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A Green Marketing Primer: The DON’Ts of Selling Green

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This is a guest post from green marketing consultant Anne Michelsen. Part one of this article, The DO’s of Selling Green, appeared yesterday.

In part one we talked about the DO’s of green marketing. Now let’s look at things to avoid:

  • DON’T be confusing. A while back I was asked to give a presentation on renewable energy to a group of seniors.  They seemed engaged and alert, but when it came time for Q&A, one old lady raised her hand. “I’m not sure I understand.  What do you mean by ‘green’?”

    She’s not the only one.  “Most consumers know less than you might think they do about how to ‘go green’ and what constitutes green,” says Suzanne Shelton, founder of the Shelton Group, a marketing research firm and agency specializing motivating mainstream consumers to make green choices.

    Ask any seasoned sales guy – a confused customer doesn’t buy.  In your marketing, do your best to educate your customers about your products.  Focus on the benefits, and be as specific as possible.  Use clear, easy-to understand language and avoid buzzwords and industry jargon.  And don’t assume that your customers are familiar with the same issues you are, or will jump to the same conclusions you do – chances are they aren’t, and won’t.

  • DON’T be boring.  Or irrelevant. We got a promotional mailing from our plumbing supply house the other day (my husband installs solar thermal so we get that kind of stuff.) Emblazoned proudly on the envelope were the words, “Go Green with XYZ Plumbing Supply.” My husband snorted when he saw it.  “Go green?  What the heck are they talking about – they’re selling the same plumbing stuff they have for years.”

    I smiled and typed “Go green” into Google.  Just as I thought.  142 million results.  Beats “Michael Jackson” by about 10 million. 

    Don’t, don’t, DON”T talk about being green just because it’s the in thing.  “Go green” will do nothing but blend you in with all the other zillion marketers out there wanting to cash in on the new green trend.  Do it, and you’ve committed the ultimate marketing sin – being BORING! 

    Make it specific. Make it relevant. Make it YOURS!  (Oh, yeah, and leave Kermit alone.  He’s tired.)

  • DON’T think Green alone will boost response. I don’t know how many research reports I’ve read that bear this out.  My own experience confirms it.  For good or bad, the vast majority of people buy for their own selfish reasons.  If an appealing product saves the planet, that’s great.  It’s important to enough people that it can make a difference – sometimes a big difference – in your market share.  But you better believe they’re not going to buy unless it ALSO, and in most cases PRIMARILY! makes them look good…makes them more comfortable…saves them money…etc., etc. 

    Bottom line: appeal to their deepest desires first.  Then use Green (along with other logic-based reasons) to firm up the decision in their minds.

One last disclaimer – the do’s and don’ts in this article represent generic best practice based on many hours of research and hands-on experience.  But hey, in marketing there’s always an element of crap shoot.  Every situation is different.  The only way to know for sure what works is to test. 

Have you tested Green messaging in your marketing?  How’d it work for you?

Anne Michelsen is a freelance sales writer and marketing consultant, and co-author (with Dan Kennedy and Thomas Ribar) of “The Ultimate Success Secret: Wealth Building and Success Secrets of Wisconsin’s Top Entrepreneurs.” She helps Green companies build sustainable connections with their customers with her dynamic sales copy and marketing expertise.  Visit GreenInkCopywriting.com for a free copy of her report, “Making Sense of the Green Sector: What Every Marketer Should Know About Selling Sustainable Products and Services.”

A Green Marketing Primer: The DO’s of Selling Green

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This is a guest post from green marketing consultant Anne Michelsen.

Is Green a passing fad? Not according to a recent report by Watershed Publishing. In the study released last month, 48% of marketers surveyed who tracked the effectiveness of their advertising reported that Green messages increased response (vs. only 7% who found it less effective).  But that’s not all – these direct marketers also reported that consumers will spend more when they perceive a product as being Green.

Good news to those of us who market a product or service that’s easy on the Earth, right?  But before you book Kermit the Frog as your poster child, take care:  the wrong Green message can get you smeared. 

Here are some basic do’s and don’ts for getting the most out of your Green marketing in terms of customer loyalty and money in the bank.  Let’s start with the do’s.

  • DO be authentic.  If Green’s not really your thing, steer clear.  At best you’ll be boring; at worst you’ll be tagged with the dreaded “greenwash” label and forced to face the scathing wrath of angry bloggers.  Don’t go there.
  • DO be transparent.  This is so ultra, ultra critical that at the last Green marketing conference I attended, when the question “What’s the most important element in a Green marketing campaign?” popped up during a small-group discussion all eight of us at the table practically shouted in unison, “Transparency!”

    If you’re not familiar with the term, transparency means full disclosure.  It means being open and honest about the methods, materials and procedures your company uses.  For instance, if you claim the tennis shoes you manufacture are made with organic canvas using fair labor practices, be prepared to prove your claims, preferably with third-party verification.  (For a great example of transparency in action, check out Apple’s Life Cycle Impact disclosure. Notice how they’re not just being transparent, they’re also taking the opportunity to educate their customer base – and, of course, plug their product.)

  • DO be involved.  Green isn’t just about the planet.  It’s about people, too.  Can you think of a project that will benefit your community and/or the planet, and get the word out about your company at the same time?  By all means, go for it! 

    Nike’s Reuse-A-Shoe program is a brilliant example. By taking back worn-out product (their own and their competitors’), recycling it into playground and athletic surfaces, and donating some of the resulting product to communities at home and abroad, Nike doesn’t just exhibit corporate social and environmental responsibility.  They’ve created a publicity monster.  The program gets regular mentions in the traditional media, in countless blogs like this one, and even during church coffee hours and the like all over the nation.  Oh, and one more plus – not all the reused shoe product gets donated.  The majority is sold as surfacing for gym floors and school running tracks – at a tidy profit for Nike.  Talk about turning waste into dollars!

Part two of Anne’s article, the DON’Ts of selling green, will appear tomorrow.

Anne Michelsen is a freelance sales writer and marketing consultant, and co-author (with Dan Kennedy and Thomas Ribar) of “The Ultimate Success Secret: Wealth Building and Success Secrets of Wisconsin’s Top Entrepreneurs.” She helps Green companies build sustainable connections with their customers with her dynamic sales copy and marketing expertise.  Visit GreenInkCopywriting.com for a free copy of her report, “Making Sense of the Green Sector: What Every Marketer Should Know About Selling Sustainable Products and Services.”

Make Your Home Office Schedule YOURS!

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This is a guest post from Pamela Hilliard Owens of Writing It Right for You.

Working from can be a mixed blessing: on the one hand, you have a very short commute and can work in your jammies if you want to. But the boundaries between “work” and “home” can become very blurred unless you work to maintain a “real” work schedule. Two of the time-stealers for home office workers are lack of discipline and outside distractions. In order to have a successful home-based business, you should find creative and personal ways to set a schedule that works for you and actually work during your “work time”.

One of the greatest benefits of working from home and making your own schedule is the ability to work when you are at your optimum attention level. For some, that is morning or daytime; for others, evening or even late at night works best for them. Depending on your business, while you can set a schedule for yourself that is different from the traditional 9-to-5, you may also find it helpful to have rituals to start and stop your workday.

When you had a job, how long was your commute? Think about that time in the car or on the subway, and instead use it to “get ready” for work. Do your workout, eat a good breakfast, get dressed (really, working in your jammies could be counter-productive), get the kids off to school. Any activity that will clear your mind before you go into your office to settle down to work is helpful in separating home from work. At the end of the day, check for unfinished projects, make your plans for the next day, clean off your desk and workspace, turn off the computer, and close off your office.

If your family situation or your type of business necessitates working more flexible hours, you can do that successfully too, because you work from home. The most important thing to keep in mind is that when you are working, you are working; and when you are off, you are off! It takes a lot of practice, but let family and friends know that interruptions during your work time, even “just for a minute” (my husband’s favorite phrase), are disruptive to your workflow. Let the people close to you know that you will check in with them at set times, and stick with that promise.

Whichever schedule you choose, it will take discipline and practice to make it work for you and your family. But that is how successful home office workers manage their time and their efforts for maximum productivity.

How do you schedule your day? What has worked for you? What challenges do you still deal with?

Pamela Hilliard Owens has her own freelance writing and editing business at Writing It Right for You. She knows that “It Matters How You Say It”! Pamela works with individuals, graduate and post-graduate students, and businesses throughout the United States, Canada, the Middle East, India, Russia, Australia, New Zealand and the United Kingdom on a variety of academic and business writing and editing projects.

Face Slapping the Fishies Will Get You Results

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This is a guest post from Thomas George.

When creating copy, or blog posts or any content you want to grab attention with, you must write as though your audience are as smart as fish. This was the first thing I learnt.

Your title and first few words are your bait. If you haven’t slapped hard enough, you’ll lose. If you make it too long, you’ll lose. If you make it too complex, you’ll lose.

I’m not saying that my audiences are idiots. Never confuse the writing structure with personal opinion.

When I started in marketing, I used big words, complex analogies, structured sentences that would give Jane Austin cause to salivate much like a Pavlovian puppy with irony and wit weaved in more subtly than a deft pickpockets fingers.

And I was told it was all crap and wasted effort.

The art of copywriting is to engage the majority of the audience. You do that by being punchy and quick. People are much more likely to read an article that spans a few paragraphs than a few pages, so get to the point and do it fast. They have fish memories of around 2-3 seconds.

Attention spans are getting shorter, this is one of the sad things about the new technological age and the entire mission here is to get your whole article read. You do that one sentence at a time and each sentences primary purpose is to get the next one read.

Some people can do this easily and without effort. It took me a while to get the hang of it because I utterly despise reducing my vernacular range and lexicon. I’m a smart guy who grew up in an area of Sydney that promotes and celebrates both mediocrity and stupidity so I naturally have issues with it. I always will.

But the key to remember is it’s not about you.

You’ve got to make copy as engaging as possible and your primary tool is language. Adapt to the product or service your promoting and look at it from a fishes eyes.

You have to make the choice of being smart or getting results and when other people are paying for your time, they couldn’t care less about your brilliance.

Controversy always gets the most attention so use titles that cause outrage. Make hyperbole your best friend because if you use him well, you’ll do great. But always do it appropriate to the product your pitching.

For example, I use wild, in-your-face, language with my friends because they “get” me and understand my sense of humor. However, if I ever used that sort of hyperbole for a client, I’d immediately lose the client and damage my reputation as a writer. There is always a line and it moves around, which is something I’ve covered on my own semi-offensive copywriting blog.

So the essence of what has worked for me is to be short, simple and direct. Don’t allude to anything, don’t be overly clever, make the focus the client and audience. Read what other people say, take it all in and filter out what works for you. Remember the fish will come and eat out of your hand, if what you have to offer is tempting enough.

Thomas George

Adventures in Advertising

Short Stories and other Curiosities

How To Create an E-book To Promote Your Business

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This is a guest post from Chuggin McCoffee of TheCoffeeBump.com about using an ebook giveaway to attract customers.

As a small online business, you have a world of opportunity at your fingertips, which is Internet marketing! One easy way to draw attention to your small business niche and beef up your website is to offer a small e-book on your website for free or a small price.

Keep in mind that people are always attracted to something that is free, so they will be likely to request your free offer, which can provide more information about your niche market. This is the perfect way to get your foot in the door! E-books are often called reports, and these small reports should be no more than 15 pages. You can easily hire someone to write your e-book for you or write it yourself ranging anywhere from 5 to 15 pages.

From that point, you can promote the e-book on your niche market on your website and elsewhere, which will give you the opportunity to gain more exposure to your small business. Even though this may seem like an overwhelming task, one of the easiest rules of thumb to use is to write a How To e-book. With the wealth of content available on the Internet, people are instantly attracted to content that will teach them something, making a How To e-book more likely to be a hit. To get the idea for your e-book, all you have to do is brainstorm based on your niche market and your keywords.

If you are selling beauty products, then consider writing a free How To makeup or skin care e-book. Likewise, if you are selling furniture or home decor products, then consider writing a How To e-book on easy steps for interior design. Do you see what I am getting at? It’s actually quite simple to create a small e-book to give away or promote on your website, but it does need to relate to your niche market and leave your customers wanting more! The primary purpose of this e-book is to bring customers to your website so that they will be interested in your products or services that you are offering.

If you want to promote your e-book to gain more exposure to your business elsewhere, then consider the use of ClickBank. ClickBank will partner with you to sell your e-book, and they also have many affiliate marketers working through them. This will gain immediate exposure to your niche market so that even more people will pick up your How To e-book on skin care tips for a small price to potentially come back to your website to purchase products. This is something that can jumpstart your niche market to offer more exposure and credibility to your website for an increase in sales!

Chuggin McCoffee is a coffee fanatic that has spent the entirety of his career cultivating and studying all of the best uses and brewing styles for optimal coffee and espresso flavor. His specialty site for all coffee needs, supplies, and Bunn Filters can be found at The Coffee Bump at http://www.thecoffeebump.com.