When you think about the issue of sustainability in business marketing, you may think of how it connects to Fortune 500 companies that have businesses that reach around the globe. The reality is that sustainability is an issue that is of great importance to many people and impacts the way they choose the products and Read more
Sustainability
When you think about the issue of sustainability in business marketing, you may think of how it connects to Fortune 500 companies that have businesses that reach around the globe. The reality is that sustainability is an issue that is of great importance to many people and impacts the way they choose the products and services they will pay for. It does not matter if it is a service that is offered by a multinational company or a local plumber. For this reason, even small businesses and one-person operations need to show that they pioneer sustainable business practices.
Showcasing Sustainability for Trade Marketing Success
As a tradesperson, you have worked hard to develop your craft and to build your reputation. However, in this current market, being a good craftsman or having a good product is not enough to win customer favor. Your clients will want you to do quality work, but they are also going to want to know that the tools you use, the products you use, the systems you use, and the way you handle any trash or debris align with their stand on environmental values.
If you can prove that your company stands for an environmental purpose, you will attract more customers. That is because, in today’s business climate, customers want to work with businesses that promote sustainability.
More Than Just a Buzzword
A few years ago, sustainability was a buzzword that you would hear thrown about haphazardly. This was true if you were discussing economic, social, or environmental sustainability. Today, people, and especially millennials, have keyed in on what sustainability means. For them, it means having processes and knowledge to exist continually.
When it comes to marketing your plumbing company, HVAC company, or framing company, you need to show the steps that your business is taking to proceed endlessly. What is meant by that is you need to show how your business is using resources wisely so that both your business and the environment can endure.
You need to show how your business will meet your customer’s needs today while not compromising the future generation’s ability to fulfill their needs. It is all about making your marketing and sustainability run parallel to each other.
Sustainability needs to be discreetly woven through everything you do, including your social media posts, your website, and your email newsletters. Customers must walk away with the feeling that your organization respects the environment and the social aspects around you. You can show this by using and promoting products and services that don’t harm the environment. Showcase the techniques your organization uses that are environmentally friendly.
For it to be successful, your sustainable marketing cannot be done in an ironic, sarcastic, or fantastic way. People have a good nose for fake things. When it comes to environmental issues and sustainability, people do not like to be pandered to. If your organization promises that they are going to build a building or do a remodel sustainably and then contractors or technicians are not using sustainable processes, your reputation could be irrevocably damaged.
Employing Sustainable Marketing Principles
Sustainability starts with customer-oriented marketing. This means viewing your organization and its activities from the perspective of your customers. Only by understanding the way your customers view environmental issues can you create long-term relationships with them.
You want to transmit the idea that your company is socially responsible and that you have found a way to do socially accountable activities profitably. This means that your mission should be defined in broad social terms instead of narrowing it to the products or services you offer.
Conclusion
Integrating sustainable marketing is a crucial business strategy for the trade industry. First and foremost, sustainability is about the survival of the human race. Second, it is about the survival of your business.
The business ecosystem is constantly changing. This requires people to adapt to and anticipate what is next. This means adding sustainable marketing to your overall marketing campaign. The last thing that you want is to see rival companies making moves toward sustainability before you. If that happens, it could seem like your move toward sustainability is either an effort to copy your competition or being done to make money.
Author Bio: Victoria Smith is a freelance writer who specializes in business and finance, with a passion for cooking and wellness. She lives in Austin, TX where she is currently working towards her MBA.
Award-winning product line has helped deliver cleaner drinking water while saving more than 40 billion plastic bottles from ending up in landfills since launched in 2010 Elkay, the leading manufacturer of award-winning drinking water products, recently reached an incredible milestone – the production of the one millionth bottle filling station. Since its launch over ten Read more
Award-winning product line has helped deliver cleaner drinking water while saving more than 40 billion plastic bottles from ending up in landfills since launched in 2010
Elkay, the leading manufacturer of award-winning drinking water products, recently reached an incredible milestone – the production of the one millionth bottle filling station. Since its launch over ten years ago, the Elkay ezH2O® Bottle Fillers have saved more than 40 billion plastic bottles from ending up in landfills, enough to circle the Earth over 135 times.
Leading the charge across the industry and upholding its commitment to delivering clean water and sustainable design, Elkay introduced the ezH2O® rapid bottle filling station in February of 2010 with the goal to reduce plastic waste. During its first year of launch, 4,000 units were sold, marking the beginning of its monumental bottle saving journey.
“We’re so proud of this accomplishment and what we have been able to achieve with the ezH2O bottle filling stations over the last decade,” said Ted Hamilton, President of Elkay Plumbing. “We set out to launch a first-of-its-kind bottle filling station with a sustainable design and we’re excited to see where the next 10 years take us as we continue our mission in contributing to a cleaner environment and healthier communities for generations to come.”
The one millionth ezH2O bottle filling station will be installed at Garfield Park in Elkay’s hometown of Chicago. This installation will not only celebrate the production milestone, but is also part of marking the company’s recent 100th year in business where Elkay partnered with the City of Chicago and nonprofit organization, Elevate, to install 100 units across the Chicagoland area. The installations will bring access to clean drinking water across locations that need it most, from schools to parks to youth centers and facilities.
Elkay Celebrates One Millionth ezH2O® Bottle Filling Station Milestone
Over the years, Elkay has continued to enhance the ezH2O bottle filling stations with features that matter most to those who use them, including a hands-free operation designed for hygiene and ease of use, NSF certified filters to help put cleaner, healthier water within reach by reducing lead and other contaminants, in addition to the LED filter status light, instilling trust in those consuming the water. One feature that sets this innovative product line apart is Elkay’s exclusive Green Ticker™ which informs users the number of 20 oz. plastic water bottles saved from waste by using refillable bottles at the station encouraging a growing and sustainable habit among consumers globally.
As more communities begin to recognize and advocate the need for bottle filling stations in schools, parks and other public spaces – where Elkay bottle fillers are typically found – states across the country are regularly passing bills into legislation requiring bottle filling stations to be installed in newly constructed and renovated schools to encourage healthy hydration and provide access to cleaner drinking water. Research has shown that bottle filling stations in schools triple the amount of water children drink, helping their short term memory, reducing the likelihood of childhood obesity and also decreasing the spread of germs among students.
Looking ahead, Elkay is committed to worldwide sustainability and working toward a greener future, including shipping a quarter million more ezH2Os by the end of 2021. To learn more about Elkay’s bottle filling stations and sustainability efforts, please visit Elkay.com.
GROHE has been able to increase its energy efficiency by 24% and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40%, far exceeding its sustainability targets In July 2019, the global brand converted all of its production plants to run on green electricity In the future, GROHE will offset unavoidable CO2 emissions with compensation projects Piscataway, N.J. — Read more
- GROHE has been able to increase its energy efficiency by 24% and reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 40%, far exceeding its sustainability targets
- In July 2019, the global brand converted all of its production plants to run on green electricity
- In the future, GROHE will offset unavoidable CO2 emissions with compensation projects
Piscataway, N.J. — Sustainability has been an essential element of GROHE’s corporate strategy for almost 20 years now. As early as 2000, the global brand for complete bathroom solutions and kitchen fittings committed itself in its “principles and guidelines for sustainability” to continuously improving all products, processes and services in terms of protecting the environment and conserving resources. Since then, GROHE has set new industry standards, applying its 360-degree sustainability approach that incorporates employees, suppliers, customers, processes, products and the company’s social contribution alike. With the aim of becoming the first leading manufacturer of the sanitary industry to achieve carbon-neutral production by 2020, GROHE has once again stepped up its pledge. In July, as part of the “GROHE goes ZERO” initiative, all five production plants worldwide as well as the logistics centers in Germany were converted to run on green electricity. With the start of the new fiscal year in April 2020, the sanitary manufacturer will offset unavoidable CO2 emissions through two compensation projects.
“More than ever, manufacturers like GROHE are in demand to take on responsibility and strive towards more sustainability,” says Thomas Fuhr, CEO Grohe AG. “For years now, we have been investing not only in research and development in order to produce intelligent, sustainable solutions, but also to a large degree in a resource-saving value chain. With GROHE goes ZERO, we are now setting an example for the entire industry: We are actively addressing the CO2 challenge by increasingly avoiding emissions and, if this is not possible, compensating for them.”
The sustainability initiative is seamlessly linked to numerous measures that are taking place at the GROHE plants, promoting the long-term reduction of the carbon footprint and conserving resources: The brand has invested in block heat and power plants, was awarded the silver certificate by the German Sustainable Building Council for the plant extension in Klaeng, Thailand, and built a state-of-the-art test laboratory in Hemer, Germany. GROHE also uses advanced technologies that increase sustainability, such as the material-saving 3D metal-printing process which has been launched this year.
As a result, GROHE has been able to increase its energy efficiency by 24% and reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by around 40% since the introduction of its sustainability program in 2014. This means that the global brand has already far exceeded its 2021 targets of 20% respectively.
GROHE Supports Two Water Projects in India and Malawi
Supporting two offsetting projects is another logical step for GROHE to compensate for so far unavoidable CO2 emissions: In the north of India, the operation of a hydroelectric power plant replaces electricity that mainly comes from coal-fired power plants. In the African non-coastal state of Malawi, a project repairs and maintains boreholes that are used to produce drinking water. With the help of selected offset projects, GROHE will support activities based on extremely stringent criteria, such as the Gold Standard, developed under the aegis of the WWF. In addition to avoiding CO2, the measures also contribute to a more sustainable, ecological and social development within the projects’ environments.
“With GROHE goes ZERO, we are further expanding our leading position as one of the most sustainable brands in the sanitary industry,” says Thomas Fuhr. “But at the same time, we have by no means reached all of our sustainability goals; we can and must get even better.”
GROHE has received numerous awards for its commitment. Currently, the brand is one of three major companies that have been nominated for the German Sustainability Award. GROHE CEO Thomas Fuhr was recently awarded for his commitment to sustainability by the corporate network B.A.U.M., the German Environmental Management Association.
GROHE’s parent company, LIXIL, is committed to improving the quality of people’s lives by delivering safe and comfortable products and services through responsible, sustainable innovations. LIXIL focuses on three strategic sustainability pillars: Global Sanitation & Hygiene, Water Conservation & Environmental Sustainability, and Diversity & Inclusion. In addition to providing solutions to enable access to safe and hygienic sanitation practices, LIXIL’s efforts also aim to conserve water, energy and other natural resources utilized in its products and services, from procurement through production, distribution, end use and product disposal.
AB&I Foundry, an Oakland-based company that manufactures cast iron pipe and fittings for the plumbing industry, announced that they have joined the Rev Net™ Business Sustainability Group which is part of the flagship Sustainability Circle® program. The REV Net Sustainability Circle® program will help AB&I in the adoption of the best possible sustainability practices that Read more
AB&I Foundry, an Oakland-based company that manufactures cast iron pipe and fittings for the plumbing industry, announced that they have joined the Rev Net™ Business Sustainability Group which is part of the flagship Sustainability Circle® program.
The REV Net Sustainability Circle® program will help AB&I in the adoption of the best possible sustainability practices that include behavioral changes in a proven peer-learning model that is intended to accelerate business impact. The Rev Net™ program will help to enhance existing initiatives the company has already embarked upon while identifying new ways to reduce and recycle by-products in their manufacturing processes.
“The take away from being part of this group will be for us to create a 5-year sustainability action plan where key initiatives are identified ultimately driving efficiencies all while fostering a Green culture within the company,” said Mike Olvera, Environmental and Sustainability Manager of AB&I Foundry. Olvera continued, “AB&I is environmentally conscience and is a giant recycler – our products are made from 100-percent post-consumer scrap metal and they’re recyclable at the end of their service life.”
There are multiple benefits from being part of this program including; immediate and long-term efficiencies, new insights and ideas on how to be innovative, improved team member engagement, and the adoption of a comprehensive sustainability plan.
“The manufacturing atmosphere is changing and there are many progressive forward thinking companies like AB&I Foundry that strongly believe that the gold standard is to embrace thoughtful sustainability manufacturing practices. AB&I fits perfectly into our sustainability business model and we are excited that they have chosen to be part of our program,” explains Jenny Sant’Anna, REV VP of Operations. “Their participation in the program and development of a robust sustainability action plan confirms their strong commitment toward building an environmentally conscientious, resilient, and flourishing future for their business and their community.”
Quick Facts
Location: Oakland, California
Team Members: 206 total, Oakland residents = 70, or 34%
Founded: 1906 — Proud member of the Oakland community for 110 years
Acquired: 2006 — McWane, Inc.
Capital Improvements: $1.25 million in 2014 and $2.33 million in 2015
Major recent EHS successes: Over twenty (20) energy efficiency projects in the past 5 years that equate to 6.6 million Kilowatt hours of savings
Environmental sustainability: 100 million pounds of scrap iron and steel is recycled annually into finished product, reducing energy use and air emissions. 100–percent process and cooling water is recycled, equating to over 1 million gallons per day usage reduction.
Contact: Francesca Dunbar
Director of Group Marketing
(925) 216-1828 or email: Francesca.dunbar@mcwaneplbgrp.com
The Sloan® Royal flushometer line for urinals and water closets has expanded with the development of new Sloan Royal reclaimed water flushometer models engineered specifically for use with reclaimed water infrastructure in new construction or major retrofits. These types of systems help municipalities that use reclaimed water as an alternative water source to help preserve Read more
The Sloan® Royal flushometer line for urinals and water closets has expanded with the development of new Sloan Royal reclaimed water flushometer models engineered specifically for use with reclaimed water infrastructure in new construction or major retrofits. These types of systems help municipalities that use reclaimed water as an alternative water source to help preserve potable water.
The Sloan Royal reclaimed water flushometer, available in manual and sensor configurations, is the first solution specifically designed to withstand the harsh conditions of reclaimed water.
In fact, all critical components of Sloan Royal reclaimed water flushometers, including the cover, valve body, control stop and the copper sweat solder kit, are made of semi-red brass. In addition, to better withstand the harsh conditions of reclaimed water, all organic rubber components have been replaced with synthetic compounds.
Sloan has also utilized the industry-standard purple color, which is used to identify water district/municipal water lines and other systems using reclaimed water, as mandated by both the Uniform Plumbing Code and the International Plumbing Code. Several key components including the wall flange, inner cover and diaphragm guide are colored purple to signify the use of reclaimed water. The flushometer also includes a wall plate communicating the use of reclaimed water and is available with an optional purple handle.
More information on the Sloan Royal reclaimed water flushometer can be found at sloanvalve.com/reclaimed-water.