Green Marketing: The What, Why, and How
Cover Art by Eman Azrak
A shift towards environmental sustainability is present in today’s business landscape. It is something that impacts every single one of us. This shift in precedent created the term “green marketing”. It is a subset of marketing with a company wide focus on environmental responsibility and can be defined in three distinct ways according to the American Marketing Association:
Marketing of environmentally safe products
Development and marketing of products created to either reduce negative environmental impacts or to improve the quality of our planet
Organizational wide shift to produce, promote, ship, and package products in a more ecologically friendly way
In many ways sustainability is a growing industry, and yet more organizations are emphasizing the importance of making a difference in the environment. Patagonia is one of many companies that is utilizing green marketing. They have implemented a program called common threads recycling which encourages and assists customers to get more out of the products they have purchased, by re-using the material to make new clothes. Patagonia has also claimed:
In 2025 they will not need or use virgin petroleum fiber
The packaging of their products will be 100% environmentally friendly by being biodegradable, renewable, reusable or recyclable
In 2030 their company will be net-zero in carbon emissions
With these claims, Patagonia’s future green marketing strategy will be an example of how to be sustainable, yet there are other companies with brands solely revolving around environmental impacts.
Nothing New is a company that centers around sustainability. Their shoes are made from 100% post consumer recycled plastic and other materials. 5.6 water bottles are used to create just one pair of shoes. This company takes green marketing to the next level, and Nothing New doesn’t stop there. They calculate the carbon emissions from the shoe’s production lifecycle for the purpose of removing more carbon emissions than they create through investing in carbon offsets. Nothing New also provides their virtuous cycle program which gives customers $20 towards a new purchase of shoes if they send back an old pair so that they don’t end up in a landfill. This company is setting the stage for an even more aggressive green marketing campaign.
Whether it is a product or entire company, adding sustainability is not impossible. It can be done through small efforts within operations or to hit a certain carbon emissions goal. Within a society that cares more about the environment than ever, your company might benefit from making the switch, but is there definitive proof?
According to an article from the Arabian Journal of Business and Management Review, it states that the implementation of green initiatives and strategies results in larger financial gains, market share, higher levels of employee commitment, increased firm performance, and enhanced capabilities. Environmental sustainability commitments increase overall firm valuations through higher customer satisfaction. Although green efforts have high introductory costs, firms tend to recover the initial financial expense over time.
Even if your company is profitable, adding efforts to sustainability will become beneficial through larger financial margins, better customer contentment, and superior employee commitment. Green marketing is an asset, so if your company wants to be competitive in this ever changing world of business start applying environmental sustainable practices today.
References
15 green marketing examples to inspire you in 2022. Givz. (n.d.). Retrieved December 7, 2022, from https://www.givz.com/blog/green-marketing-examples
Choudhary, A., & Gokarn, S. (2013, July). Green Marketing: A means for sustainable development. Retrieved December 7, 2022, from https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Samir-Gokarn/publication/328332065_Green_Marketing_A_means_for_sustainable_development/links/5d59b014299bf151badea9f8/Green-Marketing-A-means-for-sustainable-development.pdf
Eneizan, B. M., Wahab, K. A., M.S, Z., & Obaid, T. F. (2016, July). Effects of Green Marketing Strategy on the Financial and Non-Financial Performance of Firms: A Conceptual Paper. Arabian Journal of Business and Management Review.
Nothing new® . Nothing New. (n.d.). Retrieved December 7, 2022, from https://nothingnew.com/
