Ad Matters 01.03.2024

More of a personal note to open this week’s Ad Matters as it’s been a week I’ve been working up to for about 15 months or so. Our new book, Sustainable Advertising, published by Kogan Page, is out this Sunday. Sustainability matters. Not just for the OBVIOUS reason, but because it is also central to our industry’s future – how we respond to climate change will shape everything we do.

I’m hugely grateful to my co-author, Seb Munden, the Ad Net Zero Chair, for joining me in writing this book and to our Credos editor, George Grant, for helping get it over the line. It’s been fascinating to review advertising’s efforts around climate change and put forward a viewpoint of what a truly sustainable industry, from end-to-end, could look like. We open with a chapter that sets out a manifesto and close with a chapter containing a checklist, sandwiched between 14 chapters packed full of research, insights, case studies and guides, to help people hopefully take one step closer to working more sustainably.

I believe it’s within reach. It’s about how fast the approach, the techniques and the tools become commonplace in our industry. Plus, the wider introduction of sustainable products and services that meet people’s needs. It’s a huge opportunity – 21st century advertising’s most exciting and fulfilling brief!

All builds welcome. We take the book on tour now to help keep the sustainability conversation in our industry alive and encourage more progress. There really is no time to lose.

Our pick of recent ads:

• Tissues at the ready. Battersea Cats & Dogs home have released their first work with New Commercial Arts: ‘The Bond’.
• Amnesty International has unveiled a new ad with Olivia Colman highlighting the overlooked human rights issues in the UK with ‘Before our eyes’ by Shape History.
• An important public health campaign by the UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) to remind parents of the risks of diseases like measles if vaccinations are missed.
• B&Q empowers DIY-ers with ‘You can do it’ by Uncommon Creative Studio.
• The Home Office has launched a ‘Stop Think Fraud’ campaign to drive fraud and online scam awareness by FCB London, supported by our ad literacy programme, Media Smart. More on this next week!

Our must-reads:

• Rachel Schnorr, our colleague across the pond at Ad Net Zero US, reflects on how the Super Bowl can be more sustainable by using tools such as AdGreen’s carbon calculator. (ANA)
• For the third year running, Ocean Outdoor has awarded OOH space to environmental charities as part of their Drops in the Ocean environmental fund. (Campaign)
• Green businesses and jobs are booming… but politicisation is a threat. (The Guardian)
• Are you on the A list? Campaign has brought back their list of the most influential leaders in the industry.  (Campaign)

Diary dates:

• Our exceptional UK Advertising Exports team is taking 40 brilliant UK companies to SXSW from March 8-12. Explore the full programme here.
• Seeking insights into sustainability leadership? Join Seb Munden, myself, and the Grace Blue team for their webinar titled ‘Future-Proof Your Brand, Attract Top Talent & Save the Planet’ on March 18 from 12-1pm. Register for free here.
• LEAD is heading North! We’re bringing together over 200 industry leaders in Manchester’s Home Theatre on May 9. Book your place here.

Finally, happy St David’s Day. Wales is a beautiful country, I’ve been lucky enough to visit a number of times. So, in honour of Wales, here’s a link to what Wales Online judged back in 2015 to be the nine most unforgettable Welsh advertising campaigns of all time.