Q&A: Rob Mitchell on how sustainability has changed B2B marketing

Driven by demands from government, customers, investors and regulators, sustainability is now a business imperative.

In October 2022, we brought together nearly 100 senior marketers responsible for communicating sustainability at their companies. At the event, Rob Mitchell, CEO at FT Longitude and author of The New Marketing Mission, discussed the findings of this new report with a panel of experts.

Afterwards, we talked to him about what the issue of sustainability means for the B2B marketer, including how the role is evolving and how to avoid the risks associated with this complicated topic.

Communicating about sustainability has been business critical for several years now. Why have you produced this report now?

We work with dozens of companies on thought leadership, and sustainability and its related topics have been the most in-demand themes over recent years.

Whether it is ESG, the energy transition, climate finance or net zero, there is no sign that we will be doing fewer thought leadership projects on these subjects in the future. In fact, I’m sure we will be doing a lot more.

Despite this, we’ve never really considered the impact of sustainability on the role of the marketer. Many are finding the changes difficult to navigate, and are on the sharp end of communicating them effectively. In fact, a recent survey by the WFA found that only 10% of marketers claimed to be “well advanced” towards sustainability.

It is this sort of statistic that made it clear to us that this is a subject that requires more insight, and that our audiences need more support in helping their organisations to do it better.

Is this more of a problem for marketers in B2B than in B2C?

Sustainability and brand purpose get a lot more airtime in B2C sectors than they do in B2B. Yet B2B companies represent half of the global economy, and I would argue that they actually have the power to make a bigger and quicker difference to progress on sustainability than consumer industries do.

In large part, that is because of how B2B purchasing happens. Sustainability performance is now embedded in many procurement processes, so suppliers have to take this seriously. There is not the same pressure in B2C, where these choices are down primarily to consumer preference.

So I think B2B is where the action is. And this highlights the vital role for all of our clients as B2B marketers to communicate what are often very complex messages on sustainability to a time-poor and demanding audience.

How has the focus shifted and who are the marketer’s new allies within the business?

One key impact of the rise of sustainability on the role of the marketer is that it means that the customer is no longer the sole focus. Marketers now have to think about a broader set of stakeholders — from suppliers and investors to NGOs and employees.

Today, the message from marketing is not just about extolling the virtues of a product or service; it is a more nuanced role that must consider the impact on the planet and people, as well as profit.

And it is not always clear where the marketer’s role in sustainability starts and ends. New positions have emerged, such as the chief sustainability officer, who often report directly to the CEO. The message on sustainability is not owned outright by marketing — instead, it is spread across multiple departments.

How can marketers measure success?

As the focus changes, so must the measures. Simply “selling more stuff” is not enough any more. In fact, using sales and revenue as the old barometer for success can even conflict with a company’s own sustainability goals, which may now encompass a greater emphasis on recycling and the circular economy.

One of the challenges of measuring the impact of sustainability and corporate purpose is that they straddle so many different parts of the business. Measurement may take place in pockets across the organisation, but it is not done holistically. So it is important for marketing — and the business in general — to also have a central set of KPIs that every department feeds into.

We recommend focusing on a broad set of metrics to track important signals such as reputation and brand health. Alongside this, we suggest identifying near-term targets and KPIs, such as where the company is on its progress to net zero. Sustainability should not just be about reaching a target decades away in the future.

It is the combination of these short- and long-term metrics that demonstrates progress — not just to your market but also within the business.

Is the role of the marketer changing for the better?

I don’t think there has ever been a more fascinating time to be involved in B2B marketing, because the marketer’s role is now broader and more important than ever.

When you boil it down, it is all about influencing behaviour. Traditionally, that was about influencing the customer, and success was measured on whether or not they buy a product or service. But today, influencing behaviour is much deeper and more nuanced, and it goes far beyond the customer.

B2B marketing today is about influencing behaviour that supports not only business success, but also the planet and people — and that is surely making it a richer and more rewarding role.