While companies mainly focus on cutting Co2 in their supply chain, marketing has only recently seen changes to have a more climate-friendly impact. Companies and agencies have started to calculate their Co2 emissions from media planning for example.
Vodafone Germany has taken their marketing to a next level of climate consciousness. Their #loveshareprotect TVC has been produced carbon neutral by approaching the whole shooting from a new angle.
TVC: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_xq-jk83v7A
The shoot itself has seen a reduction in resources such as energy use. By using mainly natural light and no petrol driven energy sources the energy needed for production reduced significantly.
But also logistics have been considered. Travelling was reduced to train and mainly having locations that are walking distance from train stations. If a car was needed in a rare case an electronic car was the choice.
The catering came from local business and food which was served on regular plates, glasses and mugs.
Having less tech on set also meant fewer people that were required on set. Usually there are around 100 people on set for such a TVC. They did narrow it down to 25. This has meant that some people had to wear several hats at once, i.e. doing make up but also looking after catering. While this was new, a change from the unknown and certainly required more effort, the crew saw the worth in it which they also saw as an inspiration for making changes in their personal consumption and habits.
While the outcome looks stunning and less shy of a traditionally produced TVC the company is not afraid to say that this is only a start and improvement is needed. Vodafone has seen this as an experiment to see how far they can go if they try and to learn for future shoots and marketing briefs. They have reduced waste and emissions significantly but they still needed to trade off emissions by buying certificates.
This is not ideal but as with all change it is a step in the right direction that will be followed by more steps. It has been a direction that worked and works.
Being honest about progress and what is left to do is important in the journey to being more sustainable and protecting the planet we live and rely on.
Documentary: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GurDsDgSrBw
(turn on subtitles)
Vodafone has been working with Odaline (a content agency in Germany) since a couple of years now and this time again has been tasked to carry this TVC experiment further to go beyond just being aired on TV but creating more awareness for the process and need for change. A documentary about the production as well as a social extension were the means to transport that message.
During the month of November Odaline has engaged 9 so called Roamers who have gotten in groups of 3 with the task to capture the best sunset in Germany. And the social community was tasked with the same through their hashtag challenge. It was all under the claim ‘Zeig, was du liebst’ (show what you love). By appreciating nature and demonstrating its beauty around us should lead to acting more conscious and demonstrating it is worth changing in order to protect the planet.
Pictures again have only been taken on smart phones and within 3 weeks this social extension has gained a reach of 3 million users.
#loveshareprotect challenge contributions: https://www.instagram.com/explore/tags/loveshareprotect/
Marketing can have a sustainable approach, a sustainable supply chain. It takes will power and effort to change but it is an important step in the right direction.
And this experiment has shown it is possible not just for small challenger brands from which we probably expect such moves, but also for big corporations.
Thanks to Axel Koppermann from Odaline for talking to me about the #loveshareprotect documentary and social extension and the background of this experiment. Axel is Director Partnerships at Odaline.