Going eGreen

Heard an interesting story on NPR this morning about Rupert Murdoch’s News Corporation and how they were “going green” per an announcement in May. In addition to becoming carbon neutral by 2010, they wanted to do something different, something beyond the capability of most Fortune 1000 companies. They want to use their entertainment and news properties to push the message of sustainability to their consumers and effect a change far beyond that which can be gained by standardizing recycling efforts in all offices or switching news trucks to biodiesel fuel.

How exactly that takes place is yet to be determined. A corporate SWAT team, toting along an “Earth scientist” (whatever that means exactly), is making the rounds of 20th Century Fox and the Fox Network to get out the edict and perhaps brainstorm some tactics.

The irony in this is spelled out by NPR when they point out that the politically conservative Fox News Channel, which regularly airs pundit commentary that casts doubt on global warming and other green concerns, will presumably also be involved in this initiative. Fox News has such a lousy record with environmentalists that their major advertisers, like Home Depot, are being boycotted by the Sierra Club and the Natural Resources Defense Council.

News Corp already faces charges that they are simply “greening” to catch some PR benefits. For the record, whatever the real motivations and whatever actually comes out of this, I think this is great. Particularly the part about trying to get the entertainment properties on board and get the message out via story lines or product placement or whatever. Needless to say, it will have to be done in a subtle manner, and the “artists” who create these entertainment properties will no doubt insist that it has to fit in with the creative direction. They would NEVER compromise themselves because of bureaucratic corporate pressure.

So what is an interactive marketer to do if s/he wants to leverage this green power surge and oh by the way help the planet? What does one have to do in order to go eGreen?

Well for starters there aren’t a lot of tactical things we can do as interactive marketers, simply because we are a pretty resource-conserving channel. Unlike major corporations, where economies of scale in their daily operations can allow a simple change (e.g. recycling all paper waste or changing to eco-friendly ink cartridges) to have a measurable and worthwhile effect, there isn’t a lot we can do in the tasking itself to make a difference. I guess we can make sure all our old PCs are properly recycled and ride the El train to work, but since we don’t create bricks and mortar (or paper and wood) sorts of deliverables we can’t really do anything substantial along those lines in the real world.

What we can do for our clients in the green space is what we do for them with all their communication needs: leverage the strengths of interactive media in order to efficiently and successfully achieve their measurable business objectives.

The web in particular is the classic way to house lots of information in a non-linear state and organize it so that any interested user can easily find what s/he wants. Once that content is generated and posted, all manner of links and connections can be implemented to direct users to it.

News Corp can do a lot of good things with interactive initiatives.

Say an episode of Fox’s “24” features super agent Jack Bauer racing around in a hybrid, or even better a biodiesel-burning vehicle. A quick super at the end of the show can direct interested users to a specific URL on the “24” web site, where they can be pointed to the central page about alternative fuels and how you can convert your car to run on cooking grease (or whatever).

Maybe a program is initiated that puts show clips on You Tube with hot links to that Bio Fuels page from the scenes with the trucks. (Hopefully there won’t be any torture scenes that need hot links…)

Start a new Fox TV viewer community program: sign up, get a free T shirt made of organically grown cotton, and get access to online perks or incentives and oh by the way receive the bi-weekly e-newsletter. Sponsors would jump on that bandwagon in a heartbeat, in order to toot their own sustainable horns.

Create online calculators, again linked from Fox show websites, that help the user calculate his/her carbon footprint. England is way into this kind of thing, so we don’t have to reinvent or develop from scratch.

You don’t have to be an entertainment conglomerate to make an impact. All of these kinds of tactics can absolutely be extended into the B2B world, although on a reduced scale and with a slightly different focus.

Green has to be a part of your messaging in all communications. There is no downside to including it and lots of potential upside. The web site can be the repository for information about your green thinking, including referrals to other sites and online tools. Do you send customers a monthly or quarterly newsletter? Include a story about your sustainability efforts, even if they seem relatively minor. Include material about how your products or services can help customers go green. Give them info about political developments that correspond to your industry and relate to sustainability; give them links to related sites that explain or support green tactics.

The internet is awash with consumer groups and advocacy organizations and thought-leader blogs in the sustainability space. Use some online PR tactics to directly address these influencers and agitators. Be careful, because the BS meters are well calibrated, but if you are genuine and sincere about what you are trying to do as a company, they will usually respond well.

In general, do what we always recommend for the web: put yourself in the mind of your customer. What about the green movement, and its impact on your industry, would be important to them? What kinds of specific problems can you solve for them via greener tactics, and what kinds of challenges are presented by going green? This user-focused approach will help you winnow out the value your company can provide and what you should therefore feature and discuss.

And make sure to properly recycle your batteries, don’t just throw them in the trash. And don’t let the water run constantly while you brush your teeth.