In an online world, where it is so easy for customers to compare prices, any edge, even a slight one, is to be grabbed by both hands. One of the easiest seeming routes is to appear ‘better’ than your competitors by having lower prices, quicker service, or, perhaps, going greener in your email marketing.

The idea of sustainability, going carbon neutral and not harming the environment, gives positives all round. Not only that, you could feel good about yourself and your company.

Will you feel quite so smug if all you are doing is not using up quite so many resources, slightly reducing you carbon footprint, or a minimal reduction in the degree of harm to the environment? That’s what many companies are boasting about, although not in those precise words.

If your next email marketing campaign will grandly profess that you are greener than your competitors, you might well be clicking into a minefield. It’s a risky stance to take. Not only is there the concern that you might not have done everything you said you have, but that all your costly improvements will only generate criticisms on social media.

An international company boasted of their initiative to reduce plastics and general packaging. Yet their boxes still contained vast amounts of plastic. Memes on social media were quite funny, so gained a momentum all of their own. It was fun for some. 

If your next email marketing campaign you are going to reduce your non-recyclable packaging, then say just that. Don’t suggest you have gone green, or 100% plastic free if the parcels will have plastic in or around them. 

You might think I’m making obvious points. I am of course, but so many companies fail to do the basics. Ensuring what you promise is delivered is a basic requirement of email marketing, and it matters. You know that if you build anticipation, then even the slightest shortfall will create resentment and the loss of a star or two in the reviews.

There would appear to be little point in being vague and providing a link to an explanatory page on your website. That’s not to say those who enjoy criticising will look for reasons not to. 

Going green can cost. You use your present packaging for reasons, and one of those is price. You need to recoup that somehow and, hopefully, increase your RoI. It benefits no one if the greenest email marketing company is the one that folds.

The suggestion is that 75% of the public prefer paper packaging over plastic. We all know that pushing paper into the bin with the green lid is not negative impact, but customers like it.

If you are opting for paper packaging, then say just that. Don’t mention going green. Go light on the recyclable bit as the public is generally well informed as to the niceties. Sustainability might be possible if you can back it up. And if you can, do so.

There are any number of benefits for going green. Go for it, but go carefully.