Though sustainability is typically associated with the environment, it applies equally in social and economic contexts. This triple-bottom-line view of sustainability — planet, people, profits — is favored by R.Bruer Company.
For some, marketing and sustainability exist at opposite ends of the spectrum. After all, marketing has long fueled material consumption by individuals and businesses. And it’s the harmful effects of excessive and inequitable consumption that have given impetus to worldwide movements toward sustainability. Much of what passes for “green marketing” today ultimately does little to counter these ill effects.
Just as marketers contribute to unsustainable consumption patterns, we can – and must – be central to the solution.
Just as marketers contribute to unsustainable consumption patterns, we can – and must – be central to the solution. We need smart, creative and courageous marketers to build awareness and demand for organizations, products and services that genuinely enable a more sustainable future. This asks marketers to stand for sustainability in their relationships with employers, clients, co-workers, suppliers, even customers. Not always a simple matter when sustainability itself defies a simple definition.
R.Bruer recognizes the ambiguities in marketing’s relationship to sustainability. We also believe the careful balancing of environmental, social and financial needs — by whatever name you choose to give it — should be integral to the work of every organization and every marketer.