5900-34 Partner of the Year Award

2010 ENERGY STAR® Awards
General Instructions for All Applicants
What you need to submit online:
• A 300-word executive summary highlighting the main elements of your application.
• An electronic copy (Word or WordPerfect) of your narrative.
• Optional supplemental material such as photos, pamphlets, copies of advertisements,
videos, audio files, etc., can be uploaded with your application as PDF files (each file
must be less than 12 MB). It is strongly recommended to consolidate supplemental print
files into one or two PDF files.
• Retailers only: See special instructions in the Retailer application, under the Partner of
the Year category.
When you need to submit it:
• A complete electronic application must be uploaded by midnight, EST on December
4, 2009. We will not accept any applications or materials uploaded after this date.
How you need to submit:
• All Partner applications must be electronically submitted through your “My ENERGY
STAR Account” (www.energystar.gov/mesa). The electronic system will be available
November 1, 2009.
• If you do not have an ENERGY STAR account, call the ENERGY STAR Hotline at
888-782-7937 to have one created.
• We will only accept applications submitted via this online system.
What to expect after you submit:
• Confirmation of Receipt: You will get an email within 48 hours confirming receipt of
materials you submitted electronically. It will be sent to the Primary and Communications
contact in the award application. If you do not receive confirmation within this timeframe,
contact ENERGY STAR Awards Coordinator Hewan Tomlinson at (202) 343-9082 or
[email protected].
• Notification: You will be notified no later than February 5, 2010 on the status of your
application.

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Additional information:
• The ENERGY STAR Awards Ceremony will be held on April 13, 2010 in Washington,
DC.
•

Organizations may apply for more than one award if they meet the eligibility
requirements. In such cases, a complete award application package must be submitted
for each award.

•

There are two broad categories of ENERGY STAR awards that you can apply for:
Partner of the Year and Excellence Awards.

•

The Sustained Excellence Award, our highest honor, is selected by EPA to recognize
organizations that have won Partner of the Year for several years and their
achievements continue to surpass those of the previous year. There is no separate
application for Sustained Excellence.

•

Where applicable, quantify your activities and the results (e.g., percent improvement,
number of marketing pieces produced, number of people reached), and include
electronic copies of documentation that support claims made (e.g., photos of
promotional materials, samples of advertisements with the ENERGY STAR mark, copies
of training materials used, etc.).

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2010 ENERGY STAR® Award Application
Excellence – Lighting Retailer or Showroom
Eligibility:

Lighting retailers or showrooms stocking and promoting ENERGY STAR qualified
residential light fixtures. To be eligible for an award, applicant must be a partner in good
standing, having complied with applicable partner commitments.

Description: This award recognizes lighting retailers and showrooms which demonstrate outstanding
effort and achieve noteworthy success selling ENERGY STAR qualified residential light
fixtures. Through promoting the program, training associates, and stocking shelves with
qualified products, lighting retailers and showrooms contribute immensely to furthering
ENERGY STAR’S goals in the residential light fixture market.
Applications will be reviewed with consideration given for company size, presenting the
opportunity for organizations both large and small to distinguish themselves in the
marketplace.
***Awards will be presented at the 2010 American Lighting Association Annual
Conference or the 2010 Dallas International Lighting Market.
Narrative:

Criteria:

Your narrative description should be no more than five pages, but may be accompanied
by electronic samples of specific promotions, advertisements, or other activities your
organization led in 2009. Applicants are encouraged to expand applications with details
of internal energy efficiency improvements, and additional ENERGY STAR/energy
efficiency education offered to employees beyond that associated with qualified light
fixtures.
•

Executive Summary (300 words or less)—-Please provide a brief overview of
your organization and the highlights of key accomplishments that make you eligible
for this ENERGY STAR award. In the event that you are chosen to receive an award,
this text will be the basis used in preparing a summary of your organization's
achievements. The Executive Summary will not count toward the five-page limit.

•

Accomplishments—Organizations applying for this award should provide a
detailed description of your 2009 accomplishments demonstrating how you have
met the following required criteria.

•

Cumulative Accomplishments—When highlighting cumulative accomplishments,
please ensure that you include a time rame (e.g., saved $3 million in 2009 and more
than $10 million since 2001).

Criteria for evaluating this award are listed below. In describing your company’s
activities, please organize your submission consistent with the outline below and be as
specific as possible. (For example, in describing use of the ENERGY STAR logo on a
company Web site or advertisement, provide specific timing and placement information,
visibility to the public (perhaps number of hits/impressions in a period of time), and
size/placement of the logo.)

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Award Evaluation Criteria
Product Selection
• Provide goals/targets for increasing stock of ENERGY STAR qualified light fixtures (e.g.
increases in number of SKUs or percentage of SKUs).
• Describe all efforts to work with vendors to increase stock of ENERGY STAR qualified light
fixtures.
• Report progress in meeting these goals/targets (e.g. increases in number of SKUs or
percentage of SKUs).
Sales Associate Training
• Demonstrate the integration of ENERGY STAR into training strategy and in all existing
training vehicles.
• If applicable include information on how your organization worked with vendors or
utility/state/regional partners to increase ENERGY STAR sales associate training.
• Report progress in implementing plan and achieving goals.
• Please list all training efforts and include electronic examples (as available) of all training
materials that include ENERGY STAR, e.g. publications, web-based, and in-person. For all
materials used, please include the following information, where applicable:
¾
¾
¾
¾

Materials used
Scope (# stores, if more than one)
Co-sponsors (utility or manufacturer programs)
Number of employees reached

In-Store Marketing
• Please list all in-store ENERGY STAR marketing efforts, e.g. displays, signage, and
consumer educational events, and include electronic examples of in-store marketing
materials (as available). For each effort, please include the following information, where
applicable:
¾
¾
¾
¾
¾

Materials used
Scope (# stores, if more than one)
Permanent or temporary (if temporary, dates)
Co-sponsors (utility or manufacturer programs)
Impressions (e.g. store traffic)

Ex-Store Marketing
• Please list and include electronic examples (as available) of all ex-store ENERGY STAR
marketing efforts, e.g. advertising (broadcast, print, direct mail) and web promotions. For
each effort, please include the following information, where applicable:
¾
¾
¾
¾

Distribution/markets
Duration
Co-sponsors (utility or manufacturer programs)
Impressions/circulation

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