Consumers nowadays have set their brand expectations high.
Living in a world filled with constant problems, they want their favorite brands to show that they care for something other than profit, such as the future of the planet we live in, or the wellbeing of its inhabitants.
The way brands position themselves when it comes to the values they stand for has become a great part of their marketing strategies.
Brand activism is the way in which they can truly differentiate from their competitors, and form meaningful bonds with their customer base, bonds that are not so easy to break.
Brand activism and green marketing
Marketing experts, Christian Sarkar and Philip Cotler, identify six main areas of brand activism– social, business, legal, economic, political and environmental. Brands that are environmentally active deal with issues such as climate change, air, and water pollution and land use and some of them are taking their efforts to the new heights.
One of the best examples of environmentally friendly brands is Patagonia, which strongly focuses its business practices and marketing activities on conservation issues. This California-based clothing company is involved with Go Green movements and donates 1% of its annual earnings to environmental grassroots groups.
Furthermore, even though the company uses plastic in their products, they were quick to address the issue of micro-plastic pollution and look for ways to fight it. Patagonia is really great when it comes to recycling materials they’re using, and it’s ready to dive into politics to achieve the environmental goals.
Other businesses well-known for their green positioning are Ikea, The Body Shop, Unilever, IBM, and Panasonic.
One of the most effective ways to incorporate ecology into marketing is to create brand content that focuses on your green efforts, that you can use on your website, social media, and your blog.
Here are a few tips on how you can incorporate ecology into your marketing strategy.
Be tangible
People are, in general, more affected by tangible examples of sustainability than by the grim predictions of the future. They are more likely to understand the need for immediate change and put themselves in action if you show them the negative effects climate change already has on the planet and people.
The now and then photo of the retreating glacier, or the videos showing the negative effects of melting ice on animal wildlife, will communicate the need for pro-environmental action much better than scientific studies and graphs of future devastation.
The negative consequences of unsustainable business practices and the positive effects of pro-environmental efforts can easily be demonstrated by numerous concrete examples, such as videos, photos, and articles of fighting pollution in China.
Make visual content a significant part of your green marketing campaigns, and try to clearly demonstrate how the ecological practices of your brand and each of its consumers contribute to both the local and the global environmental battle.
Social influence
If you want your green marketing efforts to have better results, focus on your brand ambassadors and the power of word of mouth marketing.
People are social beings and they are strongly influenced by the behaviors of the others they value, or that they can identify with.
This is especially important when it comes to promoting the adoption of public goods that are not yet widely accepted – a study in the US shows that solar advocates, who installed solar panels in their own homes, were 63% more successful in recruiting their neighbors to install them too.
Focus your marketing campaigns on targeting such loyal consumers, and spread the news about their practices and the effects such actions have on the environment. Incentivize those consumers to create their own content can that you can later use in your marketing campaigns, and leverage the power of influencers and micro-influencers.
Help your customers form ecological habits
It’s hard to break the habit once it is established. If you want your consumers to establish more green practices and contribute to the environment, think about how you can help them.
Try incentivizing your consumers to start eco-friendly practices, and give them adequate and timely feedback about their actions. For example, H&M incentivizes its customers with a discount or a voucher and offers a garment recycling service across all its stores, since 2013. This helps their customers learn more about the environmental effects of the textile and clothing industry, and at the same time installs new, more sustainable behaviors.
Focus on emotions
Focus on your consumers’ emotions when working on your next green marketing campaign.
We’re all creatures of hearts, as well as our minds. We sometimes act and make thoughtful decisions, based on information, but there are times when we simply play by heart and behave in a way that makes us feel good.
The content you create for green marketing purposes should address both of your consumer needs. Apart from simply educating and informing them, try creating fun and captivating content pieces that will make your customers feel good about themselves when doing a certain action, and stir happiness and pride.
To make your green efforts more efficient, they need to feel genuine and authentic. Otherwise, your consumers may interpret them as one more attempt of greenwashing. You can achieve this by making your ecological approach a significant part of your overall brand narrative.
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