Business paying lip service to environment
Financial Times Stock Exchange (FTSE) 100 companies are going green to protect their reputation rather than as a result of concern for the environment, suggests a UK-wide survey of opinion formers.
The Green Washers and Green Winners survey, compiled by communications and research team Chatsworth, polled 1200 national and trade journalists, sustainability experts and political groups to measure the perception of which companies are leading the way on sustainability issues, and which are more concerned with image over substance.
Results suggested that the main motivation for UK companies to adopt green policies is to protect their reputation (27 per cent) with just 18 per cent believing the main motivator is good business sense. Only one per cent of those polled believe genuine concern for the environment is the key driver for UK companies to adopt green policies.
Nick Murray-Leslie, director of Chatsworth Communications, says, “Green-fatigue is setting in and companies need to rethink the way they communicate their sustainability programmes. Many opinion formers appear to be losing faith in the real intentions of UK corporates to meet their sustainable objectives and many detect more than a faint whiff of insincerity from the FTSE 100 and its commitment to sustainable practices.
“Perceptions as to the sincerity and effectiveness of corporate green campaigns are closely linked to sector. No matter how hard oil companies or airlines try to improve their green credentials, their efforts are always likely be perceived as greenwash, as they are ultimately still big net polluters.
“The amount being invested in terms of marketing and public relations on sustainability could probably buy you a large wind farm.”
Amongst those considered to be most guilty of ‘greenwash’ by respondants were global mining company Rio Tinto and oil giant BP, which came under fire for its high profile pollution activities as part of its core activities in the energy sector. Unilever and HSBC were amongst the top five green winners.
The results suggest increasing cynicism as to whether UK businesses are tackling environmental issues out of a genuine desire to protect the environment or merely to create an eco-friendly corporate image. “Trusted companies are those which are perceived to be green on the inside, not just on the outside, and their messages on green issues are just part of the work they are doing across their entire operations and not an end in themselves,” says Murray-Leslie.
Source: B2B Marketing, 29/09/2007