Solar power getting big on the little screen

Recently, Clean Energy Authority has started to notice that advertisements for solar power are showing up on the television. It’s kind of like breaking through a final frontier in terms of going mainstream with solar power. In 2009, Toyota ran advertisements in print and on television touting the photovoltaic (PV) panels on its 2010 Prius. But those only covered a portion of the cars and only worked to keep the car cool in the summer heat while it’s parked.

Now PV companies themselves are taking to United States’ airwaves and putting solar commercials right up there with everything else. CEA reported earlier this year on the brilliant “Shine baby shine.” campaign by SolarWorld. The ad campaign features real-life PV advocate Larry Hagman reprising his Dallas oil magnate role, and turning from oil to solar power as his favorite power source.

CEA was tickled pink when we actually saw the commercial broadcast on the Discovery Channel during an episode of "MythBusters" a week or so ago. But we were even more surprised to see an ad for Sharp PV modules about a week later on broadcast television. Sharp’s commercial’s tagline is “The sun is the answer.” In Sharp’s 30-second spot, it said that it’s been in the PV industry for more than 50 years and contended that it is a leader in PV innovation.

It’s likely that more PV companies will take to on-air advertising for PV as companies try to distinguish themselves from their competitors.

Mark Burger, a principal consultant with the Kestrel Development Co., wrote “Some solar companies are realizing that marketing to the public may be necessary to build awareness, increase market share and defend profit margins.”

“Branding Solar, Defending Value,” published Sept. 13 by The Gerson Lehrman Group, asked: “Can PV be sold like toothpaste, convertibles or cruises?” The answer likely is yes, particularly as PV costs continue to go down, and PV companies continue to experience unprecedented sales growth.

Burger observed that Yingli Green Energy was a major World Cup sponsor of the 2010 World Cup, and Canadian Solar is now a sponsor of the San Francisco Giants.