How to hack sustainability reporting
From Metrics to Magic
Many marketers are well aware of the value of storytelling: guiding the public and invested stakeholders to understand the journey of the company. And yet, many feel like a deer caught in the headlights when it comes to turning sustainability data into a coherent narrative. Honeycomb Strategies to the rescue!
We’ve compiled some tips on how to turn numbers into a compelling update.
Stargazing with your feet on the ground
Start with your company’s vision for how sustainability plays out long-term. Here’s the chance to share why you’re embarking on this journey and what you hope to achieve.
Then you can start to weave in what you’re tracking. Frame the data points with the specific targets that your company has identified.
Some examples could be:
Reduce food waste by 50% by 2030.
Offset 100% of company air travel emissions annually by 2027.
Incentivize 3 days of employee volunteerism annually and track participation.
If you don’t have these types of goals yet… give us a call! Or have your internal Green Team identify a few targets that can be backed with KPI.
Ambitious or “moon-shot” goals are a perfect way to show your stakeholders how big and important this endeavor is, and that you’re in it for the long haul. Backing them with data – that’s the way to show that you’re not greenwashing.
Dive into your data
If you’re working with a dashboard like HIVE (Honeycomb Insights for Venues and Events), your storytelling will benefit from the visualization of your journey. Complement key data points and narratives about your initiatives with charts and graphs that support the goals you laid out.
An example might be:
At BEST TRADE SHOW we implemented a front-of-house composting program in the café area, staffed with volunteers from the local community college. The program collected 2.9 tons of organics and helped elevate our rate of diversion from the landfill by 3% over last year – we’re well on our way to reaching that 60% diversion rate goal! In addition, careful procurement and signage choices lowered the overall waste from the event by 28%, a huge achievement in cost efficiency for ordering and waste hauling.
*Screen shot from HIVE is for illustrative purposes only; it is made up of dummy data and not representative of any real client or event.
If you have year-over-year data, this is an easy way to show a journey over time. Walk through some major stats, making sure to highlight what was a win and what was a lesson learned. Remember that if everything reported is a success but you haven’t hit your goals, there’s a transparency gap. Progress is more important than perfection!
Become the industry expert
You can lend more credibility to your reporting by understanding a broader benchmark. Reporting like Venue Sustainalytics provide some of the background data for your event or venue. Use its medians to understand if your venue is tracking above or below an average data point.
Certifications and frameworks also help contextualize your data. If you’ve achieved a level of compliance with a third-party system, in addition to showcasing your attainment you can walk readers through some highlights, showing how you went above and beyond to earn your credential.
One way to show this could be:
The EIC Sustainable Event Standard specifies that events must “Use energy-efficient (LED or better) within exhibitions to reduce power consumption, A) reported annually or B) per event.” BEST TRADE SHOW implemented an exhibition guide that guided exhibitors to source LED lights for their booths and activations. Our sustainability partner Honeycomb Strategies traveled the show floor to informally audit compliance and answer questions; we anticipate that about 50% of our 5,000 exhibiting companies had already transitioned to LEDs. It’s one piece of how we got to EIC Platinum certification!”
While some of your audience will be familiar with what it takes to earn a certification, many will not be. Flashing the badge is great for those in the know, but the true value will lie in the storytelling behind the data.
A Final Word of Reporting Wisdom
Use AI with Caution
Most marketers and copywriters can smell AI copy from a mile away. While AI can be a powerful tool to help organize your thoughts, we highly encourage you to review and add a human touch to your narrative, for a few vital reasons:
Stand out. Why sound like everyone else?Don’t let the voice of your narrative be written for you. Take control of your branding to align the content of your reporting with your organic value.
Authenticity. If we’re talking about building organic value, cutting corners on engaging with your stakeholders won’t do. Take the time and effort to reach them in ways that will make an impact.
Transparency. One of the enormous benefits of a sustainability program is demonstrating leadership and accountability. Using AI-generated reporting can compromise some of that legitimacy, undercutting the whole effort.
We’re not saying “never use AI.” We’re recommending that after organizing your thoughts using tools that work for you, always add your voice, your company’s authentic personal touch, and vet all data and information you report to ensure accuracy.
Happy Reporting!
To find out more about HIVE, contact us! Honeycomb Strategies offers free demos of the platform. We’d be happy to talk about how the tool can be customized to fit your measurement needs.
Honeycomb Strategies specializes in impactful solutions for sustainable events, sports, and venues. hcsustainability.com
hello@hcsustainability.com