Sustainable communication can improve the way organizations relate to the environment and to their stakeholders. stakeholders. In turn, this strategy can help organizations increase brand loyalty, improve employee satisfaction, comply with regulations and increase profits.
- Increase brand loyalty
Organizations that engage honestly in sustainable communication can build brand loyalty with environmentally and socially conscious consumers. Brand loyalty is a commitment to a brand based on its perceived trustworthiness and values. If organizations can link their brand image to a broader environmental or social mission, such as fighting climate change or discrimination, they can increase customer retention rates.
Customers who demonstrate loyalty to brands make frequent purchases, even if competitors offer lower prices. Repeat business costs organizations less in advertising than acquiring new customers and can generate a significant share of revenues.
- Improving employee engagement
Just as consumers want to spend money with brands that share their values, professionals want to feel that the work they do has a positive effect. Honest sustainable communication requires organizations to improve their ESG practices, which can make employees more engaged in their work. Employees who value sustainability can feel fulfilled if they work for organizations that prioritize ESG.
Organizations can also implement social sustainability policies - the social aspect of ESG - to potentially improve the daily lives of their people. For example, an organization may implement a flexible paid time off policy to prioritize employees' work-life balance over short-term profit. This type of social sustainability policy can improve satisfaction and reduce turnover.
- Supporting regulatory compliance
To launch effective campaigns, business leaders must address the environmental and social effects of their organizations. For example, an organization can reduce its greenhouse gas emissions and voluntarily disclose its emission levels before engaging in sustainability reporting. These practices can help organizations comply with a growing number of ESG regulations.
For example, in January 2023, the EU finalized the corporate sustainability reporting directive, which expanded the number of organizations required to publicly disclose their ESG data.
Sustainable communication encourages organizations to improve their environmental and social business practices, which can help them comply with current - and potentially future - regulations.
- Increasing profits
In the past, many business leaders saw sustainability initiatives as obstacles to success, as they may require costly upfront investments. However, sustainable practices can increase organizations' profits. For example, a sustainable communication campaign can focus on reducing an organization's energy and water consumption. As organizations implement more energy-efficient technologies, appliances and processes, they can reduce operating costs.
Investors also use ESG ratings - which measure organizations' long-term exposure to environmental and social risks - to identify profitable investments. Organizations with high ESG ratings may receive more funding from investors than others, which can create opportunities for growth and lead to increased profits.
If organizations adopt sustainable communication strategies, they can become more competitive in their markets. However, if they consciously or unconsciously make false claims about their sustainability initiatives - a practice known as greenwashing - their campaigns can be "expensive". Before organizations launch sustainable marketing campaigns, they can meet with sustainability consultants to learn how to implement effective ESG initiatives.
How to avoid the greenwashing effect?
Increasingly, the motto is differentiation. In order for an organization to achieve a competitive edge over the competition, it is required to make a difference and to look for processes and elements that make it special, unique and innovative.
In a market where consumers put increasing planning and effort into choosing green products and services, being accused of passing off a "green" image just for the sake of perceived marketing benefits can tarnish an organization's reputation.
O dubbed "greenwashing" is the practice of creating a misleading marketing message to promote an organization's product or service, making it appear greener than it actually is. The line between highlighting an organization's green features and greenwashing is blurred. Often, and inadvertently, there is a risk of making a mistake with negative effects on the reputation and trust in the organization.
"Being green" is undoubtedly a factor to use when the role of communication is to highlight added value and demonstrate positive elements. However, this should be one of the points to be integrated into the communication made, and not be particularly highlighted unless its relevance is particularly notable and can be proven.
This support of the message in a speech that can be proven is a fundamental basis for not incurring in a misleading communication and that defrauds the expectations of the client/consumer. Common sense prevails here, and it is better to opt for honesty than to manage possible unpleasant reactions.
This straightforwardness can also be a decisive factor in demonstrating that this is a long-term concern with real consequences, communicating how it impacts the organization's activity and is being improved.
More than appearing "green", as in any added value for an organization, it is important to be and to demonstrate how this can positively influence our community, our team, our customers and partners. Only when this element is the cause of visible and deserved results can the communication in this respect to reach truly effective levels.