If there's one thing that is on everyone’s mind, it’s how we are going to be more sustainable and fight climate change. That's why more and more companies are investing in green marketing to show their customers how they are doing their bit to help the planet. Whilst this is an extremely positive thing to do, it's important to make sure this message doesn't unnoticed. In this article, we will look at why social media as a form of content marketing is the answer to getting your green marketing noticed.
Although green marketing is becoming more widely recognised, there are still many people asking, what is the meaning of green marketing? In its simplest form, ‘green marketing’ refers to sharing your company’s sustainable or eco-friendly strategies with its target audiences.
If you’re taking steps to reduce emissions, save energy or lessen waste, for example, sharing this information with stakeholders, employees, existing clients and potential customers is green marketing.
Being sustainable is more important than ever for today’s businesses and promoting your company’s green credentials is key to enhancing your brand’s image. An increasing number of consumers prioritise sustainability when making a purchase, so being seen as environmentally friendly could be critical to optimising your commercial performance.
Of course, it isn’t just B2C businesses that should be concerned with sustainability and green marketing. As regulations increase, B2B firms are under increasing pressure to improve their green credentials too and you’ll find that potential clients are eager to review your sustainable practices before engaging in a long-term partnership.
While setting sustainable goals and implementing eco-friendly practices is important, sharing this information is equally critical. After all, no-one will know about the sustainable changes you’re making if you don’t tell them! For this reason, green marketing should be a priority for businesses across all sectors.
Social media facilitates the sharing of ideas and information via text and visual formats across platforms and networks. Major global social media sites, such as Facebook, Twitter or LinkedIn are used by billions of people, multiple times a day.
This, in itself, highlights why social media can be such a powerful tool for businesses. With the potential to cultivate your own network and reach a global audience, social media can be used to maximise your reach and promote key marketing messages in a variety of ways.
Social media marketing (SMM) offers a variety of benefits, including:
Extending your online presence to social platforms allows you to share your brand identity on a wider scale. What’s more – many companies take a more informal approach on social media, which allows new facets of their brand personality to shine through.
Depending on your goals and priorities, you may choose to use organic and/or paid SMM to share your company’s green strategy and success. Fortunately, all major social media sites have paid advertising options that allow you to get your content out to a wide audience. Whether you’re focused on building a loyal following or sharing your content far and wide, there are viable SMM options to help you achieve your objectives.
SMM is one of the most cost-effective ways to promote your business and its green credentials, even on a global scale. After all, the only cost involved with organic SMM is content creation, strategy development, real-time engagement and analytics and optimisation.
While paid SMM does require an investment, this is relatively small compared to many other forms of digital marketing. Furthermore, the option to use pay-per-click (PPC) models of SMM advertising ensures you can cap your budget and remain in control of your spending.
When you post content on social media, there is no delay in getting your message out to your audience. This ensures you can post topical and timely content, 24x7x365. If you want to be the first to release breaking news or you’re eager to ‘newsjack’ a trending topic, being able to publish content in real-time always gives you an advantage.
If you’re active on social media platforms and you have an effective green SMM strategy in place, you’ll find that a considerable amount of your website traffic can originate from this source. With the right targeting, you can make sure that the users who follow you, engage with your content and click your links are those who are most likely to convert into paying customers, thus optimising your ROI and maximising the success of your SMM strategy.
As more users follow your brand on social media, you’ll have the opportunity to build long-term relationships with customers, clients, partners and interested parties. This means you can keep them updated as your company evolves, and your sustainable strategies come to fruition.
Few companies can achieve net-zero in an instant but the on-going engagement that’s facilitated via social media makes it the perfect platform to keep your target audience updated on you progress.
Social media platforms give brands the opportunity to work together, both via planned collaborations and informal support. When it comes to green marketing, companies can align with one another to accelerate their sustainable practices. In turn, this leads to increased environmental benefits and enhances brand images across target markets.
Whether you’re partnering with influencers to increase your reach, sharing the sustainable success of other brands or highlighting your eco-friendliness in comparison to competitors, social media gives you the scope to engage with a variety of organisations in a whole new way.
With extensive experience and expertise, we routinely assist brands in creating and executing green marketing strategies. To find out how we can help your company to elevate its brand and promote its green credentials, get in touch with our team now on 01793292171 or email us at hello@smarter-media.co.uk to learn more.
