How To Make Sustainability Part Of Your Brand Image

Julie Starr • September 16, 2022



Your brand image needs to be modern. And to be modern, you need to have sustainability in mind at all times. After all, we need to live in a greener world than ever, and a lot of business activity can impact heavily on that. So what can you do here? How can you ensure your brand comes off as green as you are behind closed doors ? 

It’s all in the branding and communications. Of course, you need to back up your marketing efforts, but you should always focus on that green angle whenever you are running marketing and communications campaigns. So here’s how to tie the two together and make sure they go hand in hand. 

Work with Similarly Minded Suppliers

If you’re working with sustainability focused suppliers, you can be a part of each other’s brand image. That means you can offer an opportunity to represent modern businesses for your community, and that can bring a lot more profit both ways. Local customers are always the most loyal of your entire customer base, and working with a sustainable supply chain will go a long way. Engage your supply base in your sustainability programs and be open to changing the contract if need be; you need to always work with people willing to reach the heights of sustainability. 

Make More Than One Green Effort

If you want to incorporate sustainability into your business, you need to be transparent and provide measurable results. Communicating your efforts and progress through on your company blog and through advertising is an area where you can start to attract the right attention. So make sure you’re fulfilling on your commitments, whether that is securing renewable energy agreements, designing your packaging with recyclable components, or even utilizing reusable items in the breakroom and providing that your secure document shredding is located in a notable recycling center. 

Value Transparency in Your Marketing

 

Transparency, or honesty, is the best practice when it comes to marketing. The shopping generation is getting a lot better at noticing spin when it comes to company statements, so it’s best to be straightforward and clear in all your messaging. You don’t have to invite people into your operational center, but you do need to showcase your sustainability efforts. Highlighting these elements of your company benefits all stakeholders and communication is needed related to your sustainability journey. 


An effective way to demonstrate the sincerity of your values to your audience is to not only tell them about your values but to directly show them. If you’re implementing green production processes on your manufacturing lines, for instance, then with industrial video production, you can get into the details of how you are living up to your sustainable image. Video is not only a good way to perform a demonstration, but it creates a more emotionally driven link with your audience as well, helping them better connect with the brand.

 

Bring Sustainability to your Employees

Your employees need to be encouraged on the company’s sustainability journey as well.  Encourage employees with ideas, programs, and action steps to tie their positions to the overall sustainability plan. More so, employees can talk about you on social media in this light.

Business sustainability is a valued driver of business and it’s a great marketing tool too when executed well with relevant and meaningful communications to interested stakeholders. 

5 Everyday Items That Can Quietly Boost Your Brand

By Julie Starr • July 17, 2025
The best branding doesn’t always come from big campaigns or expensive graphics. Sometimes it’s the smaller stuff that leaves the biggest impression. Things people actually use, touch, or carry with them. That’s where your brand can quietly make its mark without needing to shout about it. If you’re only focusing on social media and business cards, you’re leaving a lot on the table. Here are five overlooked ways to get your name out there that feel natural, useful, and more personal. Thank-you slips If you’re already sending out orders, there’s no reason not to include a short thank-you slip. You can easily get these made through any decent online print shop , and they’re usually pretty cheap to run off in small batches. Just a simple note that says thanks, maybe with a reminder to follow you online or a cheeky discount code for next time. It’s quick, thoughtful, and makes the whole order feel more finished. Customers notice that kind of detail, especially when everything else they buy online comes with zero personality. You don’t need a complicated design either. Just something clean with your logo, a message that sounds like you, and maybe a social handle. The point is to give them a reason to come back or remember your name without it feeling forced. Branded zip pouches If you sell physical products, offer services, or run events, small zip pouches are surprisingly effective. Think of the kind you’d use for stationery, receipts, or travel bits. You can get your brand printed on the side and hand them out with purchases or include them in welcome packs. People keep them because they’re actually useful. They get tossed in handbags, school bags, or glove boxes and your logo just keeps turning up. Cleaning cloths for glasses or screens This one works brilliantly if you’re in tech, health, beauty, or anything involving screens or eyewear. A simple microfibre cloth with your branding on it can go a long way. Everyone needs one. Whether they use it for glasses, a phone screen, or their laptop, it’s something they hang onto. It’s not the kind of thing people throw away, and that means your name sticks around too. Receipt envelopes You might already use little envelopes to hand over receipts or business cards. Branding those envelopes is a small change that makes a big difference. Instead of someone getting a scruffy bit of paper in a plain sleeve, they’re handed something that feels a bit more finished. You can even add a message inside. Doesn’t need to be anything dramatic. A simple “thanks for visiting” or “see you next time” is enough to add a personal touch. Wet wipes or mini hand gels If your business is in hospitality, food, or anything hands-on, branded wet wipes or pocket-sized hand gels are surprisingly popular. People actually use them, especially at festivals, food stalls, pop-ups, or kids’ events. They end up in handbags or cars and stick around longer than you think. They don’t scream “marketing” either. They’re practical, and when done right, they make your business feel thoughtful. That’s what good branding does, it shows you’ve thought ahead.

How Student-Led ‘Energy Audits’ Are Cutting School Costs (and Lighting the Way Forward)

By Julie Starr • July 14, 2025
What happens when students stop waiting for adults to fix things and start conducting their own energy audits? Money gets saved. The lights get switched off. Data gets analyzed. And a quiet revolution in sustainability begins—inside schools that once overlooked their own inefficiencies. Across the globe, student-led energy audits are proving that change doesn't always need to come from a policy shift or a major capital budget. Sometimes, it begins with a clipboard, a spreadsheet, and a group of curious minds asking: Why are the hallway lights on at noon when sunlight floods the building? The Energy Detectives These audits aren’t science fair projects. They’re rigorous investigations, often done in collaboration with facilities staff, local environmental nonprofits, or even engineering mentors. Students go from classroom to classroom measuring electricity usage, checking for phantom loads , and identifying where heat is escaping in winter or air conditioning is leaking in summer. One high school in Ontario saved over $12,000 a year after its Grade 11 physics students ran an energy audit and suggested simple changes—LED upgrades, motion sensors in bathrooms, and smarter heating schedules. They didn’t just propose ideas. They pitched them with spreadsheets, thermal images, and payback timelines. It worked. Learning That Pays Off—Literally Unlike textbook learning, these audits blend real-world math, environmental science, economics, and persuasive communication. Students aren’t just learning about sustainability. They’re doing it. And the savings add up. From dimming overlit hallways to reprogramming HVAC systems that run all weekend for empty buildings, students are surfacing blind spots that administrators often overlook. In some districts, their findings are influencing energy policy. Elsewhere, the audits have inspired school boards to hire sustainability coordinators—often alumni of the student programs themselves. There’s something poetic about a school funding new books or laptops from money saved by students who found out the vending machines didn’t need to be plugged in 24/7. Why This Matters More Than Ever With education budgets tightening and utility costs rising, every dollar saved is a dollar that can go back into classrooms. And here’s where it gets interesting from a family finance perspective, too. If you’re a parent setting aside money for post-secondary savings, every bit of school efficiency helps. Fewer energy costs might mean more programming, better STEM facilities, or even bursaries. That raises a broader point: when families save for their children’s future, they often look into RESPs (Registered Education Savings Plans). And many wonder—is a RESP deduction available on my taxes? While contributions themselves aren’t deductible, the gains grow tax-free, and students often pay little to no tax when they withdraw the funds during school. A Movement Worth Replicating These audits aren’t just an exercise in environmentalism. They’re leadership labs. Students learn how to spot inefficiencies, speak up in board meetings, and make a business case for change. They don’t just flip switches—they shift mindsets. And they carry these habits into adulthood. The result? A generation growing up not only with climate anxiety, but also with tools to tackle it.