Small Business Branding and How it Relates to Climate Change, Sustainability and the Environment
At the beginning of 2021, I signed contracts to do branding work for two different mother-daughter-run small businesses. I’ll be honest, doing design and branding for small businesses wasn’t always on my radar – I felt more drawn to work with nonprofits and conservation groups because that seemed like the best way to make a big impact on fighting the climate crisis. However, during the brand discovery phase, I learned all about the purpose of each of these businesses, their goals and reasons for starting a business and it helped me make a connection that I hadn’t made before: small businesses are a catalyst for slowing down climate change. Even if a small business isn’t necessarily focused on sustainability or being outright eco-friendly, they’re helping save the planet simply by existing. Here’s why:
The difference between small businesses and corporations.
It’s no secret that large corporations prioritize profit over a number of other things: people, communities, animals and their habitats, the environment, clean air and water. Many big businesses have a “do whatever it takes” attitude in order to make money and then look the other way at the negative impacts their operations have on the planet and its people. To make themselves look good in the public eye, they might donate money to an environmental cause or make a pledge to do better in the future, but they aren’t likely going to do anything that’s going to hurt their bottom line.
The good news is, consumers have a lot of power. It’s the whole “put your money where your mouth is” scenario. If someone sees a brand or corporation doing something they don’t like - like polluting or treating employees poorly - they can spend their money elsewhere to support a company that’s doing something they do like. These small actions can lead to a big impact.
This is often when eco-conscience consumers look to locally-owned shops and small businesses or find a new brand that’s thinking differently and more sustainably about how something’s made or done. Here, they’re more likely to find transparency in a small brand’s marketing, ethics, supply chains, environmental and social impacts, community involvement, etc.
Ok, great, but what does this have to do with small business branding?
Think about the reason so many Americans are buying goods at Wal-Mart, lunch at McDonald’s or shopping on Amazon. Trust. In general, people are naturally drawn to something that feels familiar and safe rather than something unknown. But guess what? Your small business can give people that same warm, fuzzy, safe feeling with good branding and solid relationship building (and without all the nasty baggage and negative impacts of a corporation). Through developing a recognizable brand and building trust within your local market or niche audience, your small business has a better chance at succeeding against a corporation. It’s true that hiring a brand designer or a creative agency can feel like a cumbersome cost in the early stages of starting a business, but it should be considered an investment and just another cost of doing (and staying in) business.
Family-owned, independent small businesses have always been the backbone of America, they help build communities, create jobs, grow the economy and can help fight climate change by minimizing environmental impacts and taking market share from corporations.