The Access Point

Look At Your Ripple, Not Your Splash

I was lucky to attend the sold out Sustainable Brands Conference recently in Monterey, California. The conference was a mixture of insightful research, rich case studies and most importantly – inspiration. The “aha moment” for me came after listening to experts such as KEEN Footwear, green marketing guru Jacquelyn A. Ottman, and 7th Generation President Jeffrey Hollender and realizing that despite the progress of this wonderful movement, most of today’s green brands are making an impact at the front end, but that they need to focus on their entire use cycle – from raw ingredients to supply chain to take back policies. Underscoring this was conflicting research data – at one end of the spectrum is a wealth of research proving out that consumer awareness of the “end-game” is on the increase, yet equally substantial data bearing out that most consumers are still primarily focused on “me” vs. what’s “around me.” 

My role as a communications counselor was reinforced as almost every speaker believed that brands that embraced the sustainability platform have seen positive benefits from not only customers and the media, but also from their shareholders, employees, and partners. The great quote was for brands to “look at your ripple, not your splash.”

Some research highlights:

1. Among consumers, there is a shift from awareness to action. Top-searched environmental term in 2006? “Climate change.” Top-searched in 2007? “Recycling.”
2. Many companies, such as KEEN Footwear, are thinking through the entire lifecycle of their products already, and communicating that to their customers.
3. BBMG a partner agency as we both work with LUNA Bar shared really fascinating information from their in-depth “The Conscious Consumer Report” which combines field research with a national survey of values driven consumers. The 5 values of this consumer and the prism through which they view the world is a must-read for marketers. You can download the report and watch a DVD from the BBMG web site. The good news is that more people are taking some type of green action, whether that involves buying more energy efficient light bulbs or shopping for a hybrid, but they are balancing their ideals with convenience and price decisions. People often equate ‘green’ with some kind of tradeoff or deprivation and want `green’ to be easy, fast and convenient.

Some case study highlights:
Numerous companies shared their stories to conference attendees in a very transparent fashion – openly discussing challenges, friction within their organizations and what they learned. It was refreshing vs. the typical sanitized, chest-beating case study one often hears at conference settings. Of note:

• Two years ago, Yahoo Autos launched an online poll asking whether consumers were considering purchasing an alternative fuel vehicle in the next year. A stunning 60% said yes, and the smart folks at Yahoo spotted a major opportunity to serve a consumer need. Enter the Yahoo Autos Green Center. Last year, the company launched Yahoo Green – a new content channel focusing on “actionable, practical tips for conscious consumers.”
• Bill Morrissey, VP of environmental sustainability at Clorox, shared research and three case studies around Clorox’s approach in three different businesses. Clorox’s research found four key drivers for consumers – in rank order:
  • Personal protection – What’s going in me/on me/around me (and my family)?
  • Cost – I save $$ by reusing/reducing consumption.
  • Status – I let others know that I care about the environment.
  • Altruism – I do it because it’s the right thing to do.

• Bill shared what Clorox has learned and tried across three brands:
  • “In Me” – Brita Water Filters: Clorox created a “Drink Responsibly” campaign promoting Brita filters as a sustainable alternative to plastic water bottles; the brand saw double-digit growth when using this “green” message
  • “On Me” – Burt’s Bees Natural Personal Care Products. Clorox acquired this brand, and is trying not to screw up the formula.
  • “Around Me” – GreenWorks Natural Cleaning Products.

• UPS was brought up for the work the company has done in mobilizing its workforce around environmental sustainability. UPS trucks and vans delivering packages no longer make left-hand turns, even if it takes a little longer to get there. Left-hand turns mean sitting at red lights far more often, which means idling, which means wasting gas. By only taking right-hand turns, UPS is cutting their gas consumption (and gas budget) significantly - 3 million gallons of fuel as of December 2007.
• Jeffrey Hollender, President of 7th Generation gave a “stand-up-on-your-chair-and-cheer” inspirational talk on engaging your workforce to build a sustainable brand. The work that goes into creating and improving their culture was really impressive…and so are their business results growing its business 45%, and 65% over the past two years. Seventh Generation has information on its website detailing everything that’s wrong with its products. Their goal is to “create a business in which all our products are not just sustainable but restorative,” he said. Hollender is pushing the company to aim for “good,” not “less bad.” Hollender’s blog, Inspired Protagonist, is a fantastic resource for any communications professional in this sector. I was really moved by a program they started called WAGES, which enables low-income Latina women, primarily in the housecleaning trade, to create environmentally friendly housecleaning cooperatives so they can own their own businesses and use eco-friendly methods and products that are not only better for them personally, but their clients and the environment as well.

I returned back to San Francisco even more inspired to promote the sustainability efforts of Access and our clients.

-- Jennifer Fellner

Green Communications Should Equal Hope Not Hype

We’re continuously bombarded by the new eco-consciousness which defines everything we experience, from cars to vacation destinations to the media coverage de jour. Not a week goes by where there isn’t a cover story of some sort extolling the promises and challenges of the new green revolution. Whether it is HBO’s documentary “Too Hot Not to Handle” with the dire sub title “Global Warming is the Most Urgent Threat Facing Humanity Today,”  or Good Magazine addressing the threat of corporate green-washing, it’s obvious that green is the new black.

This became even more obvious when I recently attended the Oceana 2007 Partners Award gala. (Oceana is the largest international environmental advocacy group dedicated to protecting and restoring the world's oceans and sea life). Dozens of paparazzi were madly shooting photographs of the celebrities, who ranged from Oceana co-founder and board member Ted Danson, and other entertainment celebs including Brooke Shields, Jeff Goldblum,to high visibility politicos California Attorney General Jerry Brown and of course Nobel Peace Prize recipient Vice President Al Gore.

I was there with Access account supervisor Heather Silverberg on behalf of our client Piaggio/Vespa. We’re helping Piaggio educate consumers on how motorized scooters, like Vespa, can quickly reduce oil consumption, carbon dioxide emissions and traffic congestion

As I watched the parade of guests arrive in their gas guzzling limos (I traveled there in a bio-diesel Mercedes that ran on corn oil and gets 70 mpg), it was easy to become a little cynical about what green hype and its associated communications machine had created.

However, when Oceana CEO Andrew Sharpless addressed the crowd, he reminded us in stark terms of the crisis we face – that 90% of the “big fish” are already extinct from over-fishing; that fishing operations discard 16 billion pounds of unwanted fish every year; and since the industrial revolution, our oceans have absorbed 150 billion tons of carbon dioxide, threatening the existence of coral reefs everywhere – it was clear that even if this green cry for help seems to be taking over the media, the scale of this crisis warrants the millions of pages of paper used to tell this story in the media.

It’s also evident that successful communications is critical to our hopes that we may turn this problem around before the polar ice cap melts (which Gore predicts will occur in only six years). Whether it’s Hollywood blockbusters that win Oscars, a new generation of green blogs, or mainstream media embracing the latest in eco-journalism, it’s clear that the power of communications is perhaps Mother Nature’s greatest hope.      

But there is a yin and yang to all of this. On one hand, mass communications has successfully elevated these issues in our collective consciousness, and transformed that into a call to action. But we’re almost causing our own form of pollution — content pollution. If we’re not selective about the messages we create and help disseminate, we will go into intellectual and emotion sensory overload, and audiences will tune out and shut down.

PRWeek’s Oct. 1 issue addressed the greening of PR, as did CNN, and touched on the challenges that await as companies and their communicators try to appear greener than thou. We want to avoid Hype 2.0, and a repeat of the dot com era when messages were more about style than substance. Our industry must be selective about the claims our clients make, who the green leaders are, and what stories we are looking to tell. Because in order to make a change, we need to make sure we know the difference between what is marketing and what is real.

Authenticity is key, as journalists are already recoiling from corporate green-washing. Reporters, and their readers, want to know what companies are doing that’s a genuine long-term commitment, not just wrapping themselves in green. The media and public are already jaded with corporate insincerity; we don’t need to throw another log on that fire. If we are to retain our value as counselors, we need to make sure our clients look beyond quick media hits, and help them make bold commitments that will win hearts and minds for the long term.