Do you know what 'sustainability' means?

A new survey by BuzzBack says most consumers don’t really know what the hot environmental term “sustainability” means, despite marketers’ newfound love of the word. Do you know what it means? Take this quick quiz:

1. A product or service is sustainable if ...
  a) It’s quickly replenished and production doesn’t harm the environment.
  b) We make the logo bigger and print “Sustainable!” in 80-point type.
  c) We produce the stuff around the clock, preferably in Mexico, where labor’s cheap.
  d) Alex Bogusky says it is.
2. Consumers prefer sustainable products because ...
  a) They believe Planet Earth is our No.1 commodity.
  b) Their Facebook friends bullied them into it.
  c) They’re always busting our chops about something.
  d) They said so in the focus group before they swiped all the pencils.
3. “Green marketing” means that our company ...
  a) Leverages its sound environmental practices in branding campaigns.
  b) Uses soy-based packaging because we ate all the hemp. (We had the munchies that day.)
  c) Recycles taglines to cut down on “idea pollution.”
  d) Outsources creative to Limerick, that new hot shop in Ireland.

  I was going to add a few more questions, but this post proved less sustainable than I’d hoped. Just plant a tree, OK?

—Posted by David Gianatasio

May 22, 2008 in Gianatasio | Permalink