How to build a legitimate sustainability campaign

Sustainability is no longer a brand value, but a minimal expectation. 

A 2024 report found more than three-quarters (78%) of consumers feel sustainability is an important factor when shopping; and more than half (55%) were willing to pay more for eco-friendly brands. 

This sentiment is becoming increasingly important in the b2b space too. A 2023 Merkle report surveying more than 3500 B2B buyers found that the five decision drivers that have grown in importance to the B2B buyers are “takes care of its suppliers, business partners, and communities,” “is committed to reducing its environmental impact,” “is known as being a good employer,” “has a culture of diversity and inclusion,” and “is a brand that aligns with my personal values and ethics.” These factors became significantly more important to a winning outcome in 2023 versus 2022.

Our own research has shown that 85% of senior marketers are increasing focus on sustainability within their own organisation, with one commenting that the practice is now “transitioning from a differentiator to a qualifier.”

Sustainability’s shift from value-add to a vital strategic component creates both challenge and opportunity. Whilst sustainability-led campaigns can build trust and drive loyalty, they also come under heightened scrutiny. Audiences are rightly more alert to greenwashing than ever before, and a hollow claim can quickly damage credibility. 

So, this article is designed to provide practical guidance for marketers seeking to build authentic, effective sustainability campaigns that deliver measurable impact.

Why sustainability matters now

There has never been more pressure on brands to adopt and embrace sustainable approaches to their work – with the squeeze coming from multiple fronts. These include: 

• Consumer and internal expectations – Customers seek brands that align with their values. For many, sustainability is no longer optional but a deciding factor in purchasing. Employees also want to work for businesses that take sustainability seriously, so it needs to be considered for talent attraction and retention.

• Regulations and rules – New rules and tightening standards are impacting varies industries. For example, in sectors like construction, reporting on Scope 1, 2 and now even Scope 3 emissions is becoming standard practice. Emissions and sustainability reporting is also being built into more and more tenders, particularly in the public sector. 

• Competitive landscape – As sustainability becomes a key metric across all industries. brands that fail to keep pace risk reputational damage and market irrelevance. Those who have a solid and measurable sustainability story to tell can build trust and differentiation.

The dangers of greenwashing 

Companies treating sustainability as a virtue signalling exercise are quickly found out. 

Trust on the green front must be earned – and any company espousing sustainable credentials must be ready to demonstrate their legitimacy, value and impact.  

The practice of “greenwashing” – making claims about sustainability that are misleading, exaggerated, or unsubstantiated – is a reputational risk that can undo years of brand equity. Our research found that senior marketers are increasingly conscious of this, with one commenting: “Clients are asking for real data, not greenwash.”

Here at Refresh we work to our very own ‘TIME’ principle when building sustainability campaigns, taking the following into account: 

Transparency

Audiences trust honesty over perfection. If your organisation comes up against challenges during its sustainability journey – such as struggling to reduce Scope 3 emissions – acknowledging and sharing what the company is doing to rectify this can help to build credibility and humanise the business. Of course, there’s such  a thing as sharing too much information, so make sure the correct line is drawn and consider working with a communications specialist to support.  

Integration

Sustainability messaging should not be confined to an organisation’s CSR pages. It needs to be consistent across advertising, PR, product marketing, and internal comms. Sustainability campaigns cannot be bolt-ons. They must be grounded in what the organisation is actually doing – in its operations, supply chain, product development, and governance. Marketing then becomes the vehicle to communicate progress, not to invent it.

Metrics 

Define your campaign’s success metrics before launch and make sure these are split across different functions – your success metrics for the rollout of the comms/marketing campaign around your sustainability efforts will be different from the business’ overall sustainability measurement metrics. For a comms/marketing specific perspective, measurement metrics could include brand trust scores, customer loyalty, lead generation from sustainability content, or employee engagement levels. 

Evidence 

Every sustainability statement should be supported by strong data, ideally verified by a third party. For example, carbon reduction percentages, waste diverted from landfill, supply chain certifications etc. 

A step-by-step guide to building a great sustainability campaign 

Step 1: Set objectives 

• Establish why there is an active push on sustainability – why are we doing this? 
  
• What are the objectives? If it’s purely for the purposes of trying to generate positive PR, the holes in this strategy will appear quickly. But if the company is doing some excellent things from a sustainability perspective and is eager to share results, then it’s worth investment. 

Step 2: Audit current activity 

• What sustainability initiatives are underway across the business?
• Which are most credible, measurable, and market-relevant?
• Where are the gaps that could undermine claims?

Step 3: Identify audience priorities 

• What aspects of sustainability matter most to your stakeholders (customers, investors, employees, partners)?
• Use research, surveys, or social media to understand key stakeholder sentiment and values

Step 4: Define the narrative 

• Craft a clear sustainability story that ties activity to purpose
• Avoid jargon – make it human and relatable

Step 5: Build campaigns around proof points 

• Consider using someone from the business who is a sustainability specialist to spearhead the campaign – e.g a head of sustainability – rather than a marketing or sales person 
• Showcase specific initiatives (e.g. supply chain transparency, recycling rates, carbon neutral facilities)
• Use case studies and storytelling to demonstrate impact

Step 6: Create engaging content 

• Impact reports which allow you to build campaigns around them
• Video storytelling showing change in action
• Infographics with digestible data
• Thought leadership articles positioning your brand as a sustainability leader

Step 7: Launch and integrate 

• Roll out across owned, earned, and paid channels
• Ensure internal comms mirror external comms, so employees become advocates

Step 8: Monitor, report, and refine

• Track both business impact and audience sentiment
• Publish updates regularly to maintain trust

The final checklist: 

• Are claims backed by verifiable data? [x]
• Have we acknowledged challenges as well as progress? [x]
• Is sustainability integrated across brand activity, not siloed? [x]
• Have we avoided vague language (e.g. “eco-friendly” without evidence)? [x]
• Are we measuring impact beyond campaign outputs (e.g. trust, loyalty, leads)? [x]
• Have employees been engaged as part of the campaign? [x]

And remember…

Sustainability is no longer a differentiator – it is key to being taken seriously by consumers, stakeholders, and employees alike. The challenge for marketers is to move beyond slogans and into substance. 

By anchoring campaigns in genuine organisational practice, being transparent about both successes and struggles, and consistently measuring impact, marketers can build sustainability campaigns that do more than just tick a box.

Done well, sustainability marketing is not just about reducing harm – it’s about creating long-term business value, strengthening customer loyalty, and shaping a brand that can thrive in a future defined by responsibility.