05 February 2010
Marketing to a greener NHS
We were recently invited to a conference on
‘Marketing to a Greener NHS’ to present some of our case studies
which illustrated green marketing techniques. We had to rack our
brains, as very few of our clients have specifically briefed us to
ensure we were using sustainable marketing techniques to deliver a
campaign, beyond using recycled paper. However this is undoubtedly
set to change.
With many of our clients being NHS organisations or businesses
actively looking to target the NHS, there will be no getting away
from the importance of carbon reduction and sustainability across
every aspect of every business.
Roy Lilley, health writer and broadcaster states:
“The Climate Change Act has set some tough targets for cleaning
up the environment. The NHS has pledged to go green and slash its
carbon footprint in line with government targets on the
environment, and the NHS carbon reduction strategy should help
trusts to achieve it. However the strategy sets out some demanding
challenges.
“In just five years from now the NHS has resolved to reduce its
own 2007 carbon footprint of 18 million tonnes of CO2 by 10 per
cent. This is not going to be easy, as many factors are still
driving the NHS towards an increase in its greenhouse gas
output.”
With pressure being placed on all NHS trusts, their suppliers
and partners, to reduce their carbon footprint and implement
sustainable procedures and systems – what can we all do to make our
marketing and communications greener?
The obvious answer is to move more of our communications online,
particularly when you consider that the carbon footprint of sending
an email is around 60 times less than sending a letter. So what are
some of the steps we can start taking to make sure our marketing
techniques are greener.
It isn’t always possible to move all of your communications
online so here are the small steps that can be taken that can make
a big difference over time to your offline marketing activity.
Under the Climate Change Act, Britain is obliged to cut its
emissions by 80 per cent on 1990 levels by 2050. This means annual
CO2 emissions per person will have to fall from around 10 tonnes to
only 2 tonnes. All of us as individuals, as well as every business,
will have to make some dramatic behavioural changes over the next
40 years.
Going forward, digital communications will, without doubt, form
the foundation for more sustainable marketing and communications.
The question remains – will it be enough?