Strategic Sustainability, ROI, and

Corporate Branding

Contributed by John White on July 26, 2015 in Strategy, Marketing, & Sales

Previously, I wrote a post about how companies can use social marketing to distribute

content and tell their brand story to the target market. I discussed how many companies are

using social media to highlight their sustainability programs and the ways they improve

communities. However, many remain skeptical of storytelling as a marketing tool, and even

sustainability programs themselves. I heard from a few skeptics in the comments. They

wondered whether content marketing about a company’s community impact had any real

measurable ROI.

Recently, I came across a video on Youtube “Doing Well By Doing Good,” from Coca Cola’s

CEO, Muhtar Kent, from their 2014 shareholder meeting regarding the importance of

sustainability within their organization. The video is in response to the question of a

skeptical shareholder.

“My question is about the business case for all your sustainability programs. Are these just

feel good PR efforts or do they create real value for the business? Is there any real return

on investment?”

The response he gave was epic. He discusses how their sustainability program has been the driving force

behind many of the innovative advancements they have made including water neutrality. Their refined

processes use far less water. Plus, they now recycle more of what they do use! The positive impact to

society is that Coke’s factories are using exponentially less water in

the communities they serve. The benefit to Coke’s bottom line was

realized from a 30% reduction in production costs.

Coke’s CEO summarizes their sustainability program and

the impact they are aiming for here:

Coke is focused on making a positive difference in

communities around the world through a three-pronged

sustainability agenda focused on empowering women

through its 5by20 program and other initiatives;

replacing every liter of water used to manufacture its

beverages through reduction, recycling and replenishment

projects by 2020; and promoting well-being through four global commitments focused on

increasing the availability of low- and no-calorie beverage options, responsible

marketing, transparent labeling and supporting active healthy living programs

worldwide.

A couple of days ago on Twitter, I did a search under the hashtag #SustainabilityROI. One

of the pages I looked at was @SustainBrands . While, there were tons of great links and

tweets on the page, the one that stuck out most was this Tweet:

“ # SB14sd @ tmontague Presentation: Regenerating Connection: ‘Storydoing’ for

Authenticity and Lasting Brand Value: http:// sbshare.co/1KJUIhz “

The link is to a presentation from Sustainable Brands where they highlight the importance

of storytelling within a company’s marketing tactics to project the image of an authentic

brand. I am the Founder and CMO at Social Marketing Solutions, LLC (SMS). At SMS, our

slogan is: “Marketing is no longer just about pushing a product, rather it is a compelling

brand story that makes an organization stand out.” Good story telling provides emotional

attachment for customers to the brand, making them more sticky and increasingly more

loyal.

With so many choices in the marketplace of similar quality and price, consumers are

looking align themselves with brands that fit their values. They are more likely to do

business with companies that they see have a positive impact on their community.

Customers want to do business with a transparent brand that engages them with interesting

and value based content.

I firmly believe that sustainability practices are in the best interest of all organizations big

and small. Incorporating sustainability can improve a company’s operations, impact their

communities, improve their reputations, and enhance their branding efforts.

Do you see the synergy between sustainability and branding via story telling or are you a

skeptic? Please do engage in discussion below regarding the effectiveness of sustainability

programs, storytelling as a branding tool, or anything else that came to mind while reading

my post.

About John White

He is a Chief Marketing Officer at Social Marketing Solutions, the LinkedIn group owner of Publishers and

Bloggers, MBA candidate, and contributor to Dice Tech News, CareerToolbox, Linked Into Business, and

more. You can connect with him on John White

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