Targeted Outreach Efforts Lay Foundation for Industry Growth

by Donnell Rehagan (Biodiesel Magazine) As the national trade association representing the entire biodiesel value chain, the National Biodiesel Board continually strives to identify new opportunities to educate and engage stakeholders on the wide-ranging benefits of biodiesel. ... New this year, NBB is proud to partner with several industry sponsors to offer five regional, one-day seminars designed to educate the supply chain about the benefits and opportunities surrounding biodiesel. We are offering NBB’s years of expertise at no cost to attendees in an effort to increase understanding of biodiesel’s place in today’s liquid fuels supply chain.

It is critical that those who handle, store, buy and sell biodiesel have a complete understanding of how the fuel can be leveraged not only as a cleaner-burning, renewable complement to diesel fuel, but as a means to increase market share and enhance an organization’s brand. Thanks to our sponsors, NBB staff and other industry experts are able to provide a comprehensive overview of all things biodiesel during these four-hour seminars, Exploring Biodiesel (XBX).

The program is designed for fuel wholesalers, distributors, retailers, marketers, fleets, municipalities and other end-users who are interested in the operational, environmental and cost benefits of biodiesel. Our goal is to offer the most comprehensive biodiesel educational seminar available anywhere in the nation.

The XBX series kicked off in Boston June 12 and the second stop was Philadelphia on July 18. The first two seminars drew strong participation from all sectors of the biodiesel marketplace. Initial attendee survey results were overwhelmingly positive, with the vast majority of respondents reporting that the seminar exceeded their expectations and indicating that they would likely attend an annual XBX event to stay updated on biodiesel.

Second, NBB recently launched our industry’s annual advertising campaign designed to educate key decision-makers, with a special focus on Washington, D.C. The launch, timed alongside our June membership meeting and D.C. fly-in, saturated the mid-Atlantic and D.C. markets with biodiesel education advertising that supports our advocacy efforts. This year’s “Innovation”-themed campaign includes highly targeted digital advertising videos and images, along with radio, print buys and a social media component continuing throughout the summer and into the fall. This is the eighth year of NBB leading a national advertising campaign, which year-after-year has been cited as a key component of our successful efforts to advance the industry. And our annual voter survey shows that the campaigns have increased awareness and positive impressions of biodiesel nationwide.

Finally, NBB’s technical team continues important outreach to OEM representatives from every market segment using diesel fuel to encourage approval of higher biodiesel blends. This includes on- and off-road transportation, heating oil, railroads, marine, power generation, and more. All segments currently approve at least B5, which could account for more than 3 billion gallons of total biodiesel consumption. And the vast majority of on-road vehicles support B20 thanks to decades of technical work by the industry. READ MORE