Sustainability. Sexy. Two words you don’t often see together.
Sustainability is a serious word. It’s about saving the world from ecological disaster. Getting humanity on track for survival. Heady stuff best left to academics, unions of concerned scientists, and earnest tree-huggers.
Would you buy this?
Photo: iStockphoto/Tyler Stalman.
Sexy … now that’s a fun word. A word that implies pleasure. Tied to advertising, it’s a hook that’s been used to raise sales curves on everything from cars to cognac.
A very big opportunity awaits if we — marketers, producers, and media — manage to somehow join these two words at the hip. Why? Two reasons.
First, sustainability is the product differentiator of the near future. Clients of mine in the eco-lumber business, for example, have been told by big-box buyers that if price and quality are equal, they’ll stock sustainably harvested wood over the non-sustainable variety. Given this type of marketing advantage, it’s only natural that small, nimble companies are embracing sustainable production. Meanwhil... Read more
