About Melanie K. Goetz
President of Hughes & Stuart Marketing, Melanie is a water, wastewater, watershed, and stormwater consultant for entities all over North America. Providing talks, workshops, and consulting, she specializes in helping municipalities, governments, regulated utilities and their stakeholders effectively convey the value of quality water to the public. With over three decades of marketing and outreach experience, she has been a driving force behind defining and implementing effective strategic public education, gaining voter support, inspiring volunteers, and creating communication plans that provide measurable results.
Education
Old Dominion University, Norfolk, VA – Masters in Business Administration, (1984)
University of Colorado, Boulder, CO – Bachelor of Science in Business, (1977)
Water & Energy Related Clients
American Water Works Association
Arapahoe County Water & Wastewater Authority
Canadian Federal Government
Chatfield Watershed Authority
Cherry Creek Basin Water Quality Authority
Contra Costa Water District
Cottonwood Water & Sanitation District
Douglas County Stormwater
Lockheed Martin Space Systems
North Dakota: Southwest Water Authority
Perry Park Water & Sanitation District
Pioneer Oil & Gas
Purgatoire Watershed
Todd Creek Village Metro District
Roxborough Water & Sanitation District
Washington Gas
Partial List of Speaking, Workshops & Webinars Topics
Communicating the Value of Water: The Unfiltered Truth
Simple Steps to Create a Communication Plan
The 7 things Every Utility Should Know About Public Outreach
Risk Communications: Inward, Outward, & Onward
How to Avoid Being a Media Disaster
Risk Management: When Things Go Wrong
Avoiding Public Outrage: Why the Little Things Matter
How to Raise Rates without Public Outrage
Social Media & Crowdsourcing
Published Books
Communicating Water’s Value: Talking Points, Tips & Strategies (2014, AWWA)
Communicating Water’s Value Part 2: Stormwater, Wastewater & Watersheds (2017, AWWA)
Manuals
American Water Works Association, Manual 69, Chapter 7
Communicating Inland Desalination to the Public
Journals & Magazines
American Water Works Association (AWWA) Journal
• “Dangers of Miscommunicating Important Information: How to Avoid its Tragic Results”
• “A Capital Idea”
• “Why Surveys Work and How They Can Disappoint”
• “Beacons of Light in a World of Shadows”
• “The Power of the Apology”
• “Tap Crawl From Down Under,” (Co-Author, Peter Prevos, Coliban Water, Australia)
• “Framing Transparency: Crafting the Utility Bill”
• “It’s A Numbers Game: The Psychology Behind Rate Pricing”
• “Helping Customers Connect Tiered Rates With Actual Water Use”
• “Defining Rates By The Gallon Makes Water Worth the Price”
• “The Irrationality of Rational Numbers”
• “Invisible Peril: Managing Rate Issues Through Public Involvement”
• “The Paradox of value: Water Rates and the Law of Diminishing Marginal Utility”
• “Diluting the Inevitable: A Case for Doubling Water Rates”
• “Leveraging the Power of Rebates: The Difference is in the Breakage”
• “Show Us The Money”
• “The Dangerous Liaison Between A Discount Culture & Cost Control”
• “Understanding and Leveraging Social Norms”
• “Perception and the Value of Water: It’s All Relative”
• “Looking Inward to Enable Effective Outreach: A Case for Customer Appreciation”
• “Poor or Affluent: The Value of Water is Directly Related to What it Costs”
• “Do No Harm: Perverse Consequences of Misjudging Public Response”
• “Communication Without Words: How Utilities Can Become Visible”
• “Risky Business: Factoring in Public Perceptions”
British Columbia Water and Wastewater (BCWWA) Watermark Magazine
• “Mirror Marketing: Changing Behavior through Our Need to Conform”
• “Emerging Technologies and the Apology”
Stormwater Journal, Forester Media
• “Protecting the Waterways with Crowdsourcing”
• “How to Avoid Communication Disasters”