Sustainable Marketing is not just about promoting eco-friendly products and initiatives; it’s about making sustainability a core part of your brand. It’s about offering customers value while also protecting the planet and people. 

Businesses need to acknowledge their impact and start making positive changes. By taking action, businesses can start making a real difference while building meaningful connections with their consumers. 

Remember that consumers are naturally sceptical of brands, so you need to genuinely embrace sustainability practices in everything you do. You have to be transparent, honest, and genuinely committed to making a positive impact. You need to do more than simply speak about sustainability – you need to take action. What you shouldn’t do is make empty claims as you will lose consumer trust and damage your brand’s reputation. Brands that show a true commitment will increase customer loyalty and even stand out from their competitors.

Sustainable marketing can be a very powerful tool for building brand loyalty and enhancing a brand’s reputation. 

It’s important that you pay attention to what values and causes matter most to your target audience and then align with these. When customers feel a strong connection to your brand, they’re more likely to remain loyal and continue standing by and supporting you. Keep in mind that retaining existing customers is generally more cost-effective than acquiring new ones. By offering sustainable products and shifting your values to align with sustainability, you are also giving your consumers a cause to support.

Showing accountability, honesty, and a commitment to making your brand better will enhance your brand’s reputation and lead to more loyal customers.  By improving your brand image, you can increase profitability while making a meaningful difference in the world.

Sustainable marketing allows brands to turn their negative impact into something positive and provides a platform for educating consumers and encouraging them to make responsible choices. By raising awareness and promoting sustainable practices, brands can help create a better world for future generations.

Patagonia 

Patagonia has spent years trying to reduce its environmental footprint. They have committed to reaching net zero greenhouse gas emissions across the value chain by 2040. 

The brand is constantly looking for more environmentally friendly ways to develop and manage their products. They only use organically grown cotton, creating products with recycled polyester and they’re working toward sourcing 50% of synthetic materials from secondary waste streams by 2025. 

The company is committed to using recycled materials, reducing its carbon footprint, and promoting fair labour practices. 

Coca-Cola

The world’s biggest beverage producer is also one of the worst offenders when it comes to plastic pollution – so what is Coca-Cola doing about it? Coca-Cola’s goal is to make 100% of their packaging recyclable globally by 2025 and to use at least 50% recycled material in their packaging by 2030. 

The company aims to collect and recycle a bottle or can for each one they sell by 2030​. Coca-Cola is working to educate people on why and how to recycle through consumer campaigns, on-package messaging, and more to create a healthier environment for all customers. 

They partner with their customers across the globe on education campaigns, waste collection, and more investment in a World Without Waste. The brand is working alongside their industry peers to invest in recycling innovation, facilities, organisations, and initiatives.

LEGO

LEGO Replay is a simple-to-use platform that allows people to pass forward their LEGO bricks to kids in need. They work closely with multiple donation partners who give LEGO bricks new life.

They’re working on ways to find solutions to make their products from more sustainable materials by 2032. Some of their products are already made with recycled and renewable materials. They are also aiming to make their packaging more sustainable. Introducing recyclable packaging across all areas of their business.

Currently, 93% of their packaging by weight is made from paper, cardboard, and other paper-based materials. 

IKEA

Ikea has set the following goals for their business: 

• To enable our customers to acquire, care for, and pass on products in circular ways.
• To design every product from the very beginning to be reused, refurbished, remanufactured, and finally recycled.
• To only use renewable and recyclable materials.
• To advocate, collaborate, and form business partnerships to promote a circular economy.

Ikea is continuing its journey towards only sourcing renewable or recycled materials by 2030. They aim to use only renewable or recycled materials and to provide new solutions for their customers to prolong the life of products and materials.

Nike

Nike is reusing existing plastics, yarns, and textiles, and inventing entirely new materials. They’re making big strides forward in their journey to zero carbon and zero waste. This means designing your favourite footwear, apparel, and accessories to last longer and, when it’s time, giving those products and their materials new life. 

Nikes invites customers to help reduce waste by donating or recycling worn athletic shoes and apparel. They also give a second life to some products. The brand sources a mix of eligible returns and open-box footwear to create an opportunity to purchase gently used shoes at a lower price.

They also offer Re-creation where they collect local vintage and dead stock products, using its materials to create newly designed and manufactured pieces.

Sustainable marketing is here to stay, and it’s going to keep growing. Brands that don’t adapt run the risk of being left behind. Sustainable marketing needs to encompass your entire brand from its core to products, persona, and strategy. It’s about more than selling products; it’s about building lasting relationships with customers. It’s not just about making money; it’s about building a better future while also improving brand loyalty and profitability.

Our brand new Sustainable Marketing online short course will equip you with the skills required to shape the future of marketing – a future where a brand’s impact extends beyond profit to better the world. It teaches how brands can align their values across the value chain,  and move beyond product promotion to champion broader societal challenges with sustainability at the core. 

Over 10 weeks, you’ll learn how sustainability isn’t just about being eco-friendly; it’s about marketers promoting products and services that genuinely enrich individuals and communities.