AMA Houston
Authentically Green:
Marketing Starts With Your Brand
June 30, 2009

Authentic Green Marketing
green = the new
black
Challenges
– Most companies were not founded on a
commitment to the environment
– Green has to be an ongoing promise
– Must also align with customer and
stakeholder benefits
2

Authentic Green Marketing?
Green marketing must follow a company’s core commitment
to green and sustainable business practices.
3

Misaligned Perceptions
Source: MapChange 2008 – the
importance of understanding reality
vs. perception with green brands 4

Misaligned Perceptions
Source: MapChange 2008 – the
importance of understanding reality
vs. perception with green brands 4

Green As Part Of Your Core
So, how do you make “room” for green...
– Understand what customers, employees,
investors, suppliers care about
– Identify the impact and implications of your
operations on the environment
– Get commitment from top and throughout
the organization
– Honest, transparent communications
– Walk the talk
5

Green As Part Of Your Core
Green becomes part of your core Brand
– As a component of your strategy
– As a leadership or differentiator position
– Through transparency in green practices
6

Authentic Green Marketing
green = green
Benefits
– Cost savings
– A Brand premium
– Bottom-line results
– Recruiting/Retention
7

The Many Shades Of Green
select your
green target
8

Customers Care About Green
Green labels or
certifications
can positively
impact buying
decisions
Needs to exist
with other
benefits too
9

Green marketing is successful when
it is a core element of the Brand
Building Beyond Green
The Dinerstein Companies is dedicated
to the development, construction and
management of smart, beautiful, and
environmentally responsible multi-family
residences that go beyond green.
Our building and property management
practices reflect the highest standards of
environmental excellence, including
construction of some of the first LEED
Silver certified multi-family properties in
the State of Texas.

Employees Care About Green
88%
of Millennials
stated that they
seek employers
with social
responsibility
values that
reflect their own
Source: PriceWaterhouseCoopers, “Survey: Millennials at work: Perspectives
from a new generation” September 2008
11

Brand Value Loves Green
12

Brand Value Loves Green
12

Your Bottom Line Loves Green
InterContinental Hotel Group changed to
an eco-friendly lighting system and is saving
$1.2 million a year in energy costs
Yahoo built a data center that uses 60% less
energy for cooling
Wal-mart’s trucks are now equipped with
auxiliary power units that allow drivers to turn
off the engine when stopped for deliveries –
improving overall fleet efficiency by 8%
Source: “Going Green to Cut Costs,” Harvard Business Publishing, June 11, 2009
13

Authentic Green Marketing
green = gold
Opportunities
– Drive innovation
– Promote leadership
– Gain new customers
– Build brand loyalty
14

Sustainability As A Strategy
“In a stable economy, sustainability
is the competitive advantage strategy.
In a down economy, sustainability
is the turnaround strategy.
In a collapse, sustainability
is a survival strategy.”
Hunter Lovins, 2009
15

Leading The Pack
Standing out from the crowd to gain a leadership position...
“It symbolizes a number of things,
from the living, organic form of a
sunflower to the greatest source of
energy...the sun itself.
The colours of the ‘Helios’ – named
after the Greek god of the sun –
suggest heat, light and nature.”
BP.com
16

E
ENVIRONMENTALLY SENSITIVE
M I X E D G R E E N S | California
P E A C H E S | California/Washington State
M O U N T A I N E E R C H E E S E | Local
G R O U N D T U R K E Y | Local
M U S H R O O M S | Local
B L A C K B E R R I E S | Mexico
A C O R N S Q U A S H | New Jersey/Pennsylvania T O M A T O E S | Tennessee/Ohio

Marketing Sustainability
So you’re not Green, what now?
– Transparency as the new marketing...
– By 2008, 70% of the Fortune 500 were planning
on reporting on sustainability.
This is the new annual report.
23

Sustainability Reporting
Reporting and official certifications have
become the best way for traditionally non-
green industries to address sustainability
and gain credibility for headway in this area
24

Key Takeaways
If your Green Marketing is credible to your
Brand, people will want to:
– Work for you
– Buy your products and services
– Invest in your company
And you’ll have the opportunity to:
– Promote your Brand leadership
– Save costs; weather a downturn;
capitalize an upturn
27

Thank You
http://www.linkedin.com/in/robintooms
http://blog.savagebrands.com
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rtooms@savagebrands.com