Marketing plug-in electric cars isn't all that easy.
There are many different reasons people buy electric cars, and for the mass market, the high prices against gasoline cars of the same size can lead to sticker shock.
So among the many efforts to put a little muscle behind explaining why plug-in cars make sense is The Electric Generation, a web and social-media campaign that launched six months ago.
We view our electric-car readers as some of the most aware in the business, so we're curious to know whether you've heard of "The Electric Generation," or encountered any of its efforts.
This somewhat grassroots campaign comes from an unlikely source: a utility group called the Edison Electric Institute (EEI), little known outside its industry, which is the association of publicly-held electric utilities.
The campaign itself is meant "to educate consumers and industry stakeholders about the benefits of electricity as transportation fuel."
That's a somewhat abstract concept--we think "electric car" is a much easier concept to grasp than "electricity as fuel"--but it's made somewhat clearer in the breadth of topics and content on the website, its Facebook page, its Twitter feed, and its LinkedIn group.
The campaign's overall goal is to provide a "platform for [electric-car] drivers and advocates to share their passion and real-life experiences," as well as a way for "inquisitive minds" outside the advocacy community to ask questions and learn more.
We most recently encountered the group last week at EV Roadmap 6, a conference in Portland looking at the future for electric vehicles globally, nationally, and in particular, throughout the Pacific Northwest.
The Electric Generation was the lead sponsor of that conference; it live-tweeted the proceedings and also posted a recap of the event.
According to its staff, there are now more than 200 articles on the site--both original and from a variety of media outlets--and the campaign has had about 1,500 people who'd "liked" its Facebook page.
We're not entirely sure about the notion that the discussion of electric cars is missing the aspect of "the electricity that provides power" or "awareness of the electric utility industry's commitment to electricity as a transportation fuel."
But what do you think?
Leave us your thoughts--on "The Electric Generation," and on spreading the word about plug-in cars in general--in the Comments below.
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