When it came to cutting back on water use in Denver, people responded in part thanks to fines and restrictions but also to…good marketing.
Denver Water rolled out the “Use Only What You Need” campaign to encourage everyone to use less water—a lot less. The ads have included memorable images of only a small portion of a billboard sign being used, a person in a toilet costume being tackled during a football game’s halftime (for “Stop Running Toilets”), and an image of an elevator with a shower curtain in front of the doors that read, “Shower With Friends.”
But unlike asking people to create less trash (no one ever bragged about their quantity of garbage) like recyclers did, Denver Water was asking people to have less green grass, bathe less frequently and other things that people take pride in.
This new conservation program was in response to the drought along the Front Range of Colorado, where irrigation has allowed people for many decades to overlook the fact that they actually live in a desert. The Denver area has been in a drought since 2001 and Denver Water has to determine how to plan for the future water supply for everyone. Conservation is just one of the elements to ensuring a plentiful water supply for future generations.
But even knowing that water is scarce, to suddenly stop–or just decrease–watering lawns meant a loss of pride for some. The campaign’s success is a lesson in how change is good—even when it seems to go against instinct, like keeping the grass emerald green.
The result is that water consumption was cut between 18% and 21% over four years. The goal of the conservation program is to reduce water use to 165 gallons per person per day (it was at 211 gallons per day) by 2016. In order to maintain this level, Denver Water’s hope is that water conservation is becoming a lifestyle choice—much like other eco-practices such as curbside recycling—and not just a kneejerk reaction to an emergency shortage.
With “Use Only What You Need” emblazoned on everything including yard signs, buses, billboards and t-shirts, the message is getting through to Denver Water users. Their water conservation is then rewarded with incentive programs, rebates, and Xeriscape (dry garden or landscape) tips.
The clever and catchy slogans are there to be that almost literal sign of pride in having a yellow lawn or rock garden instead of a putting green.