The Rise of Sustainable Media

Sustainability is more than a buzzword for brands. It’s an opportunity for marketers to use their storytelling prowess to ensure consumers know exactly what they, as brands, are doing to fight climate change and reduce their environmental impact. This is also an opportunity for the CEO and boardroom to make and empower positive choices about the planet and the environment.

A new global study from Microsoft Advertising and dentsu international, 'The Rise of Sustainable Media', examines consumer awareness and behaviours linked to sustainable consumption and media usage. Our goal was to understand consumer perceptions of sustainable media by surveying more than 24,000 people from 19 countries. We compiled results to characterise how climate change concerns impacted consumer attitudes and behaviours, and to better understand how sustainable media advertising can help advance climate criteria while also growing brands.

Here are a few key takeaways:

• Globally, 86% of people in the study said they’re concerned by climate change
• Of all respondents, 91% agreed that companies can positively impact the environment through business operations and manufacturing processes
• Globally, 88% of consumers say they’ll make sustainable purchases whenever possible
• 81% of North American respondents say they’d stop using or buying products if they found out those products hurt the environment
   

The report contains key findings of this global research. It also highlights the implications and actions for the boardroom when it comes to considering business strategies and marketing campaigns.

John Cosley, Senior Director of Brand, Microsoft Advertising: “As marketers we’ve seen how values can create business value, but with this research, we wanted to demonstrate more quantitatively why it’s significant. This joint research helps us understand and inform businesses across the globe on the awareness and attitudes surrounding carbon in the media supply chain and its corresponding effect on the planet, customer behaviours, and purchasing intent. With rapidly changing attitudes and increased pressure to help combat the climate emergency, every marketer has the opportunity to help enable industry-wide change at pace.”

Download the full report here via IAB UK for a comprehensive look at the data and actionable insights, or reach out to Microsoft Advertising Online for additional available languages including Dutch, French, German, Italian and Spanish.