Political leaders often have a problem. It’s that they can put in well-researched, considered policies into practice, but if they don’t communicate that (as well as their reasoning for the whole affair) to their voters, odds are they won’t get the credit for it, and open up criticisms from the opposition who can twist the narrative.
The same can be said for business. You can do your best to increase the value of your output, to focus on initiatives that mean something to you and your team, and even invest and put your money where your mouth is regarding such efforts.
We often see this with eco-friendly changes. If your sustainability initiatives simply never achieve the kind of attention you believe they should, that’s a major issue.
In this post, then, we’ll discuss eight steps towards communicating your approach towards producing, servicing and sustaining an eco-friendly output, but most importantly, learn how to communicate those measures:
Outline The Issue With Simple Statistics
You might think everyone understands climate change by now, but the reality is that many customers still need context before they can appreciate what your business is actually doing about it. That’s why simple, relatable statistics work much better than complex scientific explanations even if what you’re doing is technical, because that can lose people halfway through.
It’s wise to share numbers that connect directly to your industry and your specific efforts. If you’ve reduced energy consumption by 30% over two years, that’s meaningful and show how. If you’ve eliminated 500 tons of waste annually, people can visualize that impact. If you need to add comparison measures, that can help as well.
Statistics become even more powerful when you compare them to everyday references your audience already understands, so for instance, the 500 tons of waste elimination might equal removing 200 cars from the road for a year, or it could be equivalent to the annual waste of 1,000 households. These comparisons help people grasp the scale of what you’ve done and the emotive impact will be very much there as well.
Focus Where Your Industry Is Most Related
Every industry has its own environmental requirements and specifics (of course), so trying to address everything at once just limits your message. A manufacturing company talking about water conservation makes immediate sense, while a tech startup might focus on energy efficiency, instead of talking outside of their own lane, so to speak.
Your audience expects you to try and challenge the environmental issues most relevant to what you actually do, because that’s what they relate you to. So, restaurant chains discussing food waste reduction works better because everyone knows the industry struggles with this issue. Construction companies showcasing sustainable building materials feel authentic because the connection is obvious and it looks like you’re doing that at scale.
It’s fair to say that kind of focused approach also makes your efforts more credible. It also means you don’t look like you’re trying to jump on every environmental bandwagon, you’re more into thoughtful consideration of where your business can make the most meaningful effect. It also shows you understand your role in the wider environmental picture.
Curate Sustainability Reports
Annual sustainability reports might sound like something no one will read, but you’d be surprised, and they can really be great communication tools when done right. Maybe not all your customers will read it, but what about a business thinking about offering a B2b commercial partnership with you? If they already feel accommodated by that report, you’ve justified the effort. In some respects, you’ve made an environmental resume, showing some actual progress over time and why that mattered to you. It’s a decent approach to have taken as opposed to isolated changes that don’t build up to a real picture..
Just remember to keep these reports accessible to your usual customers, not just investors or regulatory bodies. You could create a simplified version for public use that shows your main achievements without drowning readers in technical jargon or endless charts.
The real purpose to create these is for transparency and accountability. If you continually market yourself as the environmental option, it’s essential to show exactly how. For instance, if you’ve completely switched to solar for business to power parts of your processes, show exactly how that happened and why. Your customers will appreciate it.
Showcase Specific Initiatives & Their Impact
General statements about caring for the environment don’t really cut it anymore because honestly, everyone claims to care these days and customers have heard it all before. What actually works is talking about specific things you’ve done with real numbers attached, because that’s something people can actually believe and verify, obviously.
Case studies tend to work pretty well here because they show your environmental practices specifically and in action rather than just as some nice idea you had once. If you can describe how a particular thing you did actually played out, what problems came up along the way, and what you achieved in the end, that creates something people can follow and remember. It’s much better than vague promises about being green or just assuming no one will look into your marketing spiel.
Pepper Eco-Friendly Promotion Into Your Content Schedule
Environmental messaging probably shouldn’t just exist on its own, separate from everything else you’re doing marketing wise. Instead of only talking about sustainability on Earth Day or whenever there’s some environmental news story, you could work these themes into your usual outreach in ways that feel natural and authentic to who you are.
Some examples might include social media posts which show employees getting involved in environmental initiatives, and behind the scenes content could present sustainable practices actually happening, or blog posts could explore what’s happening environmentally in your industry while showing how your company fits into positive change that’s already occurring.
This kind of approach means your environmental efforts don’t feel like an afterthought or some separate campaign you’re running almost like a chore you do because it’s trendy.
Hire A Sustainability Consultant
Now, sometimes the most honest thing you can do is admit that environmental expertise isn’t really your thing and bring in someone who actually knows what they’re talking about in this space. A sustainability consultant can help you spot opportunities you might have missed and make sure your efforts actually are targeted rather than just looking good for PR purposes.
These people also understand how to talk about environmental initiatives effectively because they’ve seen what works across different industries and with different kinds of customers. They can help you avoid common mistakes too, like getting accused of greenwashing or focusing on practices that don’t really matter to your particular customer base, which happens more than you’d think.
Brand Yourself In Line With Your Efforts
Your environmental initiatives should probably influence how you present your brand visually and in terms of what you say, but this needs to feel genuine rather than like you’re just trying to look green. Companies that suddenly start using green color schemes without actually changing anything substantial often face criticism from their customers, who can tell something’s not quite right.
Think about how your environmental values might naturally influence your packaging choices, how your office looks, your marketing materials, or even the language you use to describe what you do. These things should reflect what you actually care about, rather than trying to hastily develop some environmental image that isn’t really there just to compete more. If you can do that, customers will generally find your output more appealing, and for obvious, specific reasons.
With this advice, we hope you can more easily communicate your sustainability initiative with care and attention going forward, and hopefully make good on all those practices you’ve put in place.
The post 7 Steps Towards Successfully Communicating Your Sustainability Initiatves appeared first on The Next Hint.