WFA says marketing is not moving fast enough on climate change
New research from the WFA and Kantar points to marketing’s role in driving sustainable behaviors – but marketers don’t have the skills to back it up.
WFA boss Stephan Loerke says marketers are uniquely placed to combat climate change / Adobe Stock
The World Federation of Advertisers (WFA) has released its Sustainable Marketing 2030 report, in collaboration with Kantar’s sustainable transformation practice. It highlights that businesses need to do more to prioritize sustainability, with 39% of respondents just now taking their first steps towards more climate-friendly practices.
The report is based on quantitative and qualitative research, with responses from 938 senior client-side marketers across 48 countries worldwide, including a wide mix of territories, company sizes, and categories. The research was conducted between October 2022 and March 2023.
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It found that 54% of marketers agree that the industry has a significant role to play in educating people about their choices and actions, reflecting the insight that marketing must seek to drive and normalize sustainable behaviors – both internally and externally.
However, the reality of climate change and the urgent need to radically shift business practices to halt warming at 1.5 degrees is starting to dawn on marketers, with capability gaps growing from 20% in 2021 to 35%.
Additionally, with 90% of marketers agreeing that sustainability agendas must be more ambitious and 94% saying marketers need to act more bravely on the issue, more brands than ever before have sustainability as a key priority in their marketing strategy – up 26% from 2021 to 43% in 2023.
“Marketers are finally starting to grasp the scale of the sustainability challenge, particularly the climate crisis. We have reached the point where the status quo is no longer an option,” said Stephan Loerke, the WFA’s chief exec.
Yet, significant challenges remain. 82% of respondents said companies need to be braver in communicating their sustainability efforts and not stay silent on the matter for fear of greenwashing.
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The top challenges identified as reasons for climate inaction are largely organizational. A lack of internal resources (35%), a knowledge and skills gap (35%) and an organizational mindset that perceives sustainability as costly (32%) were all cited as barriers to more rigorous sustainability efforts.
“Radical transformation is essential,” continued Loerke. “We passionately believe that marketers are uniquely placed to drive the change we need on account of their unique creativity, innovation and communication skillset. The Sustainable Marketing 2030 initiative focuses on how marketers can drive growth while embracing the sustainability agenda.”