Welcome to this post on what is Green Marketing, via Afrokonnect. Our planet is facing a lot of threats and challenges on the environmental front as food, air pollution is becoming rampant. Hence, the need for changes which are environmental friendly to curb this nasty phenomenon.
Companies are known to manufacture goods with qualities which are friendly to the environment hence the need for an increased level of ecological awareness. Various NGOs and world bodies have taken it upon themselves to increase the level of ecological awareness in town and this has led to an increase in the demand for ecological friendly products despite the higher prices attached to these goods.
Various brands have seen this trend and started producing eco-friendly products to customers; This is tagged as Green Marketing and it has shown the positive effect it has to offer to the health of both the general populace and the environment. This type of marketing is even more complicated than the usual one we are used to – so sit back and lets explore this space together.
What is Green Marketing?
This type of marketing is based on an advertising and marketing strategy formed around sustainability. Companies that engage in green marketing revolve their manufacturing and campaign on eco-friendly products and services.
There are various companies that focuses their advertising on biodegradable packaging which can generate a lot of new customers. For Example: Flashfood, a food company, has based its entire marketing channels on advertising its culture of reducing food waste which is beneficial to the environment. Companies that are dedicated to green marketing or saving the environment will enjoy a huge & loyal customer base.
Green washing vs Green Marketing, What’s the difference?
While Green Marketing is all about genuinely basing your marketing on eco-friendly products, Green Washing is based on greed and it represents a company claiming that they base their marketing on eco-friendly products but really don’t adopt any green practices.
Companies like this are known to change the packaging of their products and color of their logo to green but that’s the only thing different about the company. They aim to make unsuspecting customers emotionally attached to their brand’s false promotion of green marketing.
Companies that are into Green Washing can go as far as giving us tips on how to save the environment like opening of windows instead of turning on the AC (tips that we all know), but what we want from brands in green marketing is the impact their products make on the environment.
The 3Ps to remember in green marketing
When venturing into green marketing – there are 3Ps to remember and implement so that it won’t turn to green washing:
1) Passion:
To begin any business or any organization, you have to be passionate about it – this will be the major driving force of your organization. The passion you attached to your business will show if it’ll thrive and green marketing is not an exception. Green Marketing is a very difficult narrative and to engage in such a narrative requires undue passion to change the world and environment. Every movement starts with a single action – so be passionate about “saving the environment” and green marketing won’t be strenuous for you.
2) Purpose:
Passion to a cause helps you to start but purpose is essential for your sustainability. It is no sudden news that various restaurants across the world are banning the use of plastic straws in an effort to promote green marketing, this effort has been lauded by various world organizations as this is a massive effort to stop plastic from finding their way to the ocean and harming sea life. To begin any organization based on green marketing – you have to locate your green driven purpose of what you are selling.
3) Precision:
The green space is full of various niches so you have to find your desired niche and stick to it. Be precise, have a specific marketing strategy and work towards it.
Green Marketing ideas to implement for your business
1) Implement the digital space more:
Our modern age is rapidly eliminating traditional/physical marketing as the marketing space is going fully digital – even the traditional newspapers are now going digital.
Even though the era of paper usage is phasing out, there are still some sectors that will be needing the massive use of papers such as the printing industry, travel agencies (printing of brochures), companies (printing of internal documents), Etc. The Covid-19 pandemic changed this narrative of paper usages as most companies conduct their operations online which is drastically reducing the use of papers hence saving the environment.
2) Following the five (5) Rs:
There are various themes which must be recurring in your drive for a greener future. To accomplish this quicker, there are five (5) Rs which must be followed they are:
a) Refuse:
That means refuse any opportunity to waste i.e. letting dirt flying around.
b) Reduce:
Look for ways you can avoid waste e.g. reducing use of papers and plastics in your organization.
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c) Re-use:
There are various items which have been designed by producers to be used only once, such items are suitable in the cause for a greener future so you have to patronize items that can be reused over and over.
d) Repurpose:
This has been a major trend in the cause of a greener future as dedicated organizations have devoted themselves to covert waste to other suitable use like turning abandoned plastic bottles for the production of plastic flower vases.
e) Recycle:
Other words may look strange but this particular word “recycle” is no stranger as it has used massively to drive the cause for a greener future. Recycling involves the act of breaking down an item a using component materials to create something else.
3) Going remote:
During the Covid-19 pandemic, working from home which was very low at that time ramped up in numbers as various companies in a bid to enforce the social distancing rule and obey the lockdown restriction had to reduce the number of staff coming to the office.
The Covid-19 pandemic is now far gone but to promote a greener future, it is essential for companies to reduce the number of staff and still stick to operating their company’s operations on the digital space.
Conclusion
Green marketing is not just a trend as some assume and even state that it will soon phase away but it is very important to note that green marketing is very beneficial to businesses, as it aids them to meet environmental concerns, meet customers’ expectations and promote a greener world. Green marketing requires genuine commitment and passion to ensure the success of the planet and the growth of your business.
