It takes a special kind if cyclist to venture out in the cold and rain in December just for the fun of it. But there was more to this small ride than just the hot chocolate at the end. The focus of Business for Bikes is to show the corporate world that supporting cycling makes good financial sense. The organizers handed out Thank You cards for cyclists to give to the businesses along the Hornby route, and encouraged them to visit, shop and spread the velo love along the route. I picked up a few stocking stuffers myself at the Urban Gardener, and the manager there said she had noticed some support from cyclists and told me they were actually getting ready to install a bike rack. This was my first ride on the new path, and I must say, it makes the trip downtown a much more enjoyable experience. I was also able to see the local businesses much better than from my car, and I plan to use the thank you cards as I return for more Christmas Shopping.
The Green Briefs Two-Bits:
Overall, the event was fun for the handful that attended, and there was a news camera there as well, so hopefully the media picked up the pro business message. It’s tough to get critical mass at this cold, dark, busy time of year, however. I hope Business for Bikes can build and sustain this momentum with a series of rides, or festivals along the route. And one last thought… Could Business for Bikes be called Bikes for Business?

— Post From My iPhone

On the evening of Friday December 3rd, over 400 guests filled the pressroom at Hemlock Printers for hParty1.0 – a gala open house and technology launch event. Besides toasting over 40 years of leadership in the printing industry, the crowd was on hand to witness the launch of a ‘new communications platform’, which promised to bridge the print/digital divide. The room was aglow, the atmosphere electric. Like something out of an alternate Steve Jobs universe, the hPad burst into life on the video screen to applause, astonishment and… laughter?

Under all that hype, Hemlock launched…. a note pad.

The irony of the event was not lost on the crowd of designers, clients, businesspeople and agency types. Invitations had come via a combination of customized postcards, personalized Nametag™ RSVP web pages and email follow-up. Visitors were toured through Hemlock’s sophisticated digital printing, offset printing and web response facilities. And the hPad video itself is now racking up hits on YouTube.

So how and why would Hemlock use old-school technology to tell the world about their integrated digital offering?

Full disclosure: Unicycle Creative was the agency who partnered with Hemlock on the development of the hPad and hParty theme. The idea began as a beer-lunch quip by Vice President of Client Services Richard Kouwenhoven that rapidly scope-crept into a full-fledged invitation campaign, notebook brochure design, and launch video.

The strength of using such a classic platform is two-fold. First, the Hemlock brand is rooted in fine printing tradition. We felt it was important to affirm print’s place in the marketing mix by showing just how flexible, affordable, reliable and sustainable it really is when compared with digital alternatives. Secondly, we wanted to get attention for Hemlock’s digital strengths with a bit of wit, humour and impact. We felt taking a few lighthearted shots at the latest gadgetry would appeal to the purist tech geeks as much as the traditionalists.

So if you have a brand with a traditional background, don’t be too quick to abandon it. Even if your message itself is highly technical. A thoughtful blend of the old and the new can have even more impact than the latest bright shiny object.

To find out more about their digital print vision and printing services, visit Hemlock.com.

To get your own hPad, go deeper on the hParty1.0 branding, or talk marketing strategy, send me (Lorne Craig) an email here at Green Briefs.

Thanks to Don Barnard for his stellar shooting and editing on the hPad video; and to James Spooner, Peter Clarke and Gord Lord at GGRP for their magnificent sound design.

Progress.

— Post From My iPhone

Few things get me as riled as seeing brands that could make (and back up) a bold green claim in their marketing, but for some reason decide not to do so. I have two cases in point – advertisers that have all the ammunition they need to tell a compelling story but leave it unfired. My usual caveat is that I am not intending to sling rocks at any particular agency or group, and believe me, I know it’s easier to criticize than create. But the green marketing movement needs better. So here goes:

BC Tree Fruits “There’s something in the water, soil and sunshine” newspaper ad.

The re-branding of this iconic BC institution is, for the most part, excellently done. The line ‘Way more than Delicious’ has great depth and promises an apple advantage that is more than skin deep (sorry). And the packaging is beautiful, with its use of authentic archival imagery. (A depiction which may ignore some more recent issues around imported picker labourers…. but that’s a whole other topic)

But the ad I saw in my local Vancouver Courier really left a bitter taste on my green palate. It wasn’t the design; this was tastefully done. It wasn’t the use of local grower Lindsay Hainstock from Osoyoos; I always appreciate knowing there are real people behind a brand. No, it was the hackneyed ‘it’s-so-beautiful-and-sunny-here-in-the-Okanagan-that-our-products-must-be-good-too!’ approach that left me rolling my eyes. Likewise in the radio spot.

The Green Briefs Two-Bits: Come on, BCTF. Make the concept live up to this beautiful design. Here are two strategic starter directions right from your artfully-redesigned website:

1) BC Tree Fruits is a true co-operative: the growers own the packing houses, BC Tree Fruits Limited and their associated assets.
2) Over 800 Okanagan Valley families own BC Tree Fruits. Folks who every day put everything they have into tending their orchards.

If that’s not enough, there are the host of advantages to buying local, from supporting strong standards for food quality to keeping your dollars in the Province to helping create a more secure food system. Anything would be better than ‘Okanagan Sunshine!!’

Okay, I’m over it now. Like I said, for the most part a beautifully redesigned brand. But a bit more flesh on that core idea would go a long way.

University of Northern British Columbia – Canada’s Green University™

By trademarking such a bold phrase, UNBC opens the door to closer scrutiny. But this SkyTrain poster does little to engage my imagination. “1st with Harvard” leaps out, but means little. Winning an award is not as important as what you win an award for. Once I visit their website and do a little digging, I find out that the reason for the award was UNBC’s Bioenergy Project that uses local forest fuels, (either in the form of wood pellets or residue from sawmill operations) to heat buildings and provide hot water on campus. Hello!! There are so many angles to this story, from playing off the campus’ cold northern location in Prince George to the more complex story of promoting a technology that could be a savior for BC’s forest industry, I hardly know where to start. And with all the smartphones I saw on that SkyTrain platform, a more intriguing web call-to-action would have been well rewarded.

The Green Briefs Two-Bits: Use some of your University smarts to educate the public, UNBC. And who cares about Harvard??

So what do you think? Did I pick it right or does my review bite? Comments, please.

Victory is OURS!!! We shall never stop!! Bwahahaha!!

— Post From My iPhone

If the new Eco-Drive program catches on, carbon offsets could one day be be as built-in as power windows. The theory is simple: dealers who buy into Eco-Drive purchase enough carbon offsets to balance off all the emissions a driver will create over a year of their vehicle ownership. Offsets are supplied by LivClean, a carbon offset retailer endorsed by the David Suzuki/Pembina Institute, who invests in emission-reducing projects like renewable wind energy farms, diverting waste from landfill, and using alternative fuels to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The Winston Auto Group recently contacted me to communicate their excitement at joining the pilot program. “As a dealership I think we are often automatically put into the anti-green category.” says Winston’s Managing Prtner, Amanda Mungal. ” But we like to think of ourselves as selling re-used cars, we’ve started a recycling program for our shared offices and now we will be able to purchase offsets for all of our vehicles.”

The customer is emailed a certificate that indicates there emissions have been offset for one year, and one Eco-Drive news release page states that “The program also aims to educate drivers on behavioral changes that will reduce driving related emissions like anti-idling, proper car maintenance and eco-fuel choices such as ethanol blend gasoline.”

Sounds like an interesting idea, and I’m all for anything that keeps an environmental message on the radar during any purchase experience. It will be interesting to see how they massage the messaging for dealerships where eco-responsibility is not high on the decision-making priority list.

And as this is a pilot program, Eco-Drive may want to consider a more unique and specific brand name. There are a lot of competing web links out there (just Google Eco-Drive to see what I mean).

So let’s watch and see where the rubber meets the road on this offset sticker option program!

In an age where Lindsay Lohan’s coke habit gets more airtime than most wars, it’s more important than ever to take time to reflect on the sacrifice and brutality of the conflicts that have brought us to this point.

But do we really have to produce millions of plastic poppies that will probably live in landfills long after western civilization itself has declined?

I say it’s time for a redesign of this symbol.

Start with the material. It would be a simple task to source recycled paperboard that would be more than adequate for a few weeks on most lapels. If it gets too wilted, buy another one, cheapskate.

To take it another step further, there is a company called Botanical Paper Works that produces paper infused with flower seeds. Produce a version of the lapel poppy from this material, and on November 12th, just pop the poppy in a plant pot and let a whole new season of remembrance begin.

As for the stick-pin that draws more blood annually than the Red Cross, that will take some more engineering. I for one would pay double for a simple safety pin.

So there you have it. I leave it to the free market to make the most of this opportunity, so pass the idea around if you like it.

In the meantime,  I’ll still put my money in the can, but I’ll pass on the plastic poppy, thanks. I think I’ll make my own lapel flower this year. This day is too important to remember with cheap plastic.

Who knew stock photo models could be so mean? Support the Union Gospel Mission or whatever homeless helper charity you believe in.

— Post From My iPhone

I’m nursing a Stanley Park Ale in the pulsating hip basement of the Calabash Bistro, with a crowd of cyclist types way cooler than me. It’s Momentum Magazine’s BikeStyle Tour Fashion Show and it’s making me feel like a stowaway in bike geek heaven.

Momentum is ‘North America’s Bike Lifestyle Magazine’. And they created a truly electric atmosphere, blocking off the whole street outside the bistro. A valet bike parking pen was bristling with two wheeled steeds of every pedigree. And after a few cool libations at Calabash, the crowd poured out into the street where models cruised up under Hollywood lights, showing off both bikes and wear. My little iPhone video hardly does it justice.

It was refreshing to see a fashion show where the models actually had something to DO besides look seriously over-serious. They zipped up on their bikes, propped them on kickstands, and even deftly demonstrated technical panniers and folding bike mechanisms. All while looking decidedly UN-GoreTex-ish.

So what was missing?
The mainstream. Yaletown yuppies who think they can’t look macho if they’re not idling in a Bimmer. Burrard street business babes who won’t leave the house without three-inch heels. (Yes, there were models in pumps on the pedals) This whole event was one great inside party, cheering on the announcement of new bike lanes, signing up members for the Vancouver Area Cycling Coalition and geeking out over the latest in bike light design. A hip choir cheering the sermon from the two-wheeled pulpit.

The Green Briefs Two Bits: If we’re going to move cycling to the mainstream, maybe that’s where we have to bring these sorts of events. Perhaps with time we can take over Granville or Robson streets. Momentum Magazine’s  half price subscription offer ($10 including a free beer ticket) was a great deal. Picture partnering that with a coupon for a larger chain like Starbucks or Blenz. More on site branding for the event would also help.

But overall I was definitely more excited than bitter. Seeing the style, fun and sheer urban panache that cycling can have just fills me with visions of grandeur, I guess. But I definitely need to upgrade my ‘bikedrobe’ before crashing the next fashionista cycle happening. (See my dream jacket here)

So a tip of the helmet to Mia Kohout, the hard pedaling peeps from Momentum, the cheery crew at Calabash and everyone involved with Bikestyle. Let’s see an even bigger, better more mainstream event next year!

Can a business improvement association label a whole region green? Vancouver’s Strathcona Business Improvement Association thinks so. They have branded themselves as the ‘Strathcona Green Zone’ and are in their third year of focusing, sharing and collaborating with local business members on sustainability.
This was the message at Sustainability 3.0, an annual presentation and mini trade fair headlined by sustainability author Bob Willard.
BIA Director Toby Barazzuol led off the evening.
“A business community is like a complex ecosystem. In Strathcona, we have all the diversity here, we just need to make the connections.”
And connections were not in short supply, with over 25 participants such as One Planet Catering, Ethical Deal, Tradeworks, Terasen Gas, the City of Vancouver, the Saul Good Gift Co, Eclipse Awards and CBR Products.

Sustainability more than a feel good initiative
Bob Willard brought a big corporate boardroom table approach with his presentation, ‘Communicating the Business Case for Sustainability’.
Quoting from a new Harvard Business Review study, Willard now describes corporate sustainability as a ‘business imperative’. Using the oft referenced symbol of the 3-legged stool, he urged green champions to abandon the ‘save the world’ rhetoric.
“Laying a guilt trip on someone is no way to connect with them” Willard suggested.
“It’s important to be flexible in language that you use. When talking with business types, use business language.”
So instead of ‘People, Planet, Profits’, consider sustainability as ‘Asset Management’ with categories like

• Financial Capital/Built Capital
• Natural Capital
• Human/Social Capital

Through his experience and research, SME companies that embrace these virtues stand to increase profits by at least 66% over 5 years.
And this is not a temporary thing. Willard describes the most recent economic upheaval as unique in that it’s the first recession where the corporate focus on green issues actually increased.
“The Sustainability Imperative is a Megatrend, magnified by escalating public and environmental concern,” Willard continued. Quoting from a May Harvard Business Review article, he explained that “Environmental issues have steadily encroached on businesses’ capacity to create value for stakeholders. That’s why companies must convert this threat to an opportunity.”

The most exciting developments are happening at the local / municipal and provincial / state levels
Willard encouraged everyone in the room to continue down the green path, no matter what the scale of their enterprise.
“Get on with it. Do not wait. People are taking ownership locally. It’s happening. The timing is perfect.”

For a room full of small businesses branding themselves as a ‘Green Zone’, these were welcome words, indeed.

The Green Briefs 2 Bits: Taking ownership and offering connections at the regional level may have greater effect than it first appears. I suspect we may well see more local neighbourhoods, communities and business groups take a similar sustainability approach, as the business case for green outpaces big business and big government’s ability to adapt.

— Post From My iPhone