An illustration that explains how solar energy is consumed.

Solar Energy Consumer Education Campaign

Learn how Akoya ran focus groups with Spanish-speaking communities to build a campaign that helps residents spot predatory solar energy vendors.

Client Overview

The U.S. Department of Energy’s Solar Energy Technologies Office needed to reach communities being targeted by predatory solar vendors — residents who were eager to adopt solar energy but couldn’t easily distinguish legitimate vendors from bad actors. The goal was to equip Spanish-speaking households in the Rio Grande Valley with plain-language resources on solar technology, common scams, and their rights as consumers.

Activities & Deliverables

Collaborated with a trusted community-based organization to run focus groups with residents
Developed culturally appropriate fact sheets, web pages, videos, and webinars
Collected quantitative data on negative solar installation experiences for measurement

What We Did

In communities eager to embrace solar energy, bad actors found fertile ground — using high-pressure sales tactics and jargon-heavy pitches to confuse homeowners into signing contracts they didn’t fully understand. Akoya met with residents, listened to their experiences, and developed materials that helped them confidently make decisions about solar technology.

Akoya partnered with the Department of Energy’s Solar Energy Technologies Office to develop a comprehensive community education campaign targeting Spanish-speaking residents of the Rio Grande Valley, TX. After conducting a thorough audience analysis, we produced a full suite of accessible communications — fact sheets, videos, web pages, and webinars — covering both how solar technology works and how to recognize and avoid predatory business practices. Every piece was designed with the community’s specific needs and language in mind.

To ensure the materials truly resonated, Akoya collaborated with local community-based organization to run focus groups with residents, gathering direct feedback on content clarity, design, and scope. We refined the fact sheets and videos based on feedback received during the listening sessions by increasing font sizes, incorporating more visuals, and adding detailed information about financing options.

The response was overwhelmingly positive—community members felt seen, represented, and better equipped to make informed decisions and successfully navigate the solar energy process using the dynamic suite of resources.

When the solar company came to my house, they said so much that I didn’t understand. I understood more from this [two-minute] video than from them.”

Rio Grande Valley community member

Work Samples

Reprehenderit accusantium repellat eaque ut delectus veritatis atque quas.

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Solar Energy and You

Akoya produced 3 videos in English and Spanish for the campaign.

A crew of Akoyan's taking a photo together.

Let’s work together

Reach out to genna@akoyaonline.com or complete our contact form to to discuss your communications needs and to develop a scope of service and quotation.