Think Big, Sustainable Dining, B-Corps and more

Our latest e-bulletin takes a look at some of the latest movers and shakers in responsible business– from Telefónica’s ambitious Think Big programme, unlocking the potential of young people in order to unlock the potential of the business itself; to the new partnership between Harden's Restaurant Guides and the Sustainable Restaurant Association, which will make it easier for diners to choose where they eat based on sustainability as well as cuisine.

We also take a look at the rise of the Benefit Corporation and B-Corps (NB. they're different) in America. Do we really need a new classification for businesses that pursue profit as well as purpose? It’s true that B-Corps like Patagonia are showing real innovation and commitment – you don’t get much bigger than 'Don’t buy our product' as a sustainability message. But Patagonia was an innovative, socially responsible business long before signing up as a B-Corp. Introducing a new legal 'status' for responsible business risks giving the impression that 'normal' businesses aren't expected or able to balance profit with social value.

If you’d like to read the full e-bulletin, get in touch – katie@goodbusiness.co.uk

Reality and Perception

Congratulations to Marc Mathieu for continuing the current debate in the marketing world about the power of brands to drive social progress. This is about getting marketing teams to realise that when sustainability is made real, relevant and interesting to consumers, it can drive brand integrity and increase sales.

Step into the ring Puma and its clever little bag. This innovation, using 65% less paper than its old red shoeboxes, is a favourite: it’s genuinely ‘good’, it visually ‘good’ and it involves the consumer, who can use the bag over and over again. That little bag is a big platform for indicating to the world that Puma has values beyond profit. That’s why it’s so important that this kind of innovation is backed up by a credible strategy, and that’s also why it’s so relevant for corporate responsibility teams.

Mathieu has long been an advocate of the social power of brands. His latest suggestion is that marketing teams need to use a new language: one that’s more about people than profit objectives and targets. Those of you who read Greg Smith’s explosive resignation letter to Goldman Sachs this week might find that idea particularly topical. In it, he explained that he could no longer work for a company that talked internally about profit before people; that failed to put the interests of the customer at its heart. This is far from the image that the financial giant projects to its clients. So if the accusations are true, Goldman appears to have made its clever little bag before getting its house in order.

All this comes down to the simple question of whether the reality of a company’s values and sustainability is weaker or stronger than the image publicly projected. Sustainable Brands points to evidence that having a strong sustainability reality can reduce costs and risks, while achieving a strong perception of sustainability can drive up brand equity. Achieving both a reality and a perception of sustainability might seem the obvious thing to do, but too often those in charge of change fail to communicate it, and those in charge of communications fail to ensure the image they want to project is a reality. The current debate around the social role of marketing is good, but unless it sparks marketing teams to talk to strategy and corporate responsibility teams internally, we’re at risk of being flooded by greenwash.

Tesco misses the mark

Tesco is said to be dropping the carbon labelling that it displayed so prominently on many of its products. This was a groundbreaking scheme for a monster of the retail sector. Where did it all go wrong?

Marketing Week reports that Tesco’s move reflects “disappointment” that more supermarkets didn’t follow suit. But this isn’t a blame game of Tesco showing leadership and others failing to follow. Plenty of activity is going on to communicate product sustainability to consumers, whether it’s the mass of Fairtrade labels in Sainsbury’s and the Co-op, free-range-egg labelling on Hellman’s mayonnaise and McDonald’s paper bags, or the pictures of smiling, eco-friendly farmers on pots of Yeo Valley, on the meat in Waitrose and on the KitKat wrapper. Retailers and Brands are talking to consumers; they’re just talking in a different way to Tesco.

The fact of the matter is that many consumers don’t fully understand what a carbon footprint is, let alone feel informed to make a decision based on a “360g CO2” label on their orange juice. We need a clearer message about the products on Tesco’s shelves. That could mean more recognised labels such as Fairtrade, Red Tractor, Freedom Food or even the new WindMade sign. But even better would be embedding sustainability into the brand so that consumers trust that what they’re buying meets a certain standard. Hats off to M&S, there. Tesco was right to think that consumers want supermarkets to show leadership, but its attempt to engage them in that conversation missed the mark.

Telling the right stories

Writing in yesterday’s Financial Times, Michael Skapinker argues that the central problem with corporate responsibility is that what the public expects may not be what shareholders want.

What’s needed, he says, is for companies to better communicate the business value of responsible business – and to do that they need a compelling narrative.

So far so good. Gaining the understanding and support of shareholders is an important part of a successful responsible business strategy. They are, after all, key stakeholders. And there’s no shortage of messages to tell. There are the financial opportunities of growth into new markets, reaching new customers, cost savings, potential for new products, and so on, as well as the benefits of improved employee satisfaction, loyalty etc., let alone the potential for brand and reputation strengthening and differentiation.

But too often the importance of that narrative is forgotten or lost. Whilst exploring ways to get shareholders on board, Michael Skapinker gets his teeth into General Electric’s corporate citizenship report and website, lamenting the lack of storytelling to engage the reader. Why, he asks, do they tell us about supporting girls through school in Kenya without giving case studies?

Having an engaging narrative is an important part of communications, but it’s not the golden key to getting shareholders on board!

If we’re thinking about General Electric, how about talking of the 17% increase in brand value as a result of their sustainable venture ecomagination? Or the fact that ecomagination’s revenue is set to grow at twice the rate of total company revenue over the next five years, having generated $18 billion in the tough climate of 2009?

Skapinker is right that responsibility communications benefit from a good narrative. But that narrative needs the richness of business value as well as heart-warming stories, to get all stakeholders on board.