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Reducing greenhouse gases and tackling global warming is a massive problem for society at large, and there a will be a big societal price tag for fixing it. Achieving that in a severe recession must be one of the thorniest issues on the government agenda for the rest of this decade and beyond.

Welcome to Wolfe Tracking, Cohn & Wolfe’s single, all-agency blog featuring observations, insights and ideas from a team of communications professionals across each practice and region in our global network. Like the wolf, the truth is elusive. But every one of our more than 25 bloggers is in dogged pursuit—and we are eager to share our experiences surveying this new media wilderness.

Increasingly, the question on most minds is not if a recession is coming but when. Everyday we are confronted with shrill headlines predicting the worst for the economy. So why, as a marketer and public relations professional, am I not quaking in my shoes? Increasingly, the question on most minds is not if a recession is coming but when. Everyday we are confronted with shrill headlines predicting the worst for the economy. So why, as a marketer and public relations professional, am I not quaking in my shoes? The answer is surprisingly simple: unlike other marketing categories, this downturn should be a boom for public relations. Even in recessionary times, consumers still spend dollars albeit in a more conservative manner. As the dollar becomes more precious, consumers grow increasingly skeptical of traditional advertising messages and are relying on recommendations from fellow consumers. Companies and their brands must adapt to this shift away from traditional media to succeed. Word of mouth is king. The mass-market economy has been replaced by a “customer economy,” which calls for customer-to-customer communications built on trust. Users are embracing this form of engagement as evidenced by their activities online. According to the Pew Internet & American Life Project Surveys, 27% of Americans share files from their own computers with others online, 30% rate a product, service or person using an online rating system, 34% use the Internet to display photos and 11% use online social or professional networking sites like Facebook or LinkedIn. Traditional media services have revealed their flaws as they struggle to not only connect but remain relevant to consumers. Public relations firms are best positioned to strategically drive branding. Leadership needs to be taken by firms that understand the universe of communications – across segments and various means of communication – and not solely a buyer-seller directive. Traditional advertising agencies will still be needed but on a smaller-scale basis. In fact, marketers have less confidence in advertising agencies and will turn to other for effective branding. More than three out of four corporate advertisers – 78% to be exact – said they have less confidence today in the effectiveness of TV advertising than they did two years ago, according to a survey released at the Association of National Advertisers TV Ad Forum (March 2006). In 2006, Nike spent just 33 percent of its $678 million US advertising budget on ads with television networks and other traditional media companies -- down from 55 percent 10 years ago, according to Advertising Age. “We’re not in the business of keeping the media companies alive. We’re in the business of connecting with consumers,” said Trevor Edwards, Nike’s corporate vice president for global and category management in an interview with The New York Times. Today’s consumer is far more sophisticated and even more skeptical of traditional advertising messages. Public relations agencies are well positioned to lead brand strategy in today’s fragmented media environment because they can break through this wall of skepticism. PR has been delivering third credibility since its inception and has taken the lead in applying that knowledge to help brands navigate today’s hyper-syndicated Web environment in order to build lasting and meaningful connections with their core audiences. PR is adept in understanding how to communicate with all types of constituents utilizing alternative channels for building brand image, connecting with audiences effectively, delivering a demonstrable return on investment and driving sales.

One of the UK's leading environmental campaigners, Tony Juniper, who is just about to stand down as Executive Director of Friends of the Earth, talks to Cohn & Wolfe's Geoff Beattie about the results of the Landor/CW 'Green Brands' study 2008. In this clip, Tony analyses the finding that British people seem to be less worried about 'climate change' and more concerned about personal environmental issues like recycling. Tony was one of our speakers at a 'Green Brands 2008' event, which took place in London last week. He joined Ian Wood, European Strategy Director at Landor, and Geoff Beattie to debate the main issues highlighted by the study, in front of an audience which included representatives from many of the UK's leading brands. Watch out for more from our exclusive interview in the days ahead. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8LZdtmLF_ns[/youtube]

There was an incredible amount to learn from the Sustainable Brands conference in Monterey. I have picked the following six big lessons: 1. Brands which aspire to become sustainable need to communicate on a personal, not a political, level. Landor/Cohn & Wolfe's own 'Green Brands' study showed that consumers on both sides of the Atlantic are much more concerned about personal environmental issues, such as waste and packaging, and they are being 'turned off' (to some extent) by abstract concepts like 'global warming'. This is why supermarkets are making such a connection with people in both the UK and the USA. Abstract appeals to 'save the planet' won't work as well for brands as aspiring to make individual lives more 'sustainable'. 2. The environmental/sustainable message of brands must be combined with the more traditional consumer touch points, such as efficacy, price, etc. This was the starting point for Method, the home products company, which is growing incredibly fast from a zero base. There were many other examples of this important point. 3. Becoming a sustainable brand is also about better, long-term business performance. At a time of economic woes, a week of talking about sustainability might seem like a massive irrelevance. But we heard time and again that this big subject is just as much about profitable business as it is about the environment or social impacts. The people who created 'Hip Investor' believe they can outperform the market by investing in sustainable brands. 4. Any company can aim to create a sustainable brand. That was the view of green marketing guru Jacqueline Ottman, when I put the question to her. In Monterey, we heard from two companies, Dow Chemical and Clorox (best known for making bleach), who would not have been top of anyone's 'sustainable brands' list a few years ago. Yet both have embraced the sustainability agenda (in very different ways) which has earned them credit from customers, employees, shareholders and the media. Even coal companies, one of the biggest sources of greenhouse gas emissions, can become 'sustainable brands' if they truly embrace the 'clean coal' agenda and invest in new technology. 5. Brands which aspire to be sustainable must 'get their house in order' before they even start planning any 'green marketing' initiatives. Measurement is critical. The best brands are performing 'life cycle' analysis - complex assessments which provide critical data on the social, environmental and economic impact of products through the supply chain, production process and after purchase. Life cycle analysis tells a brand just how far it needs to go before it can claim to be 'sustainable'. A good example of this is the work done by the New Belgium Brewery, Colorado, on some of their beers. This showed the company that, even though they prided themselves on making big progress in the production process (e.g. 100% renewable energy), life cycle analysis of the product after purchase showed they had a long way to go. But that's OK! Sustainability is a journey, not an end point. Consumers don't expect perfection when it comes to sustainability. But they do want to see that brands understand the scale of the problem, have a plan, and are in the process of implementing it. 6. There are now unprecedented opportunities for brands to get their sustainable messages across through both old and new media. This point came through loud and clear during the media session which I hosted, with Claire Alexander from Discovery Channel's new Planet Green, Nick Aster of Triplepundit.com, Anya Kamenetz of Fast Company, and Betsy Rosenberg of Eco-Talk. After being a little slow off the market, traditional print and broadcast media are embracing the sustainability wholeheartedly. The launch of an entire network devoted to the subject is a significant moment. And online, Nick Aster was a great example of the passionate, innovative and interactive journalism which is springing up all over the digital media landscape. To finish off, I have a clip from my interview with green marketing guru Jacqueline Ottman. Jacqueline has been in this business for more than twenty years, advising huge brands like HSBC. Her insights into sustainable brands in 2008 are well worth listening to. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IAp17GLPpds[/youtube]

How does a brewery become sustainable? The nature of the business places heavy demands on natural resources, so it's one of the more difficult green challenges. In this video from the Sustainable Brands conference in Monterey, Greg Owsley of the New Belgium Brewery in Colorado talks about the company's commitment to becoming more sustainable, and the insights gained from an environmental life cycle analysis of one of its beers, Fat Tire. Greg's entertaining presentation at the conference was one of the most talked about events during the week. Another Green Wolfie will be posting her impressions of that a little later. You can read more about New Belgium's sustainability initiatives here. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9ouum2HUWrs[/youtube]

Kindley Walsh Lawlor, Senior Director of Strategic Planning & Environmental Affairs at Gap Inc spoke at the Sustainable Brands conference in Monterey. There was much interest in Gap's activities. Here is Kindley talking to me about the company's 'eco-strategies'. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uSwu9cDoQwQ[/youtube]

What does Oscar the Grouch, the Sesame Street character who lived in a trash can, have to do with the California Environmental Protection Agency? We discovered at the Sustainable Brands 2008 conference in Monterey that Oscar is helping the California EPA tackle the serious issue of pollution from old fluorescent light bulbs, which contain mercury. California has created a highly innovative 'Take-It-Back' Partnership, fronted by Oscar, which is demonstrating the state's firm commitment to environmental initiatives. For those in Europe who think we are doing so much more than the Americans on the environment, take a look at what California is doing. At the conference, we heard from Leonard Robinson, chief deputy director for the EPA's Department of Toxic Substances Control. In the video below he is talking to me about the 'Take-It-Back partnership. [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eo9nV5k290Q[/youtube]

On the first day of SB 2008, my colleague Annie Longsworth and Russ Meyer from our WPP sister company, Landor, unveiled our Green Brands study 2008, examining consumer perceptions of environmental issues and companies in both the UK and the USA. The findings are remarkably similar. In both countries, it's body care companies and supermarkets who are really capturing the imagination of the public with their environmental initiatives, such as Marks & Spencer's 'Plan A'. The Guardian has picked up on the supermarket angle in its report on our study:

High-profile green advertising campaigns by supermarkets appear to be paying off with five of the country's biggest grocers coming out top in a survey of the most environmentally friendly brands. Campaigns to discourage plastic bag use and an emphasis on less packaging helped Marks & Spencer, Waitrose, Tesco, Sainsbury's and Asda take five of the top six places in a survey of 1,500 people.

What strikes me about this year is that, although people are clearly more worried about the economy in 2008, they have not forgotten green issues. They are forming ever-more sophisticated opinions of companies based on their environmental performance and commitment.