About the Award 
Eligibility:  	Retailers of ENERGY STAR certified products. To be eligible for an award, an applicant must be a partner in good standing, having complied with applicable partner commitments. Additionally, please read the separate General Instructions for all applicants.

          Regional retailers and specialized retailers are encouraged to apply and will be evaluated commensurate with their size and product focus.
         
          Buying groups and/or retail member groups are encouraged to apply. Buying groups should consider the same award evaluation criteria in compiling their application as retailers, but should focus on demonstrating how they supported their retail members' accomplishments in relation to the criteria, particularly for Product Specification and Stocking, Sales Associate Training, and Marketing and Communications.
         
          E-tailers, who have no storefronts, are encouraged to apply. E-tailers should consider the same award evaluation criteria in compiling their application as retailers, with the exception of Sales Associate Training and Marketing and Communications tactics related to in-store.

Description:	Retailers, both large and small, are making an ever-increasing contribution to the growing success of ENERGY STAR. As ENERGY STAR retail partner participation in the program continues to expand, we are dedicated to recognizing the very best in terms of a broad commitment to and success with ENERGY STAR.

 Each retailer excels in specific areas relative to their size and specialty. Applications will be reviewed with this in mind and, depending on the applicant pool, a separate retail Partner of the Year award may be given to a small, regional, or specialized retailer.




 Narrative:	(Required)
	Your narrative description should be no more than 10 pages and should be accompanied by samples of specific outreach materials representing your 2020 activities, such as strategies, examples of participation in EPA Annual Promotions and other ENERGY STAR specific company-produced materials and initiatives. 
         
          Accomplishments -- Organizations applying for the Partner of the Year Award should highlight their accomplishments from 2020, and if possible, cumulative accomplishments. Since applications are due on December 9, 2020, this will provide retailers an opportunity to share your accomplishments starting earlier in the season rather than the start of the calendar year (i.e., November 2019  -  November 2020). When highlighting cumulative accomplishments, please ensure that you include a timeframe (e.g., saved more than $10 million since 2001).


Supporting Materials: (a minimum of 1 required)
 Applicants should submit electronic samples of program materials and examples to accompany the narrative description. Additionally, EPA may also validate incorporation of the ENERGY STAR label by reviewing use of the ENERGY STAR logo and educational content of the applicant's website.
      
 Applicants should not submit or send hard copies/physical copies of supporting materials.
                                       

                     PART 2:
Award Accomplishment Document
            (use the following information to create a Word or PDF file)

 In describing your company's activities, please organize your submission document consistent with the outline below, and be as specific as possible per the instructions for each criterion.
 
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Award Evaluation Criteria and Outline

Section 1: ENERGY STAR Partnership and Planning
Partner should document any and all planning meetings held with EPA to discuss general coordination and collaboration.  This can include in-person, and telephone meetings where high level objectives were discussed.  Please also provide information on how EPA was provided access and coordinated with merchants and other internal decision-making groups.

Section 2: Product Stocking and Sales

In this section, retailers should show how they worked to order and stock ENERGY STAR products in store and online. Leading retailers are expected to work to increase stocking and sales of ENERGY STAR products every year. This means working with suppliers to increase the number of SKUs/models and/or percentage of sales in EPA priority product categories. Please include stocking and sales information in the format below.

(Note: Cut and paste this table into your Accomplishments document for editing)
                              Stocking and Sales
                                   Lighting
                                  Appliances
                             Consumer Electronics
                                 Water Heaters
                                Other Products
Number of ENERGY STAR certified models available in 2020
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Percentage change over number of certified models available in 2019
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Percentage of eligible 2020 models that are ENERGY STAR certified
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Percentage of total sales (ENERGY STAR vs. non-ENERGY STAR units) in 2020
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Percentage total sales (ENERGY STAR vs. non-ENERGY STAR units) change over 2019
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Please provide any additional context for decreases in product selection or sales, as appropriate. Retailers should also identify and provide examples of specific activities in support of increasing the availability of ENERGY STAR products, including coordination with manufacturers and/or suppliers.

Include any information on collaboration with EPA, manufacturers, and energy efficiency program sponsors/utilities in changes to stocking practices. For ENERGY STAR Retail Products Platform (ESRPP) members, include ESRPP related stocking activities in Section 5.

Section 3: Product Marketing and Promotions

In this section, retailers should show how they worked to co-market and promote ENERGY STAR products in store and online. Retailers should also identify and provide examples of specific activities in support of efforts to increase visibility of ENERGY STAR products online and in-store for each product category. 

Clearly identify if specific ENERGY STAR-provided content or a specific ENERGY STAR-provided tool was used in an activity, including ENERGY STAR promotion such as:

 Laundry Made Better
 Flip Your Fridge
 Light the Moment
 The Cool Choice for Room AC
 Upgrade Now and Warm Up to Savings (Water Heaters) and 
 Make a Savings Splash (Pool Pumps)

For these efforts, include any information on collaboration with EPA, manufacturers, and Energy Efficiency Program Sponsors (EEPS)/utilities in the development of these marketing and promotional activities.

 In-Store Product Marketing and Promotions
      Identify and provide examples of content promoting ENERGY STAR certified products and their benefits in-store.  For each product area, include specific examples of activities that included ENERGY STAR benefits such as:
 Product category or product specific how-to, selection, or category signage
 In-store kiosk or selection tools
 Signage created/cobranded with utilities and EEPS
 Public Address/overhead announcement messaging (include script and/or audio)
 In-store events
      
 Retailer Website Product Marketing and Promotions
      Identify and provide examples of content promoting ENERGY STAR certified products and their benefits in each product category on the retail website.  Include specific examples of web content, such as:
 Product overviews and how-to guides
 Display ads on the retailer site
 Use of the certification mark and/or appropriate wording on search result pages and product detail pages
 Inclusion of an ENERGY STAR filter for product selection
 ENERGY STAR partnership on corporate sustainability website

Additional instructions: Do not include examples that do not specifically highlight ENERGY STAR. For example, if you have an in-store promotion and giveaway for an ENERGY STAR certified refrigerator, but do not specifically highlight/promote the product as ENERGY STAR certified, then the promotion would not be counted in your favor.


Section 3: Overall ENERGY STAR Education and Promotion
This section is to demonstrate what your company has done throughout the year to promote ENERGY STAR and educate consumers about energy efficiency and its environmental and other benefits through general efforts, such as advertising, social media, public relations, events, etc.
Company should provide examples of the following ENERGY STAR consumer outreach activities:  
 Advertising (including television spots, radio spots, newspaper circulars, display ads on non-retailer websites, e-newsletters, promotional emails, direct mail, and search engine advertising)
 Social media (including Facebook, YouTube, partnerships with influencers, and blog posts)
 Public Relations (including press releases, content syndication, or a retailer's media portal)
 Consumer materials that show environmental benefits messaging, such as climate protection
Clearly identify if specific ENERGY STAR-provided content or a specific ENERGY STAR-provided tool was used in an activity, such as posting a suggested ENERGY STAR partner message on social media.
Additional instructions: Do not include examples that feature ENERGY STAR products, but do not mention or highlight ENERGY STAR. For example, a Public Relations campaign for a clothes washer that is ENERGY STAR certified, but the campaign fails to mention additional education specific to ENERGY STAR would not count in your favor. It is not necessary or advantageous to submit copies of all advertising materials; samples with additional references of placement is sufficient. 
Section 4: ENERGY STAR Training and Internal Education Efforts
In this section, retailers should demonstrate what they have done throughout the year to educate internal stakeholders and sales associates about the ENERGY STAR program and the value of ENERGY STAR certified products. Please do not include trainings that include the ENERGY STAR certification mark but do not specifically address the program or explain its benefits. 

Please describe how your organization has achieved the following goals:
    Integration of ENERGY STAR into your organization's sales force and employee training. Provide scope, description of efforts, measures of impact, and examples (e.g., training manuals, new employee packets, presentations, etc.)

   
    Cooperation with product brand owners, manufacturers, or utility/state/regional partners to increase ENERGY STAR information in product knowledge training. Provide scope, description of efforts, measures of impact and examples (e.g., collateral, e-mails, screen shots of web-based, video, manuals, newsletters, presentations, ENERGY STAR specification summary sheets, etc.)
    Use of intranets or internal social sites
    Internal product fairs or events
    Collaboration with EPA in the development of training activities
Additional instructions: Please provide copies of training scripts and/or links to video files, where possible. (Upload under PART 3: Supporting Materials). Screenshots of training videos or of trainers with certified products are not sufficient evidence of training. Please do not include examples of training or promotions that feature ENERGY STAR certified products, but do not specifically mention ENERGY STAR.

ENERGY STAR Retail Products Platform (ESRPP) Participants Only
Section 5: ENERGY STAR Retail Products Platform
EPA is working with a national group of program managers and retailers to develop a more streamlined approach to energy efficiency.  If your company is participating in this effort, please outline the following:
 Date joined (first agreement signed)
 Number of stores covered by partnerships
 Participation in Retail Action Council meetings and ESRPP-related participation at ENERGY STAR national partner meetings
Brief description of presentations on ESRPP made by your company at national forums or conferences.

    
                 Prepare/Gather Remaining Documents for Upload

PART 3: Supporting Materials (at least one required, as described in the application Instructions above) 
    PART 4: Organization's High-Resolution Logo (required) 

ENERGY STAR[(R)] is the government-backed symbol for energy efficiency, providing simple, credible, and unbiased information that consumers and businesses rely on to make well-informed decisions.


