An Essential Guide to Sustainable Marketing (Part 1)

To call sustainability a marketing ‘buzzword’ would be to do the whole concept an injustice. Businesses in record numbers pledged to improve their eco-friendliness and to champion sustainability in their respective niches. Some are purely for marketing and PR purposes, but in most cases, they are for the genuine desire to put something back.

Even so, sustainable marketing can be a fantastic way to promote your business's eco-consciousness and build positive PR—if you know how to do it correctly.

Now more than ever, a brand or business's full genetic makeup determines whether and to what extent it stands out in its field. SMEs are gradually gaining an edge over their big business counterparts, having committed themselves from the ground up to the causes their target audiences are most concerned with.

While a significant brand may wax lyrical about its size, profitability, market dominance and list of industry accolades, an SME could base its identity on supporting local charities and initiatives. Increasingly, in today’s more conscientious consumer, the latter is gravitating towards the.

What is Sustainable Marketing?

The term' sustainable marketing’ refers to promoting socially and environmentally responsible products, services, and company values. Most people will have, at some point, spent more to buy something that was 100% recycled or locally sourced – both of which are examples of sustainable marketing in practice.

Applied carefully, sustainable marketing can allow almost any brand or business to present itself in a more positive and appealing light. It is a strategy that goes far beyond the quality, functionality, uniqueness, or even value for money of the products/services. It brings an essential ‘feelgood’ factor into the purchase process, whether the customer feels they are doing something positive by spending their money.

Rather than simply selling the properties and benefits of whatever you are selling, you focus more on the broad implications of the purchase and how you, as a business, are supporting the causes your customers are concerned with.

Examples of Sustainable Marketing in Practice

Sustainable marketing can be approached in various ways, and in all instances, it is particularly impactful when showcased in the right way on social media. However, the vast majority of sustainable marketing activities fall within one of the three broad categories below:

Donating profits to sustainable causes

With this approach, the business does not necessarily have to do anything directly sustainable. Instead, it donates a fixed percentage of its profits or revenues to a sustainable cause, aligning itself with the cause's values. Simply channelling 1% of earnings to a charity or cause your target audience can relate to can build positive PR.

Sourcing sustainable materials and packaging

We’re fast approaching a time when the average consumer is unwilling to accept packaging (and materials in general) that are not predominantly recycled or comprehensively recyclable. Comparatively, few consumers are happy buying products comprised of or packaged in materials destined for landfills.

Collaborations with sustainable causes

This goes a step further than simply donating profits to sustainable causes. SMEs can collaborate with charities and sustainable causes in a broad range of ways—promoting their activities and events, taking part in their latest initiatives, handing them free products and services as prizes, holding fundraisers, and so on. It is all indicative of an SME that is committed to the cause in question.

Stay tuned for the second half of our two-part sustainable marketing guide, which is coming soon...