gospel
By Lindsey Robbins
http://www.gazette.net/stories/10162008/busiplo165439_32479.shtml

City Tour for Solar Website
http://www.CityTourforSolar.com

Provide a brief (up to 100 words) biography about the leader(s) of the team that carried out this campaign:

Kevin Gallagher, Managing Partner, Gallagher Group Communications:
Kevin Gallagher has more than 25 years of public relations and media experience.
Since 1992, his agencies have has launched more than 50 VC-backed start-ups and
supported dozens of privately held and public companies to jump start
time-to-market visibility, accelerate sales and increase market profile.  His
agency offers deep technical knowledge of key market segments covering the
Cleantech, renewable energy and Information Technology arenas.