4 Experts Weigh in on Sustainable Actions
In a time when it can feel overwhelming to keep up with what's sustainable and what's not, it's vital to recognize the areas in which we can control outcomes for the wellbeing of people and the planet. For marketers, finding ways to promote sustainable actions, as well as integrate sustainable actions, processes, and products, is essential to doing business ethically and responsibly.
Below are some actionable ideas and inspiring thoughts from industry leaders. Don't forget to check out ANA's guide on Sustainability here.
"As an industry, it's crucial to consider the different sources of CO2 emissions within our digital marketing efforts. Only then can we strategize ways to cut down and offset our carbon footprint.
"Businesses integrating CO2-measurement solutions throughout the entire campaign operation will be leading the way in this endeavor. These solutions can examine various campaign parameters such as duration, format, target market, and creative weight to estimate CO2 emissions. They also offer optimization recommendations for future campaigns by cross-referencing this data with performance analyses.
"[It's also important to be cognizant of the fact that] businesses can generate excess emissions by going through multiple partners in a tech stack, creating a lengthy chain of dependencies that reduces their efficiency. Those working with a full-stack partner can avoid this, delivering significant improvements in sustainability and productivity."
Rob Sewell, Co-Founder of and CEO at SmartFrame Technologies:
"The tech industry is all about creating bigger and better solutions – but this doesn't always take environmental impact into account. The quest for convenience has driven up energy use; digital technologies currently account for 2 to 4 percent of greenhouse gas emissions across Europe.
"Adopting a 'less is more' mindset is a crucial next step for all businesses choosing a tech solution. This is particularly true for the media and advertising ecosystem where simple considerations, including reducing unnecessary data storage and transfers, adopting sustainable cloud infrastructures, and prioritizing quality over quantity in ad delivery, can have a considerable impact on overall emissions."
Sarah Whitfield, CMO at Covatic:
"The technology industry has the power to transform the global environment with the invention and production of sustainable alternatives to everyday functions. But it also has the potential to do huge damage and deplete the Earth's resources even further if the companies involved aren't committed to reducing their carbon footprint.
"In the advertising technology industry specifically, there has been a huge shift towards sustainability, largely driven by consumer expectations. While there is still a way to go, it is reassuring to see businesses taking steps to explore green alternatives – both independently and through initiatives like the B Corp Certification.
"Traditional programmatic technology and digital advertising ecosystems also use a significant amount of processing power, which in turn contributes to a greater carbon footprint. So, advertisers need to look for more planet-friendly alternatives, such as on-device technology, where data is processed locally rather than in the cloud."
Alex Collmer, CEO at Vidmob:
"By Earth Day 2025, we need to reach a better balance amidst this content abundance. Alongside harnessing the flexibility intelligent technology brings, industry players must refine the focus of their testing efforts with creative data and write more informed prompts. This will help curb unnecessary ad iterations and reduce waste by ensuring resources are allocated to those assets that are most likely to perform.
"As gen AI holds the industry hot seat, more advertisers are considering its impact on sustainability, as well as efficiency. Major brands have spent the past year leveraging smart tools to enable on-the-fly development — building and testing dozens of ad iterations to determine which creative direction works best. But while the production cost of uninformed hyper-scale experimentation is low, it's evident that the wastage on ineffective advertising and energy consumption is coming at a high environmental price."
The views and opinions expressed in Industry Insights are solely those of the contributor and do not necessarily reflect the official position of the ANA or imply endorsement from the ANA.
Joanna Fragopoulos is a director of editorial and content development at ANA.