As 2016 is fast approaching, it’s review time for many companies. How did our sales perform this year versus last year, how satisfied were our employees and how did this impact our performance, what can we do differently – and better – in 2016? A nifty “quick fix” is to address your CSR (Corporate Social Responsibility) with some trendy ‘Green Marketing’.
As our planet’s population continues to grow and we take over more and more empty space, some would say we are destroying the natural balance of things, and we need to take action – right now – to protect and restore for future generations. Simply recycling our garbage just won’t cut it anymore. The eco movement perspective is gaining momentum from the West Coast to our sunny Rocky Mountains – particularly rapidly of late. This means it’s increasingly important for you to consider where you want your company to stand on this – and ahead of your competitors. You can no longer simply rely on selling your products quickly, and you might like to build relationships with your customers to secure your ROI. Perhaps you’d like for them to tell their friends about you by the ever-powerful word of mouth, building loyalty and solidifying your sales. By challenging your existing practices to refocus the sourcing of your products and services sustainably enabling honest transparency and a clear conscience, these things can more easily fall into place.
‘Green Marketing’ is a trending holistic marketing term being bandied about, used to describe a company’s own unique methods of addressing global warming through their environmental impact, be that something as simple as printing labels on recycled paper, or turning off lights on the weekends to save wasted energy. It’s becoming essential to switch from simply addressing supply and demand to increase your sales, to promoting ways in which your company operates ethically. With a potential initial cost outlay (that might actually end up saving you money in the long run), think of it as a quality investment from your marketing budget. Eco-friendly and socially responsible companies are frequently seen to harness mobile platforms and successfully gain new and existing customer engagement. For example, the popularisation of certain ‘green’ apps, that bring additional customer convenience, also help your customers feel that they themselves are being ‘green’ as you have given them this easy option without any effort on their part. Making a customer feel good when interacting with you is the equivalent of your friends liking your new Facebook profile picture. It’s not only a sign of approval, it’s a sign of an interest in you, and a willingness to return and invest again into what you are selling.
Social media platforms are enabling increased awareness and faster spreading of trends, resulting both in and from strong followings of people and causes. These two factors loop: cause and effect. They’re the reason crowd-funding campaigns (e.g. Kickstarter) are so successful; people supporting people to reach common goals and give back to the community.
With Consumers becoming more aware of their own environmental footprints and socially responsible purchasing decisions, along with additional influence from the ‘go green’ trendiness currently all over social media platforms and how they themselves want to be seen to their own followers, the ‘sustainably sourced’ option is frequently reported to outweigh price when it comes to customers’ daily purchasing decisions. Gucci’s handbags now come with a passport detailing the life of the cow that was used to make it, and highlight their lack of contribution to deforestation. In addition, locally sourced products have sparked a snowballing trend of ‘buy local, shop local’, with signs going up across our city, everywhere from coffee shops to construction suppliers to hair salons – all declaring their most ‘ethically sourced’ alternative options compared to their competitors. Clearly, you can’t give your customers a reason not to choose you, and therefore you have to be in on this action.
As our planet’s population continues to grow and we take over more and more empty space, some would say we are destroying the natural balance of things, and we need to take action – right now – to protect and restore for future generations. Simply recycling our garbage just won’t cut it anymore. The eco movement perspective is gaining momentum from the West Coast to our sunny Rocky Mountains – particularly rapidly of late. This means it’s increasingly important for you to consider where you want your company to stand on this – and ahead of your competitors. You can no longer simply rely on selling your products quickly, and you might like to build relationships with your customers to secure your ROI. Perhaps you’d like for them to tell their friends about you by the ever-powerful word of mouth, building loyalty and solidifying your sales. By challenging your existing practices to refocus the sourcing of your products and services sustainably enabling honest transparency and a clear conscience, these things can more easily fall into place.
‘Green Marketing’ is a trending holistic marketing term being bandied about, used to describe a company’s own unique methods of addressing global warming through their environmental impact, be that something as simple as printing labels on recycled paper, or turning off lights on the weekends to save wasted energy. It’s becoming essential to switch from simply addressing supply and demand to increase your sales, to promoting ways in which your company operates ethically. With a potential initial cost outlay (that might actually end up saving you money in the long run), think of it as a quality investment from your marketing budget. Eco-friendly and socially responsible companies are frequently seen to harness mobile platforms and successfully gain new and existing customer engagement. For example, the popularisation of certain ‘green’ apps, that bring additional customer convenience, also help your customers feel that they themselves are being ‘green’ as you have given them this easy option without any effort on their part. Making a customer feel good when interacting with you is the equivalent of your friends liking your new Facebook profile picture. It’s not only a sign of approval, it’s a sign of an interest in you, and a willingness to return and invest again into what you are selling.
Social media platforms are enabling increased awareness and faster spreading of trends, resulting both in and from strong followings of people and causes. These two factors loop: cause and effect. They’re the reason crowd-funding campaigns (e.g. Kickstarter) are so successful; people supporting people to reach common goals and give back to the community.
With Consumers becoming more aware of their own environmental footprints and socially responsible purchasing decisions, along with additional influence from the ‘go green’ trendiness currently all over social media platforms and how they themselves want to be seen to their own followers, the ‘sustainably sourced’ option is frequently reported to outweigh price when it comes to customers’ daily purchasing decisions. Gucci’s handbags now come with a passport detailing the life of the cow that was used to make it, and highlight their lack of contribution to deforestation. In addition, locally sourced products have sparked a snowballing trend of ‘buy local, shop local’, with signs going up across our city, everywhere from coffee shops to construction suppliers to hair salons – all declaring their most ‘ethically sourced’ alternative options compared to their competitors. Clearly, you can’t give your customers a reason not to choose you, and therefore you have to be in on this action.