Green Fatigued?

Green claims are everywhere. You can't open a newspaper or magazine, turn on the TV or open a web page without some "green" message. Have you tuned out yet? Are you feeling helpless? If you haven't tuned out yet, you will soon. Green is a fad. Sustainability is the real issue and it is not purely environmental. Sustainability is a 3 pronged fork - environmental impact, social impact and community impact combine to create an overall picture of sustainability. All three must be addressed to arrive at a truly sustainable future.

Sifting through all the media claims out there is discouraging and exhausting consumers. Advertising claims need to be simplified and easy to verify. According to Jennifer Maxwell-Muir in her Advertising Age article, media needs to make sure they are on point and not adding to the "green" hype. Maxwell-Muir suggest 7 Steps for Mainstream Media to follow when covering "Green" stories to help reduce Eco-Fatigue:

In essence, Maxwell-Muir advises that unless a "green" product truly addresses a consumer want or need on some level, consumers will not be interested. A focus on the solution for the consumer should be the thrust of the story with "green" offering added value. "Green" should be a core value, not a marketing gimmick. Method is a company who does this well. They have created hip product and packaging for their cleaning and bath supplies. The product sells AND they offer "green" as an added value.

Sincere efforts to "green" a company or product should be shouted - loud and proud. Consumers appreciate attention to sustainability issues and will support companies and products that demonstrate attention to these matters. Patagonia, a company who has had "green" as a core value for many years, is often ignored by main stream media. Timberland, discussed last week, is a company who also pays attention to each of the 3 prongs to work in concert for a sustainable business model.

The real stories are in the product or business model striving for sustainability and that is where the media focus should lie. Consumers would get the valuable information they desire without the "green" masking.

Till next week -- Recycle, Restore, Rescue, Renew