Is black the new green?

... Or are you buying with your head or your heart?

This blog is about marketing decisions that entrepreneurs and business managers need to make - usually without the benefit of a six or even five figure marketing budget!

Todays blog is a moral issue one but one that nonetheless impacts directly on marketing decision-making - specifically budget allocation.

Are clients/customers buying products to satisfy their morals or their bank manager? Now that the overdraft is a thing of the past all accounts need (generally speaking) to stay in the black - those little extra perks that we offered ourselves knowing that they might take us into the red until the end of the month are remaining on the shelves - or at least that's how I see it!

Someone recently asked me if I thought that it was a valid marketing budget spend to offset their carbon footprint. This question put me in a right dilemma... My heart said yes, for sure, we should be putting our money where our mouth is and promoting the sustainability aspects of our businesses wherever we can.

But my head said no... Could I look him in the eye and with my hand on my heart say that the expense in time and money to calculate and subsequently offset their carbon footprint would make people choose his services Gnneeeaarrrrrgh! No, I couldn't.

It's not that I don't think it should, I just don't think it would - and I could be wrong.

So I told him to calculate how much he would have had to spend (ballpark) and invest that in sustainable practices at his office. Buy office bikes, set-up a car share scheme, with benefits and come-up with an office environmental policy that the staff would enjoy adhering to. Then post this prominently on his website and to talk/blog about his activity!

I'm not sure what he'll do to be honest, but time will tell.

For those cynics out there, imagining me sitting in my ivory tower dispensing eco advice to my clients, I try to live by my own advice...

Hence I am hauling my unfit 41 year-old body onto a Freecycle acquired bicycle (literally a free cycle) twice a day - here's the maths bit...

A brand new 2.5 litre VW Transporter emits 219 g/km CO2 - (this is for a diesel, but I couldn't get lpg figures for a 15 yr old van) - assuming a daily commute of 4 km that's 876 grams of CO2 per day, which equals 4.4 kilos per week - which is nuts!

Anyhow the point is that simply offsetting your footprint and believing that you have done your bit is crazy - "guilt free profligacy!" companies and clients should stop buying from people who "say" green and buy from people who "do" green.

Here endeth the lesson...