This video is hilarious!
Monday, January 12, 2009
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Green Branding
Yet as evidenced by the presence of major corporations on CSR Newswire, companies are making serious efforts to change their ways and brand themselves “green”. And part of those efforts is communicating their responsible practices so consumers can make responsible decisions.
But what do you do once the ball is rolling? How do you talk to the outside world? How can a public corporation credibly convey its CSR practices to audiences suspicious of their sincerity? It's a bit like a poker game -- the more players know you have a reason to bluff, the less likely they are to believe you.
To corporate sustainability officers everywhere -- here is some counsel on how to talk your walk with the outside world.
Six Steps for Genuine Corporate Sustainability Communication
1. Keep control of your communications. Sometimes easier said than done, I know. Between lawyers, PR folks and CEOs, there can be a lot of peeps wanting to input on the company's sustainability message - and sometimes that input can be necessary and useful. But all too often the content related to environmental or social responsibility gets drafted by PR folks, and not always the most experienced PR folk at that. Ultimately the responsibility for sustainability-oriented communications should rest with those most intimately involved with sustainability issues, although collaborating with PR, branding and marketing teams can certainly add extra flair if approached with care.
2. Humility and sustainability go hand-in-hand. Most companies are used to communicating their core business -- which means it's necessary to position your product as superior. Consequently, the comfort zone for corporate communications is to create work with gorgeous images, uplifting music, and beautifully crafted copy about how wonderfully you do what you do. While this may help sell cars, it creates doubt when selling sustainability, which is a relatively new issue - and a thorny one.
To the extent you discuss your efforts with appropriate humility, you will help customers identify with you, and you will incur trust, rather than suspicion. Instead of communicating against the grain (telling a suspicious audience how great you are), it's much more effective to tell people you're trying hard to find ways to tackle giant problems and contribute to solutions. In executional terms, this means more down-to-earth, candid messaging and less manipulative production techniques.
3. Transparency enhances credibility.When was the last time you saw an ad from Exxon, Chevron, or BP actually address their core product – gasoline? Instead, they're all talking about renewable energy and climate change. By being transparent about the limitations and weaknesses of your practices, not only do you demonstrate that your efforts are earnest — you give people evidence. This positively predisposes people toward your brand, and positions you against your less-than-transparent competition.
4. Discuss how you got to where you are. As mentioned above, most transnational corporations were founded in an era when pollution, scarcity, and climate change were non-issues. By acknowledging this fact, it neutralizes negative blowback from your pre-sustainability days. For example, if you're Coca Cola, don't pretend that water conservation issues have always been a major focus of your company. Explain that you began in a world where pollution and water limitations weren't on the radar. This way, you alleviate suspicions rather than raise them. Think about it in human terms. When someone tells you honestly how they got to where they are, you are more likely to identify with their story.
5. "Unwrap" the big words. Terms like "sustainability", "environment", and "minimize" have little resonance. They sound corporate. And the more corporate you sound, the less genuine you sound. Yet these are ultimately human issues that we all share. It's an opportunity to demonstrate the humanity and genuine concern that is behind corporate social responsibility.
6. Talk human and be relevant to your business. The environment is tangible -- it's air, water, woods, and our future. Yet again and again, it seems as though a company's CSR text is written by lawyers who want to ensure that as little as possible is said.
But what do you do once the ball is rolling? How do you talk to the outside world? How can a public corporation credibly convey its CSR practices to audiences suspicious of their sincerity? It's a bit like a poker game -- the more players know you have a reason to bluff, the less likely they are to believe you.
To corporate sustainability officers everywhere -- here is some counsel on how to talk your walk with the outside world.
Six Steps for Genuine Corporate Sustainability Communication
1. Keep control of your communications. Sometimes easier said than done, I know. Between lawyers, PR folks and CEOs, there can be a lot of peeps wanting to input on the company's sustainability message - and sometimes that input can be necessary and useful. But all too often the content related to environmental or social responsibility gets drafted by PR folks, and not always the most experienced PR folk at that. Ultimately the responsibility for sustainability-oriented communications should rest with those most intimately involved with sustainability issues, although collaborating with PR, branding and marketing teams can certainly add extra flair if approached with care.
2. Humility and sustainability go hand-in-hand. Most companies are used to communicating their core business -- which means it's necessary to position your product as superior. Consequently, the comfort zone for corporate communications is to create work with gorgeous images, uplifting music, and beautifully crafted copy about how wonderfully you do what you do. While this may help sell cars, it creates doubt when selling sustainability, which is a relatively new issue - and a thorny one.
To the extent you discuss your efforts with appropriate humility, you will help customers identify with you, and you will incur trust, rather than suspicion. Instead of communicating against the grain (telling a suspicious audience how great you are), it's much more effective to tell people you're trying hard to find ways to tackle giant problems and contribute to solutions. In executional terms, this means more down-to-earth, candid messaging and less manipulative production techniques.
3. Transparency enhances credibility.When was the last time you saw an ad from Exxon, Chevron, or BP actually address their core product – gasoline? Instead, they're all talking about renewable energy and climate change. By being transparent about the limitations and weaknesses of your practices, not only do you demonstrate that your efforts are earnest — you give people evidence. This positively predisposes people toward your brand, and positions you against your less-than-transparent competition.
4. Discuss how you got to where you are. As mentioned above, most transnational corporations were founded in an era when pollution, scarcity, and climate change were non-issues. By acknowledging this fact, it neutralizes negative blowback from your pre-sustainability days. For example, if you're Coca Cola, don't pretend that water conservation issues have always been a major focus of your company. Explain that you began in a world where pollution and water limitations weren't on the radar. This way, you alleviate suspicions rather than raise them. Think about it in human terms. When someone tells you honestly how they got to where they are, you are more likely to identify with their story.
5. "Unwrap" the big words. Terms like "sustainability", "environment", and "minimize" have little resonance. They sound corporate. And the more corporate you sound, the less genuine you sound. Yet these are ultimately human issues that we all share. It's an opportunity to demonstrate the humanity and genuine concern that is behind corporate social responsibility.
6. Talk human and be relevant to your business. The environment is tangible -- it's air, water, woods, and our future. Yet again and again, it seems as though a company's CSR text is written by lawyers who want to ensure that as little as possible is said.
Wednesday, December 10, 2008
"...the best prize that life offers
is the chance to work hard at work worth doing."
- Theodore Roosevelt, 26th US President, b.1858-d.1919
I just saw this quote on an ecocompany's site and wanted to remind myself (and others perhaps that read it here) that having meaningful work is just the fuel that I need to push through our current times. This last year has offered many challenges for me and my family and in return I've learned some awefully hard lessons. Now, I can just say that I'm so grateful for my basics: my work, home and relationships. Perhaps through all of the turmoil that our country still faces other's will also experience a birth of a renewed humbleness and gratefulness for what we still have.
is the chance to work hard at work worth doing."
- Theodore Roosevelt, 26th US President, b.1858-d.1919
I just saw this quote on an ecocompany's site and wanted to remind myself (and others perhaps that read it here) that having meaningful work is just the fuel that I need to push through our current times. This last year has offered many challenges for me and my family and in return I've learned some awefully hard lessons. Now, I can just say that I'm so grateful for my basics: my work, home and relationships. Perhaps through all of the turmoil that our country still faces other's will also experience a birth of a renewed humbleness and gratefulness for what we still have.
Monday, December 1, 2008
TV Station Goes Green
WPEC-TV “goes green” with world’s first all-LED broadcast studio WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. – Nov. 20, 2008 – In a challenging economy, there has never been a better time to adopt energy-efficient, cost-saving solutions. WPEC-TV, Freedom’s CBS television affiliate in West Palm Beach, did so in "illuminating" fashion by becoming the first station the world to replace all its tungsten lighting fixtures with LED (Light Emitting Diode) fixtures. The new flat-panel lighting saves WPEC $5,000 a month in electricity costs and earned the station a prominent industry award. Who is next? In this cautious environment, who are the companies that have the guts to invest in cleaner, greener ways? Please comment.
Wednesday, November 26, 2008
Those antiAdvertising May Face Harder Times
To state a generality, those companies who not only survived but did well and grew during the Great Depression are those who continued to act as though there was nothing wrong and that the public had money to spend. In other words, they advertised.
These are industries who didn't wait for public demand for their products to rise, they created that demand even during the most difficult of times. Because so many companies cut spending during that era, advertising budgets were largely eliminated in many industries. Not only did spending decline, these companies actually dropped out of public sight because of shortsighted decisions made about not spending money and keeping a high profile.
Advertising cutbacks caused many customers to feel abandoned and associated the effected brands with a lack of staying power. This not only drove customers to more aggressive competitors but caused a certain amount of financial mistrust when it came to making additional investments in the no longer visable companies.
Both anecdotal and emperical evidence support the case that advertising was the main factor in the growth or downfall of companies during those years. To put it bluntly, the companies which demonstrated the most growth and which rang up the most sales were those which advertised heavily. The Great Depression offers classic examples of the power of brand advertising even during times of economic crisis. Are you planning to spend the same amount of $ in advertising your product and/or services in 2009?
These are industries who didn't wait for public demand for their products to rise, they created that demand even during the most difficult of times. Because so many companies cut spending during that era, advertising budgets were largely eliminated in many industries. Not only did spending decline, these companies actually dropped out of public sight because of shortsighted decisions made about not spending money and keeping a high profile.
Advertising cutbacks caused many customers to feel abandoned and associated the effected brands with a lack of staying power. This not only drove customers to more aggressive competitors but caused a certain amount of financial mistrust when it came to making additional investments in the no longer visable companies.
Both anecdotal and emperical evidence support the case that advertising was the main factor in the growth or downfall of companies during those years. To put it bluntly, the companies which demonstrated the most growth and which rang up the most sales were those which advertised heavily. The Great Depression offers classic examples of the power of brand advertising even during times of economic crisis. Are you planning to spend the same amount of $ in advertising your product and/or services in 2009?
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