Do People Care About Your 'Green' Message? Yes†

Nielsen Report Shows Perils of Exaggerating Ecological Good Deeds

Advertising Age, April 1, 2008 — As if you didn't know this already, a new report from Nielsen Online proves it: When it comes to going green, companies just can't fake it.

The report calls greenwashing a "failed corporate strategy" and urges brands to aim for transparency and consistency instead. "Bloggers are quick to condemn 'greenwashing' when they suspect companies misrepresent their environmental impact with aggressive PR campaigns — as spurious attempts to be 'green,'" according to "Sustainability Through the Eyes and Megaphones of the Blogosphere."

Quality over Green: Nike's New Air Jordan

The latest in the popular line of basketball shoes hits stores as part of Nike's sustainable design line. But the company is hyping performance, not green

BusinessWeek, January 25, 2008 — Nike's (NKE) new Air Jordan XX3 sneaker, which arrives in stores on Jan. 25, won't have a trace of the color green on it. Rather, the limited-edition shoe will be available in the color combination of white, blue, and gray. And although the shoe was made with earth-friendly materials, and even inspired the invention of a sewing machine to help manufacture footwear with fewer chemical glues, the company is not focusing on the "green" aspect of the sneaker.

Stories of the Year†

Plus Marketing Follies

Advertising Age, December 17, 2007 — There were plenty of real, market-shifting stories this year, ranging from Rupert Murdoch's Dow Jones play to Facebook to the unstoppable rise of digital.

Baseball, Apple Pie... and Mahindra?

How an Indian company plans to woo America's heartland with its fuel-efficient SUVs and pickups

BusinessWeek, November 5, 2007 — Engineers from India design advanced jet engines, write some of the world's most sophisticated software, and run massive global computer networks. But can they make a pickup truck that will sell in America's heartland?

Mahindra & Mahindra, a conglomerate based in Mumbai, intends to find out. In spring, 2009, the company plans to launch two- and four-door pickups and a sport-utility vehicle in the U.S.

50 Ways to Green Your Business

Half-a-hundred options for cleaning up your business, from the universal (catch that rainwater!) to the specific (lose the plastic bowls!). Mix, match--join in

Fast Company, November 1, 2007 — Imagine asking today how the Internet affects business. It's an absurd question, like asking how electricity changed business. Asking the same about sustainability, it turns out, is equally absurd. Like the Internet, sustainability spurs innovation in everything, from how you see your business model to whether you see your employees (why not let them work at home more?). Here are our favorite ways companies today are greening up--and saving money and making better widgets in the process.

At Frog, Being Green Isn’t Easy; It’s Essential

Committing to clean design

Fast Company, November 1, 2007 — Looking back, 2007 may well be remembered as the year green went mainstream: Al Gore got an Oscar, Wal-Mart flogged organic jammies, and bottled water went from being a symbol of purity to the beverage equivalent of a pack of Luckies.

Nowhere, perhaps, has the green ethos been embraced more fervently than in the design community, a group that, in the words of Frog Design president and COO Doreen Lorenzo, "inherently wants to do good and change the world."

Turning Green into Gold

Prophet, October 1, 2007 — In this article, Andrew Pierce argues that the question for most companies is not if they will take action to make their brands environmentally friendly, but when and the extent to which they will do so. He then discusses what it takes to successfully make green work as a business and brand builder.

Wal-Mart Brands Its Green Strategy†

Retailer to Unveil Energy-Saving Line Of Own Light Bulbs

Wall Street Journal, September 20, 2007 — One of the biggest U.S. proponents of energy-saving, compact-fluorescent light bulbs will double its bet on the technology as Wal-Mart Stores Inc. unveils its own line of the spiral-shaped bulbs under one of its in-house brands.

Wal-Mart, the world's largest retailer by sales, plans for its Great Value CFL bulbs to cost less than brand-name bulbs, pricing a pack of four bulbs at $7.58, or roughly the price of a three-pack of brand-name bulbs. The Bentonville, Ark., retailer intends to stock its bulbs in 3,000 — or nearly three-quarters — of its U.S. stores this month. It is expected to announce its plan today.

Hotel Chains Grapple With Meaning of Green†

Marriott, Starwood Face Confusing Products, Standards In Bids to Make Lodging Environmentally Friendly

Wall Street Journal, September 11, 2007 — As director of Element, a brand of environmentally conscious hotels being developed by Starwood Hotels & Resorts World Wide Inc., Nicholas Lakas picks his way across a landscape of so-called green products each time he steps into his office.

Among the items: salt and pepper shakers billed as 100% recyclable; piles of towels and sheets made with organically grown fibers; boxes of organic snacks; and a countertop slab made from recycled materials.

"We get so many products, so many phone calls," Mr. Lakas says. "I have nowhere to put it, and we are always looking at it and evaluating it." He is shopping for environmentally friendly products — from plates and light bulbs to heating and air-conditioning systems — to be used in the first hotel in the... continue reading

Working With the Enemy

Once the youngest president of the Sierra Club, Adam Werbach used to call Wal-Mart toxic. Now the company is his biggest client. Does the path to a greener future run through Bentonville?

Fast Company, September 1, 2007 — “To this day, they won't speak to me," says Adam Werbach. His clients--or rather, his old clients--fired him when word got out last year that he was doing work for Wal-Mart (NYSE:WMT). Of course, many people make compromises to do business with the largest company in the world--accept lower profit margins, absorb relentless performance pressure. But for Werbach, 34, a lifelong environmentalist, the cost of working with Wal-Mart has been personal. Some of his old friends don't speak to him. His former colleagues think he's sold out.