Robert Senior, UK chief executive of SSF Group, urged advertisers to put a 'positive spin' on messages about how they are addressing global warming. 'Consumers don't just want to see melting icecaps,' he said.
Senior added that SSF would be working with Act Now, a consultancy, based in San Francisco, that advises companies on how to embrace sustainability and target emerging green audiences, which will launch in the UK this year.
Russ Lidstone, chief strategy officer at Euro RSCG, agreed that advertisers must 'entertain' to engage consumers. 'We have fallen into a pitfall of using the same "green codes", which come across as greenwash,' he said. 'We must find compelling ways to speak about these initiatives.' According to Lidstone, user-generated content is an effective way of targeting consumers with environmental messages.
However, Friends of the Earth director Tony Juniper warned advertisers to consider the complexity of the environmental issue before pushing their initiatives. 'It's not just about carbon-offsetting,' he said. 'Companies need to change their business strategy before thinking about marketing.'
Juniper also cautioned brands against using misleading imagery to promote green programmes. He referred to a Shell ad featuring flowers coming out of oil refinery chimneys, which was banned by the Advertising Standards Authority following a complaint by Friends of the Earth, as an example of poor 'green' advertising.
He cited Eurostar, which it worked with on the brand's 'Tread lightly' five-year environmental plan, Marks & Spencer, which launched its 'Plan A' initiative last year, and The Co-operative Bank as brands that have successfully incorporated sustainability into their business strategies.
Peter Kellner, president of YouGov added: 'We must push the urgency of climate change. Consumers need to be persuaded that they and their children will suffer if the world doesn't act now.'
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