The 3Degrees Advantage

The most successful utility green power programs in the country are offered in partnership with a single third-party marketing partner.

In fact, two-thirds of the utility programs offered in partnership with a single third-party marketing partner appear on the NREL's top ten lists of utility green power programs, whereas only 3% of all utility programs are represented on the NREL’s top ten lists.

Among third-party marketing partners, 3Degrees leads the pack, with industry-leading experience launching and expanding green power and carbon balancing programs for a variety of municipal and investor-owned utilities across the U.S.

With 3Degrees, utilities secure:

• Intelligence: 3Degrees' unparalleled voluntary program experience has resulted in an extensive set of program best practices and lessons learned. This knowledge has been distilled into 3Degrees' proprietary Community Connect^SM voluntary program methodology.
• Efficiency: 3Degrees' in-house team includes specialists in research, product design, communications, program certification, environmental market transactions, corporate sales and regulatory relations. These experts, and an extensive database of historical marketing program data, enable 3Degrees to cost-effectively provide utilities with all the resources necessary to launch and manage a successful voluntary program.
• Reliability: 3Degrees’ large and diverse environmental commodities portfolio and its skilled Environmental Market Services group reduce the costs and risks associated with securing and certifying voluntary program RECs and carbon offsets.

Utilities that partner with 3Degrees benefit from:

• Stronger Brands: Voluntary programs strengthen utility partners' brands. All direct marketing, community outreach and awareness campaigns are designed to put the utility’s brand front and center, promoting renewable energy and its leadership position within the industry. 3Degrees, a silent partner, works with its utility partners to ensure a smooth and thorough review of all marketing and educational materials. In short, 3Degrees develops best-of-breed marketing, and its utility partners maintain final overall approval on all customers and stakeholder communications.
• Lower Risk: As an active participant in the nation’s Renewable Energy Certificate (REC) and carbon offset markets, 3Degrees holds a large and diverse environmental commodities portfolio. This enables 3Degrees to shelters its utility partners from the risk related to uncertain customer demand and market price volatility.
• Skilled Staffing: Top quality people develop industry leading programs. 3Degrees deploys a uniquely qualified and effective team including a Partnership Manager, Partnership Associate, and community outreach staff throughout the utility's service area. This team focuses exclusively on program research, planning and implementation. Backed by skilled communications specialists, the dedicated utility partnership team executes a variety of direct and indirect education and outreach including direct mail, bill inserts, community outreach, social media, and much more.
• Smart Marketing: With six existing utility green power programs, 3Degrees is able to leverage best practices across these programs and share successful marketing techniques, knowledge which 3Degrees has integrated into its Community Connect methodology. Managing six different programs with distinct customer characteristics enables 3Degrees to develop unique programs that address the specific green power and carbon balancing needs of a particular utility’s customers.
• High Quality RECs and Carbon Offsets: 3Degrees supplies only Green-e® Energy Certified Renewable Energy Certificates (RECs) and verified carbon offsets for its utility partnership programs, ensuring that utility customers receive a high-quality product that represents real and quantifiable renewable energy generation or carbon emission reductions. In addition, 3Degrees’ environmental commodities market presence enables it to source RECs and carbon offsets from local projects if needed, while lowering the utility's environmental market risk exposure.
• Commercial Sales Support: 3Degrees has an experienced sales staff with an impressive customer list including many of the top 25 EPA Green Power Partners. 3Degrees works with its utility partners to increase commercial green power and carbon balancing sales by training corporate account managers, creating corporate marketing materials and recognition packages, and conducting joint direct sales to top prospects.
• Revenue Neutral Marketing: In most cases, 3Degrees operates on a pay-for-performance basis. Costs of RECs, carbon offsets and marketing activities are covered by the premium that program participants pay.