As Earth Day creeps up on us, marketing teams will deploy sustainability campaigns, journalists will scorn the greenwashers, and events small and large will take place around the world.
Earth Day is a time to come together to drive change for the sake of protecting our planet. Fittingly, this year’s theme has been deemed “invest in our planet,” a call to all sectors of society—businesses, governments, and citizens—to come together and take action.
For marketing teams, the holiday usually centers on highlighting a sustainability initiative their brand has undertaken or communicating a related milestone with their audience. Yet, the simple act of marketing (even digital) can have a significant environmental impact.
Assume your team sent 1 million emails over the last 12 months.* The CO2 emissions could range upward of 215kgs, which is equivalent to charging your phone 26,230 times—or, if you charge once a day, 72 years of charging!
Marketing teams themselves can enact a variety of operational changes to make a positive environmental difference. For primarily digital businesses, creating sustainability initiatives won’t be as obvious as it might be for experiential and in-person marketing agencies. That’s where creativity, collaboration, and a whole lot of research come into play!
Understandably, setting out on your journey to be more sustainable can be overwhelming.