Sustainability is no longer a buzzword. More and more consumers are asking brands to do better and are interested in reducing their impact on the people and the planet. A 2019 survey by Hotwire even found that “47% of internet users worldwide had ditched products and services from a brand that violated their personal values”. Which is huge.
And the 2020 COVID crisis only accelerated the sustainability movement: more than ever, people want to know where their products come from, how they’re made, in which conditions, and to support their local communities.
And the good news is that brands are starting to jump on the sustainability bandwagon! Many companies are now more transparent and making sure they have a positive impact on our planet.
But as a sustainable and ethical brand, how can you sustainably communicate all your wonderful eco-conscious initiatives to your audience? And how do you make sure your marketing strategies are aligned with your actions? Cue sustainable digital marketing!
In this post, I’m spilling the beans (actually no, because #nowaste) on what sustainable and ethical digital marketing is, why you need it and how to do it.
What is sustainable digital marketing?
Let’s start with the basics: on the one hand, we have “sustainability” which the UN defined in 1987 as:
“development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs”.
On the other hand, we have digital marketing, which Hubspot defines as:
“Digital marketing is defined by the use of numerous digital tactics and channels to connect with customers where they spend much of their time: online.”
This encompasses all the way businesses attract, convert and retain customers via online tools and techniques.
Put together we could define sustainable digital marketing as all the ways to sustainably and ethically promote an eco-conscious business online. This means promoting a brand’s sustainable and ethical products or services and eco-friendly practices in a way that is profitable for both the company, our planet and its people, in the long run.
Sustainable digital marketing is not greenwashing. While greenwashing is when a company gives a false impression that its products are more ethical and sustainable than they really are, sustainable digital marketing requires brands to address critical environmental and labour issues FIRST, before promoting them.
Having a sustainable digital marketing strategy means thinking about how you can grow a community and create revenue online, with ethics and morals. It’s a fine balance you have to find, but when you do find it, that when the magic happens.
Why you should have a sustainable digital marketing strategy
Sustainable digital marketing sounds great, right? Here a few reasons why sustainable businesses should start using it!
Because it’s aligned with your values
As a sustainable and ethical business, you’re already doing your best to have a positive impact on the planet, so why would your marketing be any different? Promoting eco-friendly products by sending tons of emails with a high carbon footprint doesn’t make sense. Or talking about an item ethically made, but not being transparent, or being culturally insensitive, or being mean and pushy. Advocating for better practices is what you do, so your marketing (both online and offline) should also reflect that.
It helps you differentiate
As a sustainable brand you’re already able to differentiate from other businesses selling the same kinds of products. But what about other sustainable brands? Having a digital marketing strategy and doing things a little bit differently than the rest of your industry helps you differentiate from your competitors that might be using more traditional marketing techniques.
It boosts your reputation
As more and more sustainable brands enter the market, it’s important to make sure your reputation is at its best. Sustainable digital marketing ensures your communication and promotional activities are aligned with your practices and mission, so you can maintain a good reputation. It lets your clients know they can trust and rely on you.
It supports sales
Because it helps you: be aligned with your values, differentiate from competitors and maintain a good reputation, sustainable marketing can create and boost interest in your and your brand, which in turn leads to more sales. Win win!
How to shift to a sustainable digital marketing strategy
Sustainable digital marketing isn’t fundamentally different, the tools and strategies are the same but it requires a shift in how and why you communicate online and promote your activities. Here are a few things you should keep in mind when building an ethical digital marketing strategy.
Focus on your WHY
Your WHY, or your mission, should be at the core of everything you do, including your digital marketing strategy. Focusing on your WHY will allow you to be more focused, know where you’re going and how, prioritise strategies and channels and make everything fall into place. Your individual marketing strategies should have a WHY and help you achieve your bigger mission.
Know your values, and stick to them
Values aren’t just for individuals, they’re also for businesses. Values help us build relationships: your friends are your friends, or your partner is your partner because you share a similar set of values. Well, it’s the same for businesses and their customers. Remember the stat I shared at the beginning: “47% of internet users worldwide had ditched products and services from a brand that violated their personal values”? This is why you should know, follow and communicate your values! Know what you stand for, stick to it and communicate it to your tribe. Sustainable values could be kindness, compassion, honesty, transparency, citizenship … Whatever your values are, promote them so you can create a strong community of like-minded fans.
Be transparent
Transparency is the practice of openly sharing information about how, where and by whom a product was made. Being transparent means publishing all information about every actor involved in the production process, from start to finish, from the fields to the store shelves. And transparency is SO IMPORTANT for sustainable and ethical businesses! It’s the first step towards building a conscious brand. People should have the right to know where, how and by whom the items they purchase from you are made. Transparency also includes letting your customers know how their data is going to be handled, by whom and for how long, and giving them the opportunity to delete any information you hold about them.
Be authentic
More and more people are looking for authenticity in the brands they buy from! Authenticity is crucial: stay true to who you are, tell your story, inspire and educate others by being genuine and real. Don’t try to be someone or something you’re not. Be yourself in everything you do, in every strategy you implement.
Be kind
Kindness is SO underrated, yet it is so important! It means having the planet, the people, the animals, your customers, your stakeholders’ best interests at heart. It means doing your best to respect the Earth and its inhabitants when developing products and services, but also in your marketing: is your latest campaign making your audience feel good, or is it playing on their insecurities and pain points? Is your marketing inclusive and making everyone feel welcome? How about your customer service? Kindness and compassion are key to making sure your digital marketing is sustainable.
Be culturally sensitive and aware
Our societies are increasingly diverse and cultural sensitivity should not be an option, it should be one of your priorities. Cultural sensitivity means knowing, being aware and accepting others’ cultures and cultural identities. It means being tolerant and respecting and encouraging diversity, equity and including. Start by learning more about other cultures but also about your own culture, its beliefs and biases. It means letting go of ethnocentric beliefs.
Listen to your audience
As we said earlier, it’s important to focus on your why and how you’re helping your customers achieve their goals and dreams. In order to do that you should listen to your audience! Social media is an amazing tool to connect with your community, learn more about what they need help with but also what they think you could do better or differently. And as always, be kind when receiving feedback.
Do not cheat
This one is a no brainer: do not cheat, ever. It’s not ethical, and sustainable in the long run! Be honest, do not cut corners, do not lie, do not use black-hat marketing techniques: do not buy Instagram followers, do not greenwash, do not spam your audience, do not cheat on SEO ... Easy peasy. Yes, sometimes growth is slow and you want to move things along a bit more quickly, but cheating is not the way to go.
Reduce the impact of your digital marketing strategies
Last but not least, try to reduce the environmental impact of your digital marketing strategies. This includes choosing green hosting for your website, using refurbished equipment, managing your emails, sending few, light emails and transferring heavy files instead of including them as attachments, decluttering and organising your website, optimising your images and videos on your website or planting trees while browsing the Internet by using Ecosia!
And there you have it! Truly there are many ways to make your digital marketing ethical and sustainable – What else should digital strategies include these days?
