Friday, January 16, 2009
Gone Done It
With today's mass of businesses racing on board with the go green movement, here's the question on everybody’s lips: What to do when everybody else already gone done it? What to do when the media and its consumers have matured in relation to what they view to be 'truly' green. What to do to stand apart and gain awareness amongst the crowds.
To differentiate in today's economy, we're seeing companies beginning to rethink and retool how they tell their sustainable story. As authenticity is the key, those businesses with authentic stories will have an easier time than those barely scratching the surface. With the mainstreaming of green, today's companies need to be green internally, from the inside-out. Their stories will be transparent, authentic, meaningful and non-fictional. The best stories will, of course, have happy endings and sustain themselves over the long run.
A Value Approach
Appealing to your markets' core values is particularly important in today's economic times where consumers are paying attention as a broader base of companies are filling the shelves with their shiny new emerald claims. Taking just the first step isn't going to cut it. It's time to ask what matters most to your customers, both internally and externally. What's important? Why do they buy your products? Why does your team show up each day? What keeps you ticking as the driver of the business? Fill those needs in a way that improves, sustains and gives back, and you're on your way to a more sustainable story; one that thinks forward, one that's, well, perhaps, blue.
Cheers, Sävy
