I was thrilled about the opportunity to work with Kate L. Harrison, author of The Green Bride Guide: How to Create an Earth-Friendly Wedding on Any Budget, to help her with the marketing launch of the country’s first Green Wedding Professional certification course. Kate is the founder & CEO of the Green Bride Guide, the most credible and comprehensive resource for eco-friendly wedding planning (we’re also excited to be a marketing partner for the GreenBrideGuide.com!).
Kate partnered with the Wedding Planning Institute, the industry leader in wedding planning education, to create this sought-after course that helps planners learn how to turn any wedding into an eco-friendly event.
“There are over two million weddings a year in the United States and an average of 150 guests per wedding. The environmental impact of the wedding industry is tremendous. With 45% of couples looking for green options this year, it has never been more important for wedding professionals to understand the environmental impacts of weddings,” says Kate.
Some of the integrated marketing tactics included:
- Development and promotion of affiliate ad program where publishers display ads on their website or blogs and receive a commission for any students who enroll via their site.
- Strategic ad placement and email campaigns to reach wedding planners and vendors.
- Partnership with Association of Bridal Consultants to offer members special offers and discounts.
- Press release/media announcement to websites and blogs that focus on weddings, eco-friendly content and green weddings/events.
A key message for the marketing of this program is that wedding planners can gain instant recognition and credibility as an authentic green wedding expert through this certification program, which can lead to expanding their client base and growing their business. Good for the Earth and good for business!
As we celebrate another Earth Day this April, I have noticed that more and more colleges are starting to offer degrees with a focus on sustainability. Considering this fast-growing industry, it makes sense from a marketing perspective. It also provides an opportunity to sustain a “greener” messaging strategy.
Arizona State University launched the first School of Sustainability, which was featured on NBC Nightly News last year. According to its Website, “The School of Sustainability, together with the Global Institute of Sustainability, provides innovative, interdisciplinary education and research opportunities for undergraduate, graduate, and professional students, to better prepare them to identify and solve sustainability challenges.”
Green Mountain College offers an MBA in sustainability that can be taken 100% online. Hummm . . . no need to drive to class? That certainly helps reduce that carbon footprint!
Degrees in sustainability really aren’t “new”; however, they are more marketable to a wider audience now thanks to a bright spotlight on “green” living and business practices moving into the mainstream.
Here are some of the unique ways you can get the word out about degrees in sustainability:
- Sponsoring green events in your community/on your campus
- Consider placing signage on local recycling bins in parks and community areas
- Co-sponsor dealer cars that are hybrids (this hybrid vehicle is sponsored by – your degree)
- Plant trees in public parks and ask park officials if you can provide signage and educational info next to each area
- Consider running inexpensive cable TV spots on Discovery Channel’s Planet Green
More Ideas from a prior post:
- Add a section to your Website that keeps tabs on the progress your organization makes. Consider a green blog to follow the progress.
- A great reason to Twitter!
- Find those green ambassadors—people who are excited about the cause and will enthusiastically tell your story to everyone they know.
- Do something unique and get the local press to cover it.
Schools across the country are going green. The only problem is that many students, parents, alumni, and prospective students simply don’t know about it. If you have a plan for sustainability, tell the world about it. I promise that if your plan is genuine, it won’t look like you’re “greenwashing” or even bragging. It’s about sending a responsible message to the community that you are committed to doing the right thing for the environment, and our future. This is an extremely important message to send, especially for those in education.
How can you spread the green message?
- Add a section to your Website that keeps tabs on the progress your organization makes. Consider a green blog to follow the progress. Everyone knows that “going green” and implementing sustainable practices does not happen overnight.
- Add an update to your newsletters/e-newsletters.
- Finally, a useful reason to Twitter!
- Find those green ambassadors—people who are excited about the cause and will enthusiastically tell your story to everyone they know.
- Do something unique and get the local press to cover it.