Green is everywhere these days. It’s easy enough to drop the word into your website, brochures and other marketing materials, but how can you really make your customers understand? A recent survey from the Mature Market Institute discovered that among homeowners over 55, energy efficiency ranked among the top five desired home features.

It may seem like everyone has a slightly different definition of what green means, so you will need to provide some concrete examples of what green can do for them. It’s a balance between talking about the lowered impact on the earth and the lowered impact on their wallets. Everyone will respond to those ideas differently, as everyone has different motivations for building and/or remodeling green.

Something you will want to emphasize is the $1,500 energy tax credit–it only lasts until December 31 of this year, so there’s not much time to waste. Now, this tax credit might sound simple, but there are important things to remember. You’ll want to educate your customers about what they can and cannot do to receive this tax credit.  Integrity’s site has information about replacing windows and doors for the tax credit. Or go to energystar.gov/taxcreditfor complete information.

With a little education for your customers, you can help them think about what green means to them.