Today
is a big day for green communications. It’s official, many of the world’s
largest companies are back on the green trail, doing all they can to convey
their environmental credentials. The launch of the Sunday Times 2009 Green
list, coincides with the launch of a Ogilvy Earth from advertising giant Ogilvy & Mather. The new global practice is designed
to handle sustainability communications for its clients. Some of the big
campaigns it is launching include Smart Planet for IBM and Beyond Petroleum for
BP.
You
may be thinking we’ve heard all this before and to a large extent we have.
Greenwash, the practice of making an organisation look green through the art of
communications, has been yet another sad bit of history for the public
relations industry. Companies did it, consultancies advised and communicated it
and people and businesses got stung. As with any communications, those in the
practice of greenwashing found that if the substance was not there or the
product did not do what it says on the tin, communicating was an uphill battle.
That’s
why this second round, green communication resurgence is so interesting. Surely
no company would be crass enough to think they could dupe customers on green
all over again. And in today’s ‘nothing is private’ world of communications,
trying to communicate any green promises with no tangible basis in reality,
would quickly be discovered and put down.
No,
the interesting thing about the new ‘green wave’ is that there appears to be
substance behind many of the claims. The Times Green list for example rates
companies by Performance, Training and Motivation, Policies and Systems and
Reporting and Communications (after all, you have to tell people about it!).
The list looks at 60 companies with exceptional environmental credentials, up
from 50 last year. Many of the companies are making real changes in the
consumption of energy, recycling and in preparing their businesses for a greener
future.
The
move to substance over fluff has been marked on the political scene too. It’s
now becoming cooler and more appropriate for businesses to take and act on
their green positioning. Obama for example is making waves and ruffling as many
feathers as possible across the pond where the environment is concerned. The
success of his drive for a green America led by ‘green collar’
workers will continue to shape the way the rest of the world approaches and
communicates environmental thinking.
Governments and the business world are beginning to realize that oil as
an easily accessible resource, simply will not be there forever. And as a
result many are starting to make moves in the right direction. Communications
of what’s being done and why will play a large part in the success of these
environmental leaders but it must be backed up with substance. Getting green and
green communications right the second time round should take note from the UK driving test’s
popular ‘Mirror, Signal, Maneuver’ adage.
Mirror – find out what people think and what needs to be done business
and communications-wise
Signal – tell people what’s been discovered and what the company is
doing
Maneuver – begin to deliver on promises and keep on signaling as time
goes by