So what’s this ‘sustainable marketing’ all about then?
Well, now I’ve finished the course, I feel better equipped to talk about that. I went into it not sure what to expect. After all, marketing in its purest form is about generating demand for stuff, regardless of the social or environmental harm it may cause.
Sustainability on the other hand is about leaving the world a better place than you found it. So on the surface they seem like unlikely bedfellows.
In short, sustainable marketing is about using the awesome power of marketing to drive long-term wellbeing for all – a term we got very used to hearing on the course – whilst meeting an organisation’s economic needs.
The course lasted eight weeks and each week covered one ‘module’.
Here’s a summary of the eight modules:
Module one set the scene, looking at marketing’s role as the interface between production and consumption. We looked at how it’s driven consumption for profit and growth, with scant regard for the wider implications to society and the environment. And the widespread damage it’s caused.
Module two explored ‘purpose’, what it means, who’s doing it well, and a couple of useful frameworks: the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals and Kate Raworth’s Doughnut Economics. We were introduced to the ‘Guide and co-create’ marketing model, which moves beyond traditional ‘make and sell’ or ‘sense and respond’ models.
Module three was all about ‘footprint’ – marketing’s impact up and down the value chain. We looked at the fashion industry which produces 100 billion articles a year (world population approx. 8 billion) of which between 15% and 45% are never worn. Every strategic decision that marketers make shapes supply and demand. And with that comes real social and environmental responsibility.
Module four looked at ‘brainprint’ – the influence that marketing has over wider society. We saw how marketing shapes values, attitudes and behaviours, and we looked at the broader impact and responsibility marketers have at a cultural level, which is necessary if we’re going to drive long-term wellbeing for all.
Module five explored authenticity and trust in sustainable marketing. We looked at the damage caused by misinformation, as well as greenwashing, purpose-washing and green-hushing. The module introduced lots of tools, including standards and regulatory frameworks, ethical marketing and trust frameworks, and accountability and transparency technologies. It also offered guidance on ethics and transparency, beyond what is legally required.
Module six, ‘purpose-driven leadership and innovation’, encouraged us to look at our own purpose and values and how each of us can lead from that place, to create the change we wish to see in the world. We looked at how to create psychologically safe spaces, how to drive impact through collaboration, and how personal purpose can be a catalyst for wider transformation.
In module seven we consolidated all this learning and began working on a personal ‘strategy for action’ for module eight. We started to think about a stretching personal ambition, and what, and who, we could influence. This meant exploring a few ideas, then shaping the most imaginative and ambitious one into a 90-second pitch for critique and feedback from others on the course.
Finally, in module eight, we brought all the other modules together into a ‘strategy for action’, together with some immediate next steps to make it a reality. Condensing it down to a strictly limited number of words whilst, in Jonathan Wise’s (one of the course leaders) words ‘blending a bit of head and a bit of heart’, was tricky!
At the beginning of module eight, Jonathan quoted Professor David Orr:
The planet doesn’t need more successful people. It desperately needs more peacemakers, healers, restorers, story tellers, and lovers of every kind. It needs people who live well in their places. It needs people of moral courage, willing to join the fight to make the world habitable, and humane. All these qualities have little to do with success as we’ve defined it”.
What’s next?
I’ll be sharing my own strategy for action – the bit where all this learning gets applied to the real world and my context. If you want to see what that looks like in practice, join my email list or follow me on LinkedIn.