CSR: common terms and acronyms
The world of Sustainability Marketing includes its own set of preferred terms, definitions and acronyms. This post explores some of the more common and relevant to this website.
1. Sustainability: is my preferred term and the one you will find used most often on this website. In the business context, this refers to more than just the environment. It covers the sustainable use and long-term impact on people, planet and profit by a company.
2. CSR: stands for Corporate Social Responsibility. This is also sometimes referred to more simply as Corporate Responsibility (CR). It is connected to the idea that companies are responsible for making more than just profit. One important aspect of this concept is that CR is usually self-selected and self-regulating. Some larger companies base their priorities on market research while others choose them based on how they relate to other industry standards or internal strategy.
3. Corporate Purpose: This is connected to the idea of a company vision or value - some sort of higher purpose - that is implemented demonstrably so customers begin to understand this is a central reason for being and motivator of the company.
4. Responsible Marketing: refers to being truthful and accurate in advertising. Essentially, it relates to building trust with consumers. A number of international corporations, for example, are now developing policies about how they advertise products for children. For example, the Coca-Cola company now has a formal written policy about not advertising to children under 12 or hiring celebrities or sponsoring events and so on where children are the main target. Many international corporations are now writing formal policies such as this which outline what they believe to be responsible marketing and how they intend to uphold this value in practice.
5. ILO: International Labour Organization.
6. LCA: this references a concept called Life Cycle Assessment which analyses the total environmental impact of a product throughout its existence (and not just as part of its production). It is a very in-depth look at how much a product (or service costs) by exploring everything (everything=environment, supply chain, supply chain environments and so on). While this may be the gold standard internationally, this process is mainly used by large corporations due to its complexity.
This concept comes from UNEP (United Nations Environment Programmes) who define it as, “The life cycle of a product involves flows of material, energy and money. Nonetheless, the picture is not complete unless we look also at the production and consumption impacts on all actors along the ‘value chain’ – workers, local communities, consumers and society itself.“
7. ESG: Environmental, Social and Governance. This is sometimes also known as the Triple Bottom Line (3BL or TBL) which I explored in a previous post.
8. Sustainable Living: this term is currently preferred by many large global companies. It means living and consuming in ways that support thriving personally but also in relation to society and the planet as a whole as well. For example, the company Unilever frequently uses this term and to find out more about the research it is based on and further definitions, go here.
9. GRI: Global Reporting Initiative. This is an international and independent standards organization that supports businesses around the world to develop their sustainability reporting. They categorize the standards they have developed into 4 separate areas: Universal, Environmental, Social and Economic. Although they “publish” these standards online, they require you to give them personal information first (such as your email address).
10. Green Marketing: this is another term for Sustainability Marketing (which is the term I use most frequently on this site). Other terms such as environmental marketing or Green Promotion or Social Marketing or Sustainable Advertising are also used to refer to similar concepts.
This term relates to the marketing, promotion and advertising of businesses and products that have sustainable ESG policies or aspects. The green marketing approach usually tells a story. The story it tells is about an eco-friendly, ethical and responsible business that integrates what they do with their Company Purpose. Idea here is to prove that eco-friendly products are not just being produced to profit off “green consumers” but part of a wider commitment and set of actions.
It promotes this story and their “credentials” through marketing campaigns and related aspects such as websites, archives of evidence, formal reporting of sustainability actions, branding, packaging, eco-labels as well as fulfilling recognized standards and certifications, advertising and interactive events and archives of evidence.
1. Sustainability: is my preferred term and the one you will find used most often on this website. In the business context, this refers to more than just the environment. It covers the sustainable use and long-term impact on people, planet and profit by a company.
2. CSR: stands for Corporate Social Responsibility. This is also sometimes referred to more simply as Corporate Responsibility (CR). It is connected to the idea that companies are responsible for making more than just profit. One important aspect of this concept is that CR is usually self-selected and self-regulating. Some larger companies base their priorities on market research while others choose them based on how they relate to other industry standards or internal strategy.
"Landscapes" by Kanishka Ingle is licensed under CC BY-ND 4.0
3. Corporate Purpose: This is connected to the idea of a company vision or value - some sort of higher purpose - that is implemented demonstrably so customers begin to understand this is a central reason for being and motivator of the company.
4. Responsible Marketing: refers to being truthful and accurate in advertising. Essentially, it relates to building trust with consumers. A number of international corporations, for example, are now developing policies about how they advertise products for children. For example, the Coca-Cola company now has a formal written policy about not advertising to children under 12 or hiring celebrities or sponsoring events and so on where children are the main target. Many international corporations are now writing formal policies such as this which outline what they believe to be responsible marketing and how they intend to uphold this value in practice.
5. ILO: International Labour Organization.
6. LCA: this references a concept called Life Cycle Assessment which analyses the total environmental impact of a product throughout its existence (and not just as part of its production). It is a very in-depth look at how much a product (or service costs) by exploring everything (everything=environment, supply chain, supply chain environments and so on). While this may be the gold standard internationally, this process is mainly used by large corporations due to its complexity.
This concept comes from UNEP (United Nations Environment Programmes) who define it as, “The life cycle of a product involves flows of material, energy and money. Nonetheless, the picture is not complete unless we look also at the production and consumption impacts on all actors along the ‘value chain’ – workers, local communities, consumers and society itself.“
"fashion landscapes" by uair01 is licensed under CC BY 2.0
7. ESG: Environmental, Social and Governance. This is sometimes also known as the Triple Bottom Line (3BL or TBL) which I explored in a previous post.
8. Sustainable Living: this term is currently preferred by many large global companies. It means living and consuming in ways that support thriving personally but also in relation to society and the planet as a whole as well. For example, the company Unilever frequently uses this term and to find out more about the research it is based on and further definitions, go here.
9. GRI: Global Reporting Initiative. This is an international and independent standards organization that supports businesses around the world to develop their sustainability reporting. They categorize the standards they have developed into 4 separate areas: Universal, Environmental, Social and Economic. Although they “publish” these standards online, they require you to give them personal information first (such as your email address).
10. Green Marketing: this is another term for Sustainability Marketing (which is the term I use most frequently on this site). Other terms such as environmental marketing or Green Promotion or Social Marketing or Sustainable Advertising are also used to refer to similar concepts.
This term relates to the marketing, promotion and advertising of businesses and products that have sustainable ESG policies or aspects. The green marketing approach usually tells a story. The story it tells is about an eco-friendly, ethical and responsible business that integrates what they do with their Company Purpose. Idea here is to prove that eco-friendly products are not just being produced to profit off “green consumers” but part of a wider commitment and set of actions.
It promotes this story and their “credentials” through marketing campaigns and related aspects such as websites, archives of evidence, formal reporting of sustainability actions, branding, packaging, eco-labels as well as fulfilling recognized standards and certifications, advertising and interactive events and archives of evidence.
