March 13th, 2007

Will "Green Hot" Replace "Red Hot"?

The evidence that greening business is now a sizzling hot trend just keeps coming at head-spinning speed. There was a BusinessWeek.com article last week on marketing a green product; an email today from the DMA on its upcoming seminar on profiting from being environmentally friendly; and I also got a call today from a publisher that puts out a paper newsletter for Inc. Magazine and Verizon asking about the benefits of green marketing for small businesses.

The BusinessWeek.com article on marketing a green product

The BusinessWeek.com article cited a study showing what many in the green space already know — namely that while people say that environmentalism impacts their product choices, a variety of factors can impede green purchasing behavior, ranging from immediate green product availability to price to convenience to perceived product effectiveness. These factors make targeting the elusive ‘green consumer’ potentially challenging, especially for the not-yet initiated.

Educating the consumer is a great opportunity, according to one of the study’s authors. The focus should remain on the benefits of the product or service, as always. There are many green products that have gone mainstream due to their pratical consumer benefits, including energy-saving (and therefore money-saving) refrigerators, washers and other home appliances, and organic products (health benefits), for example.

My advice to the small business newsletter publisher

Just as I told the newsletter publisher that called me, I would add (to the advice in the BusinessWeek.com article) that the marketer must be sincere in their message as well as their efforts to avoid being considered a green washer – a company that’s just posing as green to get a marketing advantage. There must be substance behind their efforts, authenticity, and preferably some subtlety to their message. A printer, for example, that touts herself as green better be offering print jobs on 100% recycled paper with non-toxic or vegetable- or water-based inks.

Et tu DMA?

Is DMA an example of a green washer?! Here’s an organization that chews through god knows how many trees everyday that is now putting on a seminar about “How to ‘Go Green’ Effectively!” (I’m actually a member and am hoping to affect some change some day).

The DMA’s email they sent about this states:

Business conditions are changing with lightening speed. Consumers have a choice now and they pick the most socially and environmentally responsible companies. It is no longer a luxury or competitive advantage–it is a necessity to have and promote a comprehensive environmental strategy.

Do you fear that being environmentally friendly will only add to your expenses and not show any hope of a financial return? In truth, adhering to the ever increasing, socially conscious standards of your costumer base will garner brand loyalty and add to your bottom line for years to come.

I hope many of the DMA staff attend this seminar to learn “how-to advice for making economic and eco-friendly decisions throughout the direct marketing process,” including design, printing and paper procurement. If the DMA is using green practices in it’s own direct marketing campaigns, I haven’t seen any evidence of it in the almost daily mail pieces I receive from them.