Sustainable Marketing – Reality vs. Perception

A great article from Treehugger last week, Jerry Stifelman, founder and creative director at The Change, discusses the challenges of marketing your sustainable products, especially as a company that was not started on the foundation of green and environmental sustainability.

“A company that makes all its decisions based on increasing profits will do fine telling its story to its shareholders, but it’s not a very appealing or engaging tale to relate to the general public. Hence the distance between most company’s branding and their institutional realities.”

He goes on to explain that to truly have integrity, one must close this gap between real motivations (profit), and what you project into the marketplace (green, sustainable, “eco-friendly”…you know the drill).  Okay, simple enough.

So how do you break through the traditional thinking that higher-cost (debatable term) inputs that are environmentally friendly are, in the long term, better for the marketplace, industry, and ultimately, your own business?

 ”If you’re motivated by sustainability and ethical trade, on one level it is harder to make a profit, because you can’t simply pursue the cheapest way to make your products. Yet, as we argued in our previous post on authenticity, the side benefit of following your ideals is that it gives you access to the qualities of trustworthiness that make brands stand out in the marketplace. You have the marketable privilege of being exactly who you say you are. This integrity is a resource.”

So here are Stifelman’s tips on using this integrity as a resource:

 1. Be Aggressively Honest

“If you’re really doing what you’re doing for the right reasons, you get to be honest. Examples of honesty: web sites and packaging that explain not only what you’re doing well, but also what you’re trying to improve. When someone is candid enough to tell you their weaknesses and faults, you’re more likely to believe them about their strengths and achievements.”

2. Be Human

“It’s good to remember that the more sincere a corporate voice is, the more human it is. Some years ago, I was involved in conceiving of several large and expensive campaigns for Sun Microsystems, none of which ended up changing the public’s perception of the company in an appreciable way. Then Jonathon Swartz was given the reins of the company and started his own blog on which he was candid about what he was doing and why. His blog is now widely read and much more influential in modifying perceptions than a slickly produced ad campaign can ever be.”

3. Be Transparent

“Most businesses don’t tell you exactly where and how their products are made and their impact on the environment. If you’re a green company, you don’t have this disconnect. Thus, you can be transparent in a way that your conventional competition cannot be. Use this to your advantage.”

Finally,

“Think about Hollywood movies. The villains are people in it for their own ends — with a heavy emphasis on CEO’s and lawyers out to make money. Their heroes — from James Bond to Erin Brockovich to Neo – are people on a mission for a larger good. You’re more like the heroes — so with all appropriate humility, earnestness and passion — go ahead and act like it.”

Definitely take the time to go over to Treehugger and read the article yourself.