Why Sustainability Needs a Makeover

Even though the sustainability movement has come a long way, it’s clear that it could benefit from some rebranding. At Sustainable Brands ’11, key insights from consumer research shed some light on where practitioners can refocus their efforts.

OgilvyEarth recently released results of a 2011 study called Mainstream Green: Moving sustainability from niche to normal. The study focused on what OgilvyEarth refers to as the Green Gap – the gap between what people say they intend to do and what they actually do when it comes to green. Here are some key findings:

Half of Americans think green products are targeted to rich elitist snobs or crunchy hippies. These are not particularly appealing archetypes, especially for something that needs a critical mass. If we want sustainability to reach the mainstream, we need to stop with the niche marketing. As OgilvyEarth’s Freya Williams says, we need to be Bud Light, not Stella Artois. A return to Marketing 101, with a goal of mass appeal, would rely on the fact that humans have a herd mentality and the majority of us just want to fit in. OPower embraces this and influences people to reduce their energy use by comparing them to their neighbors.

82% of respondents said going green “is more feminine than masculine.” Sustainability emblems include tote bags, hemp clothes and smaller cars. No wonder green skews female. The new ad featuring a polar bear thanking a man for driving a Nissan Leaf is a good example of how messaging for this electric car doesn’t match up to what appeals to males in conventional car ads. Tesla Motors, the electric answer to the Porsche, is an excellent example of bridging the gap.

The words “green” and “sustainability” have been stigmatized. It’s in our best interest to drop these terms if we want to bring new people to the table. Method is a great example of a successful sustainable company that doesn’t position itself as “green.”

Guilt-provoking messages don’t inspire behavior change. Sustainability should be framed through fun experiences, not sacrificing oneself for the greater good.  Research shows that people are motivated by doing things they enjoy and not by righteousness.

The bottom line is that people are self-interested – even the greenest of us. Brands and causes need to integrate this aspect of human nature into their efforts and appeal to the human in us all, not the altruist.

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Ali Hart is a sustainable communications and engagement strategist with a passion for life’s essentials: food, water and storytelling. Her background in the Entertainment industry, penchant for humor and MBA in Sustainable Management from Presidio Graduate School are Ali’s secret weapons in her quest to master the art of behavior change and to make sustainability inconveniently fun.