Green Marketing

I see you're still using that car. Got Diesel?

If you still drive, you will from time to time need fuel. For most of us, that still means heading to one of those nice-looking, attractive gas stations and enjoying a few moments of downtime as you fill up the tank and watch other people, who like being there as much as you do, although their reasons may be different.

Consider the alternatives, but don't feel urged to ditch the poor old car. It can be difficult to go without. If you're like me, it might be easiest to change usage patterns gradually. Alternate fuel sources are by and by becoming available. If you need to get around in the Seattle area and happen to drive a vehicle that runs on Diesel fuel, Propel offers the vision of "fueling change." The company, a member of the Washington Clean Technology Alliance, sells biodiesel. Two different products, designed for best environmental benefits in one and fleet efficiency in the other case, replace traditional petrodiesel.

Are you one of these people who love joining programs and getting confirmation that you did good (and are not overly worried about information protection)? All you need to do is register your credit card or fleet card, use the same card to fill up, and Propel will provide a personalized emissions report within 24 hours. The program is called CleanDrive and is probably critical for Propel in generating repeat business and keeping customers happy. Getting to the company's fuel is not yet overly convenient, and any enhancement of the consumer experience might help.

Today, you can get Propel's products at one of just three stations in the Greater Seattle area. If you're lucky, one of them is close to you or you are committed enough to seek it out even if it's out of the way. To help more fueling stations get behind biodiesel, you can download a letter, customize it, and take it to a station you like to request that the owners consider offering Propel fuel. At the same time, it is suggested you contact Propel, so they can get in touch with the station and work at building their business.

If you're a station owner, Propel will gladly help you get into biodiesel sales. "Increase profits, zero cost to you" appears somewhat hyperbolic, but at this early point in the competition to bring biodiesel to consumers, there may be a competitive advantage in staking your ground today rather than tomorrow. Propel does offer a cleanly designed and properly branded fueling station that you can add to your existing facility.

From a green marketing perspective, Propel appears to be relatively solid and free from vapid claims. The company offers a strong-sounding guarantee:

You can be sure Propel Pureformance is the highest-quality biodiesel available, so drive with confidence knowing we’ll fix or replace any damage to your fuel system if our fuel was determined to be the cause of that damage.

That warranty statement might develop substantial holes if challenged (how easy or inexpensive is it to demonstrate that the biodiesel product damaged a fuel system?), but the implied commitment to customer value is refreshing. You can preview a sample emissions report. Personally, I think testimonials credited with a person's first name only are mostly worthless, and the Propel site offers a few of those. But it's relevant that Bernie's Automotive, a well-respected gas station in Ballard (a Seattle neighborhood) is on record along with other gas stations to support the company's value proposition for their businesses. The Propel blog looks at first glance to be a bit of an extended advertisement, but that is deceptive: If you dig around, you actually find lots of interesting, recent content on the topics of biodiesel, pertinent industry developments, legislation, and resources. All well worth a visit, especially if you consider purchasing a vehicle or just inherited management duties of a fleet.

The design of the Propel pages seems to follow current best practices in green marketing presentation online: Offer some green and organic forms, but don't hit people over the head with them. Use simple, friendly layouts and write in language that is professional and friendly, not jargony or patronizing. Use some blue color to show you're rooted in a rational business world. Provide a little animation to make your point and demonstrate creativity.

Propel looks like a green winner, if it can capture enough business from diesel drivers. And that's a big "if," because those are definitely a minority. You're dealing with roughly 3 to 5 percent of the total passenger car market, depending on which statistic you believe. For vendors, biodiesel would pay off in the best way if they could support fleets. Not something your neighborhood station is likely to pull off.

Emerald Exceptions

The Washington Clean Technology Alliance describes itself as "a business alliance for clean technology sectors in the state of Washington. Its mission is to secure Washington's position as a leader in clean technologies by supporting businesses to take full advantage of industry opportunities emerging in the region and around the world."

The Alliance is participating in Globe 2008, a large tradeshow for environmental technologies, products, and services. "We will occupy half of the entire U.S. Pavilion," at the show, the Alliance states. This event happens March 12 to 14 of this year at the not-too-green Convention & Exhibition Centre in downtown Vancouver, B.C., colloquially known as "Canada Place."

It's worthwhile keeping an eye on the Alliance and what it will be able to accomplish for Washington businesses and the environment. In recent weeks, one keeps hearing about the Seattle area as one exception to the threat of a nationwide recession. The innovations of green business may play a large role in keeping the regional economy sound.

Consider the Alliance exceptional in another way as well. It just doesn't seem typical for our region. Or does it? Seattle city government is famous for being process-driven and frequently inconclusive. Right or wrong, the state has a similar reputation. Note, then, that the Alliance was founded as recently as March 29, 2007, and the list of members already begins to read like a who's who of leading companies and public entities. Organizational preparations goes back a few more years, but happened within very recent memory.

During the next few weeks, we'll take a closer look at some of the Alliance's members and how they represent themselves with their environmental accomplishments.

What good is sustainability? From news fluff to serious inquiry in two or three easy steps

Marketplace, a channel for business and political news offered by American Public Media, delivers a daily Marketplace Morning Report. On the radio, the content is light: introduction, music, a news tidbit, some static from your local radio station if you live in a hilly area, a sponsor spot, another news tidbit, and on you go to more static, traffic, and weather. This morning, I happened to catch mention of Marketplace's Greenwash Brigade and checked it out online.

Several "hand-picked environmental professionals" consider companies' environmental claims on behalf of their products and services. Brigade members belong to the Public Insight Network, a grassroots generator of news tips for American Public Media (you, too, can join). Greenwash Brigade articles include a more-detailed-than-usual overview of the environmental ideas brought forward by the current crop of presidential hopefuls.

Clinton's and Obama's platforms are like falling pleasantly into Oz in comparison to the Republican platforms, but they too raise a few concerns. Obama is seriously invested in nuclear energy--living in the state with the most polluted nuclear site in the country, I'm not convinced we have the capability to store nuclear waste safely. Sorry Obama and sorry France.

These candidates have very detailed long-term energy policies and I was particularly tickled by programs designed to train and support the next generation of green collar jobs, driven by renewable technology smarts. I like Clinton's ideas on SEC disclosure regarding climate change impacts and Obama's emphasis on clean food supplies by incentivizing organic farming and pushing for country of origin and genetically engineered food labeling.

The candidate's ideas deserve consideration and criticism, especially if you're sick of hearing vapid talk of "change" and "opportunity." Get to Grist for a good overview of their proposed environmental policies.

The Greenwash Brigade offers blogs, resources, and Consumed, a site dedicated to consumer issues and sustainability. Within the blogs, Sites That Sustain Us shares fresh takes on environmental issues, but by far the meatier one is Double Takes, which returns in depth to previously covered eco-stories and examines what ensued. If you want to do more than nibble at the green surface of events, this is a decent channel to do so, as long as the occasional touches of preciousness don't bother you. That's just the flavor of much one hears on public radio. An article headlined "Building for Life" includes comments from Bill McDonough, an architect and educator, who is questioning the notion of sustainability itself (which, ironically, figures prominently in the headline section of American Public Media's environmental sites). Well worth considering as you digest companies' statements focusing on the very same.

"I'm not really that interested in sustainability," he said. "What's your relationship to your wife? If you say 'sustainable,' I'll say 'I'm sorry.' Just being sustainable doesn't necessarily mean we're being productive and prosperous, that the world becomes a better place. It simply maintains existing systems."

Local green news: steps forwards, sideways

Seattle's two daily newspapers, the Seattle Times and the Seattle Post-Intelligencer, have the traditional sections we are used to seeing in a paper, including business, sports, entertainment, national news, and so forth. They don't have a "green" or "environment" section. Why not? I'm not aware of any other newspaper that offers extended coverage of environmental issues. But here in the generally eco-aware Pacific Northwest, many readers would probably appreciate more thorough environment-related information, especially if it were to help them take action.

It's nice to see that a monthly glossy magazine, Seattle Metropolitan, has begun dedicating more space to environmental issues. The January issue includes an article by Manny Frishberg, titled "Carbon Cure (or) Feel-Good Fraud?" Frishberg provides a fine summary of the carbon offset discussion, including the many valid arguments against current carbon-offset practice. I am particularly impressed with the fact that Frishberg does not attempt to make up readers' minds for them, but allows them to think about the issues.

A nonprofit organization called NativeEnergy receives a respectable grade:

"NativeEnergy may be one of the more accountable offset projects going; it's one of just four to get an unreserved thumbs-up from twoleading authorities, the Stockholm Environmental Institute and Tufts University's Climate Initiative. Otherwise the carbon offset market leaves ample room for doubt: It is completely unregulated; brokers may choose to follow the Kyoto Principles but aren't required to. Not all brokers verify their emission cuts with third parties. Many claimed cuts are just estimates for projects that are still on the drawing board."

We discussed TerraPass and its carbon offset offerings elsewhere in this blog (see entry from November 14, 2007) and found reason to doubt the value and effectiveness of that organization's programs.

The same January issue of Seattle Metropolitan includes a long, beautifully written article about the late John Beal and his work in restoring Hamm Creek, a small stream in South Seattle that once was ruined, but today has at least a chance of environmental redemption. Without Beal and his tireless efforts, none of that would have happened. We definitely need more like him. The article also details the somewhat questionable contributions of city government to Hamm Creek's revival.

Most unfortunately, Seattle Metropolitan does not make its current content available online. If you don't want to cough up $4.99 for these two articles and many fluffier offerings, you may have to get lucky in your doctor's waiting room.

In other news, the Seattle Times tells us that biofuel company Imperium Renewables cancels its planned IPO and may seek private financing. I hope Seattle-based Imperium Renewables succeeds. If not, there's always Brazil to show the rest of the world how to create a thriving alternative fuel industry.