SkyPower, a solar installation company, hired Bad Monkey Circus (BMC) to create a public awareness campaign about the benefits of solar energy in Ontario, Canada. With an imminent election threatening to repeal subsidies for solar, BMC developed concepts within 6 days using their Creative Tattoo and Pro-Controlled Crowdsourcing techniques. SkyPower ran BMC's TV commercial and web video, educating the public without directly supporting any political party. On election night, the Liberal party retained power, ensuring continued support for Ontario's solar industry. BMC delivered another successful campaign for their client.

1. CASE STUDY
July, 2011
Problem: SkyPower, a solar park installation company from Toronto, Ontario, Canada, was
threatened by changes in laws that would put them out of business.
In Ontario, the Liberal party had been elected in 2009 and had enacted a law called the Green Energy
Act, which included a “Feed-In-Tariff” (FIT) program. This program provided financial incentives and
subsidies to companies and citizens who installed solar panels or wind turbines that were manufactured
in Ontario, attempting to create a “green energy economy” in the province with the goal of replacing
automobile manufacturing jobs lost in the recession.
However, backlash and frustration among citizens had created a problem. The economy wasn’t
improving fast enough, and the people still needed jobs. And, adding to the problem was the fact that
the aging power grid was unable to support the new energy sources, meaning people and companies
that installed the panels were not able to sell their electricity back to the grid.
One of Canada’s political parties, the Progressive Conservative party and their leader, Prime Minister
Candidate Tim Hudak, saw this frustration and seized the opportunity to use the Green Energy Act as a
wedge issue, taking a stand to eliminate the Green Energy Act’s FIT program should he be elected.
SkyPower had a problem: if the law were to be repealed, their business model would be rendered
infeasible, since it was reliant on the FIT subsidies to support demand for its services.
And time was not on their side. In Canada, there are laws governing political advertising: where they
can run (no political ads on public television), when they can run (no political ads can run within 30 days
of the election, or it’s considered a campaign contribution), and even restrictions on the content (no
direct endorsement of a party or candidate).
A group of business consultants had advised SkyPower to create a public awareness campaign about the
solar issue to educate citizens on the benefits of keeping solar electricity viable in the province. Looking
for some high-impact creative to run, they searched for a reputable creative agency to help them
prepare for imminent battle.
Solution: BMC’s Creative Tattoo™ and Pro-Controlled Crowdsourcing™
SkyPower’s agency search led them to Bad Monkey Circus. With less than two months before the
campaign window closed, BMC did not have the luxury of time. The client wanted to be finished and on

2. the air “yesterday”. Working around the clock and through the weekend, the agency applied its
proprietary Creative Tattoo™ process and Pro-Controlled Crowdsourcing™ technique, and produced a
total of six storyboarded TV concepts for the campaign; several name, logo and tagline concepts; five
web site concepts; and social media sites and presented all this within six business days.
The biggest creative challenge of the project was how to create a campaign that encouraged people to
vote for the Liberal Party, thus saving the Green Energy Act, without directly saying it. It was a new
challenge the agency had not experienced before, but graciously and confidently accepted.
Although they were presented with a range of solutions, including some concepts that would have
required additional shoots and/or production, in the interest of time, SkyPower chose to create a spot
with their own existing footage rather than shooting new footage. They needed their footage punched
up for impact with special effects, animated with custom motion graphics and bumpers and
soundtracked. Simultaneously, they asked BMC to create an animated video for the web showcasing
hard-hitting statistics that lent credibility to their story.
SkyPower and partner company, Canadian Solar, ran the campaign on the major TV networks and radio
stations in Ontario, concentrating on the Toronto metro area, to educate the public on the benefits that
the solar energy industry and the FIT program brought to Ontario and the costs of letting the program
fall by the wayside. They promoted the web video through social media and the web site.
As the campaign broke, the Liberal party was down nearly 10% in the polls and the future was looking
bleak for Ontario’s solar industry.
But on election night, as results rolled in, it was evident that the desired turnaround had happened. The
Liberal party’s candidate, Dalton McGuinty had retained control of the Prime Ministry. The campaign
was a success for the solar industry in Ontario, and bode well for the success FIT programs in other
markets and countries around the world.
Ontario retained its status as one of the world’s leading solar markets and a global hub for solar energy
innovation and manufacturing.
And BMC had another happy client.

3. APPENDIX A
CAMPAIGN SAMPLES
VIDEO:
60 sec. TV commercial: http://youtu.be/r2D0F-sjVWw
Longer form web video: http://youtu.be/008cCyznnNs
NAMING, LOGO DESIGN, TAGLINE
WEB SITE (final concept):