Green Your Business Marketing

By Jennifer Garcia and Dave Stock



Whether you're an actively green business or a business owner who is concerned about the environment but not sure how to be green, there are ways to green up your business marketing. Marketing the green way is easier than you think, and very likely you are already taking steps toward it without realizing it.



Online Marketing

Online marketing is not only green - minimizing your carbon footprint by reducing waste, unnecessary printing and gas emissions from travel - it is an absolute necessity to stay competitive in the current market.

The various methods of online marketing include web site; landing page; blog; online ads; web banners; pay-per-click ads; e-mail marketing; online video marketing; social media like LinkedIn, Facebook and Twitter; cross-links from other web sites; posting press releases online; and announcing events online. If you'd like to take it a step further, buy a green computer that uses less energy.



Green Printing

Myth 1: If I print I will kill a tree.

This is no longer the case. With the strong push for FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certification in recent years, paper mills have been made more responsible for tracking where their paper pulp comes from.

It's kind of like a farmer who needs to replace his crop year after year to keep his product on the market. In North America over the last 20 years, U.S. forestlands have increased by 12 million acres. In simple terms: Cut down one tree; plant many.

But it's not just wood pulp in paper; recycled content and PCW (post consumer waste) is now used more than ever. In 2007, more than 45.2 million tons of paper and paperboard were recovered from recycling. That's 57% of all paper and paperboard waste, and those numbers are increasing.



Myth 2: Recycled paper is thin, poor quality and unprofessional.

Years ago, recycled paper wasn't very useful, but times have changed. With the green movement in the printing industry the need for a quality recycled paper has been a priority with paper mills, and they have met the challenge.

Many of the mills have high quality papers with high recycled and PWC content, and you can't tell the difference from the sheets that don't contain as much content. Many of today's sheets contain from as little as 10% recycled content to 100% recycled content. See for yourself; contact your printer or graphic designer and ask for samples.



Myth 3: Quality FSC certified or recycled paper is expensive.

Just because you print green doesn't mean it will cost you a lot of green. Today the vast majority of papers are FSC certified. So the paper you used on your last project may not have been FSC certified, but it may be now.

What does that mean for cost? Nothing. Most likely the price is just the same. Your options are many, and the pricing will fit any budget. The next time you print something for your business, ask yourself two things: "Is the paper I'm using from a sustainable source?" and "Is my printer FSC certified?"



Hiring Green Services

Just as you are environmentally conscious, so are many marketing, web design and graphic design firms. Professional associations such as AIGA and AMA are committed to being green and provide resources to professionals on how to be more environmentally conscious.

According to Wikipedia, "Sustainable design is the philosophy of designing physical objects, the built environment and services to comply with the principles of economic, social and ecological sustainability. The intention of sustainable design is to eliminate negative environmental impact completely through skillful, sensitive design."

The key words to look for on marketers' or graphic/web designers' web sites and other marketing materials are "sustainable design," "environmental design," "environmentally sustainable design" and/or "environmentally-conscious design."

In addition to these keywords, check to see if the service provider has a mission statement about commitment to the environment and ask if it uses FSC certified or recycled papers and environmentally-conscious printers.

If you'd like to eventually become a green business, start by marketing the green way, taking a few easy steps toward your commitment to the environment.



Jennifer Garcia is owner and president of Logicreative Design, a marketing and design business. She can be reached at 1-888-934-3642 or e-mail info@logicreative-design.com. Dave Stock is an account executive at Friendship Creative Printers. He can be reached at 410-382-9661 or e-mail dstock@friendshipcreativeprinters.com.