Ford’s eco lagoon in Valencia
Last week, global branding consultancy Interbrand published its ‘3rd Best Global Green Brands’ report. The aim of the research, according to Interbrand, is to “pick out” the world’s largest brands that are getting “the balance right” between perception and reality when it comes to their sustainability performance.
The report raises three important points:
1. Green marketing needs to be judged, and based on robust methodology
The first thing to say is its good news that a global branding agency is putting top brands under the ‘green marketing’ microscope, and that its doing so using robust methodology, not fluff (the research is based on a consumer study of 15,000 respondents in the world’s 10 biggest economies and the findings are then weighted against performance data gathered by accountancy firm Deloitte across 82 sustainability measures).
2. Green regulation leads to greener brands
The second thing to note is that companies that top the league table are automotive brands – Toyota, Ford and Honda (Nissan is the top riser). This should come as no surprise, though, as the automotive industry is the most heavily regulated sector when it comes to carbon emissions (EU lawmakers and governments are planning to finalise rules next week on reducing carbon dioxide emissions from cars still further to 95 grams of CO2 per kilometre) by 2020. Car makers have had a long time to work on their sustainability messaging. And it’s starting to pay off.
3. It’s up to the small brands to be the real sustainability leaders
The third point to make – and one that was made to me just the other day by a leading sustainability professional – is that big brands are by definition never going to be able to be the most successful sustainable businesses and that this provides an enormous opportunity for smaller businesses to carve out leadership positions in this area – but to do this they need to start marketing themselves effectively.
So why aren’t we hearing more compelling green stories?
One of the key themes drawn out of the Interbrand report is that it’s those automotive brands that have invested in creating innovative products, such as the Toyota Prius, Ford Ecoboost and Nissan Leaf, which are receiving more recognition from consumers. And they are investing time and effort into telling the whole sustainability story (Ford doesn’t just talk about the ultra-efficient 1 litre ecoboost engine, it is also telling us about the investment its made in a eco lagoon at its Valencia plant)
What does this tell us? It tells us that consumers respond well to green innovation, among other sustainability stories. So why aren’t we hearing more about them and why aren’t we hearing them from those best placed to tell – the entrepreneurs, start-ups and SMEs that are making most of these green innovations happen? The reason is most of these companies don’t know how to tell them.
This is because:
a) they are often either entrusting their story-telling to Government-backed or award/prize-giving organisations that provide them with funding and/or
b) their vision of marketing is stuck in the world of ‘old media’, where coverage in a Sunday newspaper is the holy grail of their communications strategy.
In both cases they are making a mistake. By entrusting their stories to an organisation that is also looking after the PR of a dozen or more other green innovators, they become part of a generic story about green innovation and their own unique brand story is lost (I should know, as editor of B2B publisher GreenWise, I’m on the receiving end of the press releases).
The problem with the second approach is that, while coverage in a Sunday newspaper may bring them an audience (and that’s a big if, because most won’t get written about by the national press), the marketing will not be targeted or sustained enough to bring them the results they need. In the case of one UK green start-up that had a great story that got coverage in a Sunday newspaper, it was so overwhelmed with inquiries after the coverage so much so that it was unable to meet the demand (that company is still trying to secure contracts now to take the business forward).
Take control of your green marketing through content marketing
For effective storytelling, companies and organisations need to target the right audiences and sustain engaging content over a long period of time. To do this, businesses need to take control of their marketing through content marketing.
Content marketing is not only a highly cost-effective way to market your business, it is also a highly effective way to market sustainability. That’s because sustainability is about going on a journey and content marketing gives you the means of going on that journey with those that will reward you with their business in the long-run – your customers. Content marketing isn’t about making green claims – especially those you can’t substantiate. It is in fact about telling the stories that matter to your customers, whether this be through blogs, videos, ebooks, case studies or, of course, social media content.
Don’t shy away from sustainability marketing, instead you can do three things now:
1. Think carefully about what your brand stands for and whether your sustainable proposition is of importance to your customers and prospects. There can be huge commercial opportunities for you as an SME on the sustainability agenda, as long a you are prepared to think through your sustainable proposition, what it means and for whom.
2. Find what’s authentic in your brand and use compelling stories (not statements) to engage your customers and prospects, rather than blindly trying to sell ‘green’ credentials that may not stack up or may not be what your audience want to hear about. Finding your compelling stories and authentic voice is not easy but it is possible. See how
3. Be open and upfront and discuss sustainability concerns with colleagues and on online forums like LinkedIn, where experts will relish the opportunity to advise and share their experiences, best practice and case studies.
We believe that behind every meaningful sustainable brand there is a compelling story.
Through our spin-out content marketing agency Wise Up Media we are working with leading brands and institutions in the sustainable sector and are able to provide SMEs in the sustainable businesses sector with cost-effective stand-out content.
For a free and confidential first consultation, get in touch via our contact page.
