ESG branding is all the rage right now. Companies increasingly want to present themselves as environmentally and socially responsible to appease stakeholders and reap the benefits.
Because, the greener a company is, the better it is at attracting environmentally-conscious consumers, employees, and investors.
At least, this used to be the case.
Today, even the best initiatives can be dismissed as empty promises, largely due to a few bad actors who continue to tarnish what ESG stands for.
When building an ESG brand, companies need a strategy that builds trust and shows accountability.
To that end, we have you covered.
With the 2030 deadline for the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals approaching and media scrutiny intensifying, companies that neglect ESG branding risk alienating stakeholders forever.
They risk losing a 3rd of consumers.
They risk discouraging a 3rd of employees.
They risk deterring 4 in 5 investors.
Other than plummeting revenues, damning media coverage can tarnish a company's reputation beyond repair.
So, it’s clear that ESG branding must be a priority.
When people speak about ESG branding, they usually think of marketing materials that reflect a company's culture, values, and impact. This could be a green logo or a catchy slogan like “Go Green, Live Clean”.
But, while this is commendable, it doesn’t resonate like thought leadership, which has quickly become the go-to ESG branding strategy.
Unlike, revenue-driven marketing, thought leadership provides value to audiences through the analysis, insights, and opinions companies regularly share.
Content is often grounded in real-world issues for maximum impact, and there's always demand for new insights.
With thought leadership taking place on social media, as well as blogs and in the media, audiences have an opportunity to interact with companies, essentially humanising them.
Some examples of ESG thought leadership might include industry commentary on the latest COP or new policies that up-and-coming governments should implement.
Whatever the case, any ESG branding campaign must be 100% genuine.
ESG branding campaigns drive much better results if they are led by a senior figure, such as a founder or CEO. They are widely followed, influential, and have far more skin in the game.
Journalists want to hear from these leaders because they know their readers will, at least, acknowledge what they have to say.
With this being the case, you might think that almost every ESG leader commits to thought leadership. But not all do.
They can’t see a clear ROI.
They don’t think it’s for their industry.
They’re unsure about posting on LinkedIn.
They don’t know how to reach the media.
They fear greenwashing accusations.
Or they simply lack confidence.
But these are all challenges that can be overcome.
Rather than worrying about the ROI of your ESG branding campaign, you should be more concerned about the time commitment needed for thought leadership.
Because no matter what your company has achieved, you’re unlikely to become Bill Gates overnight. Building familiarity with audiences happens slowly as you regularly share content.
Then, as your followers grow, you can attract more desirable talent, transformative investors, and ideal partners to take your business to the next level.
Over many months or years, you'll have your ROI in abundance, especially considering that thought leadership requires minimal to no budget.
Thought leadership is relevant for any firm looking to improve its ESG brand, whether it’s an impact-driven company or not.
In fact, companies that aren’t impact-driven often need to work on their ESG branding most, especially if their industry has a significantly negative environmental or social impact.
Understandably, for these companies, thought leadership is noticeably harder.
Stakeholders already have preconceived perceptions, which can lead them to put up barriers to anything thought leaders do or say.
Choosing campaign topics carefully, avoiding sensationalist remarks, and leading with honest facts is the best way to navigate this.
With considerable effort, audiences will appreciate the steps you've taken to drive change throughout your industry, helping you stand apart from your peers.
Most thought leadership will take place on LinkedIn. It’s where you have the most control, can reliably reach a large audience, and see follower growth in motion.
However, it's also easy to get wrong.
Posting too often causes algorithms to punish you.
Overly simple, long, or uninspiring posts weaken engagement.
Content lacking experimentation gets repetitive.
Messaging that varies too much leads to confusion.
If this happens, you risk damaging your ESG brand faster than you hope to improve it.
Instead, consider the following best practices.
Stick to a regular schedule. Post at least once and no more than three times a week to keep your activity fresh.
Lead with impactful storytelling and leave the corporate language at home. You want to resonate with audiences and encourage them to revisit your page.
Vary the format of your posts with graphics, carousels, photos, and videos to make your page more impressionable.
Keep your campaigns hyper-focussed. With this, we mean sticking with a theme or core message over several days or weeks to drive your point home.
Results won’t come immediately, and you may need to experiment. But getting the fundamentals right will make a huge difference as you strengthen your ESG brand.
Journalists at trade outlets, such as Edie or ESG Daily, will be far easier to find and reach than sustainability correspondents at nationals like The Times, who are also, far more selective about the stories they cover.
Meanwhile, producers and guest bookers at broadcast networks operate entirely differently from journalists. Most spend less time on their emails, work on certain shows, and prefer different working relationships with their guests.
Contact the wrong person, at the wrong time, with the wrong approach, and you risk ruining high-potential relationships. So, it’s always important to set aside enough time for sufficient research.
Scour the news.
Follow journalists on LinkedIn.
Studying broadcast schedules to uncover the right contacts.
You also need to craft a strong pitch.
This is essentially an email outlining who you are, your company's ESG credentials, and the opinions you want to share to persuade journalists and producers to work with you.
For these, you should ground your ideas with relevant data, and prepare five distinct bullet points, presenting your opinions in a digestible format.
Avoid long cover letters.
When contacting producers, you need to keep your pitch especially punchy. Ensure your comments focus on a hyper-specific up-and-coming story that you expect them to cover.
For instance, we recently pitched a client to a broadcast network following the Paris AI summit. They spoke about how relaxed AI regulations could benefit healthcare and sustainability.
If your pitch is well-received, you may receive a reply within hours. But don’t expect an immediate response and avoid following up more than twice.
Treat journalists and producers like you would like to be treated. They have their own schedules and objectives that might not always align with yours.
ESG branding campaigns must always be carried out with integrity in mind.
If regulators and mass media find a business to contradict itself, brand perception can be so badly damaged that it's tough to recapture public trust, even for the biggest of companies.
For instance, Coca-Cola has faced recurring lawsuits for years over recycling claims that were proven false, impacting potential sales among ESG-conscious consumers, while highlighting what happens when ESG branding campaigns aren't supported by real-world action.
If you want to advocate for human rights, actively support fair trade. If you lead an EV firm, make sure your business is doing everything to produce eco-friendly batteries.
You should also consider using thought leadership to demonstrate and discuss the importance of clear, consistent, and accurate ESG reporting to steer clear of regulators and solidify your credibility as a leader in the space.
Becoming a confident thought leader takes time.
But generally, the more ESG branding campaigns you work on, the more receptive audiences become to your ideas. You'll also begin to benefit from journalists proactively approaching you for your views.
That said, the first time you speak to the media can feel overwhelming. It can be tough to articulate your ideas properly and avoid journalists misinterpreting them, which is why it’s worth investing in media training.
This is where specialists advise you on media etiquette and key talking points you can use to improve your odds of securing coverage.
Media training also ensures that every media engagement you have reinforces the same core values, which is essential to building a powerful ESG brand over time.
Of the thought leadership topics worth focusing on for an ESG branding campaign, two particularly stand out. Technology and DEI.
On one hand, technology evolves all the time and continues to drive ESG initiatives forward.
From harnessing renewable energy more efficiently to leveraging AI for better decision-making, people want to hear how these technologies are changing day-to-day lives.
Meanwhile, DEI has become an increasingly integral component of ESG, with employees rightly having a stronger voice than they had in the past.
Brands that foster inclusive work environments not only show they are doing the right thing but benefit from creating stronger, more innovative teams.
Hence, it’s worth leaders advocating for inclusive cultures that elevate their brand, while driving meaningful change throughout the rest of their industries, particularly among those that aren’t as diverse as they could be.
It goes without saying, but no matter how well or poorly your business is performing, never turn back on your ESG commitments.
Not only will it destabilise what your brand has stood for by proving your commitments were tokenistic all along, but you risk setting a precedent for others to follow. The more influential your company is, the greater the risk.
We've seen this domino effect already take place across politics, banking, oil, logistics, and tech. All of these groups have been met with global scrutiny in the media and online.
If we're ever going to hit net zero targets, ESG branding needs to be non-negotiable, driving momentum and progress for the foreseeable future.