For all the talk about sustainability, someone forgot to check if the trend itself was going to prove sustainable. Think about it. Almost universally, the companies leading the way in sustainability see their initiatives as saving money to make money. Corporations invest into sustainability initiatives because the cost of fossil fuels at this point makes sustainability a solid long-term investment. But should the cost of fossil fuels recede close to pre-2005 levels, then the cost of maintaining those sustainability initiatives starts to exceed the amount they save.
This begs the question, can sustainability be more than alternative operating procedures and work processes? Is there some real, measurable profit that can be made? Yes, there is some green to be found in going green, and it’s not just from lower operating costs. Here are three ways you can market your sustainability initiatives into potentially increased sales.
In a post-An Inconvenient Truth era, companies are quickly discovering that marketing their sustainability initiatives may win more fans at the checkout aisle. Consumers are looking for ways that they can contribute to a solution, and companies that afford them such opportunities are going to see financial rewards. As a result, consumer-facing companies that want to ensure customer loyalty are quickly recognizing that the call to sustainability must carry over to relationships with suppliers.
A study from consulting firm A.T. Kearney showed that today 50 per cent of companies will deselect suppliers for not meeting sustainability criteria. More than half the companies in the survey use some form of sustainability metrics when evaluating suppliers, ranging from eco-efficiency of materials and packaging to carbon footprint to full lifecycle costing.
How should a marketer respond to that? Start by making your sustainability initiatives part of your value proposition. Highlight them in advertising campaigns and on product packaging. When you meet with key and potential customers, showcase your sustainability initiatives and explain how they would complement what the customer is doing.
Update your web site. Sustainability sections aren’t just for the investor relations department. Make sure your sustainability goals are easy to locate and articulated well. When you achieve one of your goals, highlight it on the web site. Your customers need to perceive you as not only committed to sustainability, but actually making progress.
Work on establishing your company as a leader in areas of the sustainability dialogue where you feel you are strong. Form a partnership with a supplier to improve energy efficiency or to reduce transportation costs through more efficient packaging. Consider sitting on panels at conferences that your customers attend, or sponsor and organise an event focused on sustainability topics.
Last year, after having the opportunity to attend a Wal-Mart employee rally, Amanda Little wrote about the impact Wal-Mart’s green initiatives are having on employee morale. Nearly 50 per cent of Wal-Mart employees have signed up for the company’s personal sustainability project, which encourages employees to live more sustainable lives by educating them on ways to conserve resources and reduce energy consumption.
Wal-Mart’s example offers an important insight. Increasing the morale of your workforce requires more than bulletins on the Intranet, internal employee newsletters or pep rally-esque staff meetings. Get your employees involved. Include them in the dialogue about what the company can do to be more sustainable. Set up workplace committees with the goals of creating a greener work environment. And like Wal-Mart, offer them the tools and resources to help them practice sustainability in their own lives.
Also, employees who have input in a company’s sustainability goals are more likely to stay on board and see those goals realised. In ‘The Sustainability Advantage’, author Bob Willard conducted surveys that showed 20 per cent of employees would not leave their employer if they were attracted to the company’s sustainability initiatives. The most efficient way to ensure employees are attracted to your initiatives is by allowing them to help create the initiatives in the first place.
Don’t forget downstream audiences when marketing your sustainability initiatives. Your customers’ customers can impact sales, especially if they are more inclined to work with sustainability-minded suppliers. Encourage customers and potential partners to be part of your sustainability goals. Work with key customers to identify initiatives that overlap both your operations and theirs – a joint waste management program, perhaps – that can position both you and your customer well with end users.
The key to success with this strategy is to ensure that your sustainability initiatives are translated into a language that a downstream customer can readily grasp. Higher machine throughput and chemical reactions at ambient temperatures are excellent sustainability initiatives, but they mean little to consumer-facing companies unless they are combined with language about BTUs that are saved through these processes.
Take the example of Rexam, the fourth largest plastic packaging company in the world. Rexam produces documents called product footprint charts, which lay out the process of making aluminium, plastic or glass containers in diagrams and language that a consumer can easily understand. The charts demonstrate the sustainability advantages of plastic packaging. It’s the type of collateral that a consumer packaged goods company can use to improve its standing with a retailer, or even boost its brand preference among consumers. Market share growth for your customers means volume growth for you.
Sustainability initiatives can be great for the planet and great for the bottom line. Maximise the value of your initiatives by having them contribute to your profits as well as minimising costs.
