The green industry seems to have a natural marketing edge these days, but as Kermit pointed out, it’s not easy being green. The following pages offer some thoughts on selling green, keeping your message honest, and how several Canadian business owners have approached the challenge.

BY RENATA TRIVERI

Not long ago, it was all about pink. There were pink Kitchen Aid mixers, pink Keds, pink Conair hair dryers, pink Yoplait labels, even Campbell’s tomato soup tins. It was all for the pink-ribbon campaign. Marketing departments and companies of every product persuasion leapt aboard the pink campaign train. It ultimately raised millions upon millions of dollars to benefit breast cancer awareness and research. Then, along came the ‘Think Before You Pink’ backlash. No one disputes the success of the campaign, or the unfathomable amount of money that people donated through nickels and dimes (wittingly or not) to a very worthy cause. But among all the positive results, consumers have either gone pink-blind, or are scrutinizing their impulse purchases to see how much of their dough is parceled out to the cause (and through which charitable handler). Suspicious or savvy, others want to know the motive behind a company’s kind-heartedness, recognizing that cause-marketing cuts both ways: as a benefit to the cause, and as a benefit to the company’s reputation. Some argue that none of this really matters if the resulting funds save lives. But others feel if pink-fatigue reduces people’s propensity to donate, or leaves a foul taste in our mouths about the cause in general, it could hurt future receipts.

Why go green(er)?

Why is Landscape Trades writing about pink? Because green is the new pink, and consumers are on to the process this time around. There is no doubt that going green, and advertising a company’s or product’s greenness, has some obvious benefits. Saving the planet is a given. But also, right now it’s trendy. Consumers want to feel good about themselves. Company executives want to feel good about themselves. Our businesses rely on our customers’ knowledge of why we’re good, why our company or product is better than the other, and why they are smart for recognizing and paying money for it; this is what is called “marketing” and it is why we advertise.

The dollar incentive

Brockman and Company, a U.S. consulting firm serving the high tech sector, recently completed a study that showed companies with high enviro-quotients—those with good green practices, environmentally-friendly managers, and a corporate culture that encouraged use of public transit and teleworking—benefited from three times greater customer satisfaction, 4.7 times greater employee satisfaction, and more concretely, 1.7 times more revenue per employee.

There is a massive cost-saving factor gained through sustainable practices. When companies make efforts to reduce energy usage, they save money. Whether they reuse building materials, spray less often, have furnaces serviced for greater efficiency,map out more efficient service or delivery routes, re-circulate water, or make cute little memo pads out of scrap paper instead of buying Post-It Notes, they save money. When their employees are empowered to co-operate to create a greener business, they save money.

Telling people about a company’s or product’s eco-sensitivity really is educational and a public service, if it is true! Consumers want to make more sensible choices when it comes to doing their part for the environment. Horticultural industry business owners have a responsibility to help consumers wade through the disinformation and take some of the guesswork out of shopping with greater regard to sustainability. At the same time, it must be done with an ethical and critical eye toward their own practices.

How do we get there?

When faced with critics of its Yoplait Yogurt pink-lid drive, who thought its contribution of 10 cents a pop a pittance, General Mills was quick to point out that at one dime at a time, the company had collected $1.1 million for the Susan G. Komen Foundation in 2004. It bolstered that amount with another million in additional corporate donations. Being able to back up claims with a significant outcome was key to taking the wind out of the sails of a potential public relations nightmare.

Action is everything, whether pink or green, so there are two key things to keep in mind when embarking on a green promotion and advertising campaign: a) mean it, and b) be it.

Our industry often purports that it IS the original green industry. No problem with making that claim, IF we can back it up with real, concrete, and balanced examples of claiming greenness. It doesn’t mean a business needs to be perfect. What it does mean is managers and marketers must believe in the cause they are promoting, and to the best of their knowledge, those claims are balanced, correct and come with a pride of practice, yet not so staunch that it cannot improve. Here is another example: In 2005, the U.K.’s Wyevale Garden Centre’s management was surprised to find itself on a Greenpeace hit-list for bad business practices. The eco-awareness organization had tagged Wyevale for selling outdoor furniture crafted from rainforest stands in Southeast Asia. Greenpeace claimed this exacerbated the destruction of habitat for an endangered species of orangutan, and was contributing to a brutal Burmese dictator whose key funding was the timber used to make the furniture. When Greenpeace thinks you’re bad, things could turn a lot worse.

Instead of justifying its practices, Wyevale developed a detailed policy to purchase only those forest products certified by the Forest Stewardship Council, and what’s more, became members of the Tropical Forest Trust. Today, Wyevale Garden Centre has made environment issues central to how it goes about its business, adding 10 environmental commitments to its corporate values, pub-lishing an environmental newsletter, and placing ecology-knowledge tools on the Wyevale website for its customers—and that has been good for business and business ethics.

How to not greenwash?

Without taking that critical second look at how one does business, and without de-veloping strong beliefs about the cause one advertises, a high likelihood of greenwashing exists.

Says Scott McDougall, president of TerraChoice Environmental Marketing, “One of our concerns is that if marketers respond in ways that are not the truth, or not the whole truth, then consumers will become jaded and they will quit looking for greener products. This would be a terrible loss, of course, to marketers from a commercial perspective, and a terrible loss to the environmental movement.” The company is responsible for admin-istering Environment Canada’s EcoLogo program created in 1988. It allows companies producing “green” products to display the recognizable bird and maple leaf logo, which tells consumers that the product meets stringent environmental criteria. EcoLogo companies must also have their products audited by a credible third party.

McDougall adds, “Marketers have a great opportunity, but also a liability if they don’t get it right.”

                Renata Triveri is a British Columbia-based writer for the horticulture industry.

Profile: Atlantic Gardens Making every drop count

“We have been fossil fuel-free since 2003,” claims Robin Godfrey proudly.

Godfrey is president of Atlantic Gardens in Middle Sackville, N.S., which first opened in 1968 as a small roadside garden centre. Today, the family-owned and -operated business has two locations with a garden centre, greenhouse growing and wholesale facilities and bulk soil services.

“We are constantly improving and upgrading our services and facilities to reduce the environmental impact. Our soils contain our own compost. Our production facility uses a pond for its main water source. In 2005 we replaced the oil-burning furnace that was used to heat our growing greenhouses, with a more energy-conscious wood pellet furnace. It was the first in the Atlantic provinces,” says Godfrey.

Water conservation and recovery became a huge commitment for Atlantic Gardens. Rain water from the roofs of the greenhouses is collected into a large pond. This water is used in the drip irrigation systems installed in most of the greenhouses. Excess irrigation water is then sent into a system under the floors and back to the pond. “Very little water is wasted and the need for outside water is at a minimum,” says Godfrey.

In 2006 the newest greenhouse was built with full natural ventilation, which greatly reduced the need for cooling fans. As well, the plastic that covered the greenhouse had a 15 year lifespan instead of the standard three years, which is common to the industry.

All employees at Atlantic Gardens are trained to ensure all waste is recycled and that all plant material and organic waste is composted on site. An integrated pest management system is used in the greenhouses to reduce pesticide applications.

Dalhousie University recognized Atlantic Gardens for its work in environmental stewardship in 2007, one of six Nova Scotia companies honoured for improving their environmental and economic performance through energy efficiency, water conser-vation, waste reduction, customer education efforts and technology changes. “For many companies, environmental responsibility is becoming part of their everyday workplace culture and just makes good business sense,” proclaimed the university.

At Atlantic Gardens customers are assured that the plants they purchase are grown, watered and maintained utilizing the best environmentally friendly methods and practices possible.

      — Allan Dennis

Profile: Turf Systems Back up your green message

“I once heard somebody from the province say you can’t sell Integrated Pest Management to the public. He did not know we have been doing it for 17 years,” says Alan White of Burlington, Ont.-based Turf Systems. The message Turf Systems uses is all about plant health, fitting nicely with its clients’ precon-ceived notions about green. The company specializes in turf and irrigation, so White’s staff is trained to explain how inputs like nutrients and water promote healthy plants. “Everything we do is about life,” he says.

As a true IPM practitioner, Turf Systems reserves chemical application for problem-level infestations. Up to that point, good cultural practices are the strategic defence of choice. White explains the plan to his customers from a human health perspective: “We don’t take medicine to prevent getting sick.” So far, his strategy has worked from both turf management and sales standpoints, without ever mentioning IPM.

But does the consumer actually get it? White believes the answer is yes. He finds his customers are better understanding the importance of plant health, based on face-to-face education from Turf Systems reps. They are buying into the program, and actually seeing the need to water and feed their plants — and acting on it.

Even so, confusion is common, and White finds customers often mix up pests with nutrients, for example. Customers may take it for granted that releasing ladybugs or nematodes is a good thing, because they are natural, while White muses over the unknown or unpredictable impact of biological treatments. We understand chemistry, and the math behind it, much better than biology and its far more complex living systems, he says.

IPM is not the only aspect of the green partnership White builds with his customers. He says, “Trust is more about who you are, than what your program is.” Taking the time to educate customers, and clearly communicating expected results — “We cannot create Utopia,” — are two powerful tools he uses to build trust relationships.

Turf Systems recently underwent a rebranding process, freshening its logo and rolling out a new tagline, “A greener choice.” White is convinced that his marketing strategy needs to address the green trend, partly because, “our product is green.” But he cautions there is risk, because the green message is everywhere, and some customers are fed up and tending to distrust it. White cites the trans fat scare, and how some marketers label their products as trans fat-free, when those products never contained any trans fat, in the first place. White’s advice is to be honest, and avoid marketing hype, because the passion for green will not disappear.

— Lee Ann Knudsen

Profile: Gaia Natural Landscaping Going green is not a trend

Gaia Natural Landscaping, in Winnipeg, Man., is now in its second year of operation. The team includes professional landscapers and landscape designers trained in landscaping and arboriculture, with certifications from the University of Manitoba and Resource Conservation Manitoba.

“From the very beginning, we marketed ourselves as a company that does natural and organic landscaping,” says company owner Elizabeth Gonzalez. The marketing focus is outlined in a list of beliefs including:

“We believe there is a need to partner with nature based on sustainability that heals rather than harms the environment. “We believe that the quality of our relationship with the earth will determine the quality of our future.

“We believe that going green is not just a trend, it is the way to save our planet.

“We believe that you can create your dream garden without resorting to the use of any chemicals.”

Gonzalez says that in Winnipeg, most consumers are concerned for the environment, but that is not the main reason they decide to use a particular landscaping company. “The main factor driving their decision is the assurance that they will get a professional job done at a reasonable cost.

“We would like this to change so that the consumer puts much more weight on the environmental practices of landscaping companies,” says Gonzalez. She explains that in every client visit and job performed, Gaia Landscaping uses the opportunity to educate the consumer about the advantages of a landscape that does not use chemicals.

“We also show the consumer that it is a myth that an organic landscape is a lot of work to maintain,” says Gonzalez. “We prove that if environmentally friendly practices, such as choosing the right plant, mulching and recycling, are incorporated into the landscape from the very beginning, then it is possible to have a natural, low-work dream landscape.”

Gonzalez emphasizes that her company is always willing to share its techniques for creating and maintaining dream landscapes in an environmentally sustainable way.

“We are also always looking for new techniques that will help us do this better.” Gaia Natural Landscaping has already created ties with organic associations in Manitoba and British Columbia to help it keep abreast of new techniques. Elizabeth Gonzalez says that anyone who would like to share ideas about in environmentally sustainable landscaping is welcome to contact the company.

      — Allan Dennis

Profile: Isidore Landscapes Conscience is enough

Demand is red hot in the West Vancouver market, and Steve Dee of Isidore Landscapes in Richmond, B.C. says his worst sales challenge is saying no. Yet his company is taking active steps to improve its environmental profile, steps that are both visible and invisible to clients. “We limit our impact out of conscience,” says Dee. Isidore’s focus is commercial and residential landscape installation, plus some maintenance. It employs 15-25 in roughly four crews.

Dee takes lead responsibility for educating customers, and encouraging them to make greener choices for their properties. Rather than hauling off organic materials, he sells ideas like establishing compost piles and using fallen leaves and grass clippings as natural mulch. He recommends more frequent mowing, because clippings mulch better and weeds are less noticeable. Isidore also attempts to minimize chemical treatment and remove clumping weeds by hand. And the company convinces clients to tolerate a few more weeds in their lawns.

Dee’s main contact with clients is the primary quotation and general reviews, when he confirms plans for the property. But he says his staff members are well aware of green principles, and continue to promote low-impact practices to customers.

West Vancouver customers are too worried about competing with their neighbours for manicured properties, in Dee’s opinion. “I encourage them to act responsibly and promote healthy plants.”

Dee recognizes that three-quarter-ton pickups are not needed at all sites, and has moved to smaller, more energy-efficient vehicles for appropriate jobs. His gas-powered equipment is chosen for low emissions and noise. Staff is trained to use caution in preventing spilled fuel. He says the company has also reduced the area it works in, for more efficiency.

On demolition jobs, rather than haul a load of mixed debris to the landfill, the company sorts waste, including concrete, asphalt, metal, organics and soil, for maximum recycling. Costs are higher to take that trouble, and the client never knows.

Environmentally conscious options like permeable paving and green roofs are increasingly popular in Vancouver, and are often required for commercial jobs. The advantages of higher-maintenance permeable paving are not easy for some homeowners to grasp, but other clients recognize that, unlike concrete, gravel, pavers or soft-set flagstone can alleviate wastewater runoff. “And green roofs have really taken off; we have two lined up for 2008,” Dee says.

Isidore’s commitment to reducing its environmental impact has not found its way into the company’s marketing strategy — because Dee is frank that referrals more than cover its need for new business. “Everybody is so busy, there is no need for marketing,” he says. “We want to maintain good practices, and maybe in the future that will be a selling point.”

      — Lee Ann Knudsen