An Inside Look at Two B2B Earth Day Campaigns

While the political climate hasn't exactly been favoring corporate sustainability lately, the 56th annual Earth Day that took place last week provided brands with a clear opportunity to speak about their environmental work. One day can't change everything, but just as New Year's Day gives people the chance to metaphorically reset and tackle new goals, Earth Day can kick off a new cycle of stronger sustainability efforts, especially those who make April more of an Earth Month.

To understand more about how brands selected their Earth Day/Earth Month campaigns and what the wins and learnings were, we interviewed leaders at two B2B companies: 

• Sarah Haffey, co-founder of Alder Packaging, a sustainability-focused packaging company for beauty products
• Garrett Benisch, director of design development at Bioforcetech, a climate tech company that helps wastewater treatment plants turn biosolids into biochar

 Their efforts show that even if you're not a consumer-facing business, there's so much room to talk about the issues facing individuals that ultimately affect businesses. And you can do so in a way that positions your brand as one that more B2B customers and suppliers want to work with, while also influencing others in ways that help the planet.

Earth Day Campaign Overviews

Both companies took the approach of leveraging partnerships for Earth Day campaigns, exemplifying how solving the climate crisis is a team effort. Plus, from a marketing perspective, collaborative campaigns provide a built-in distribution boost, as you get exposed to each other's audiences, such as through each partner sharing on social.

"This year, Alder Packaging highlighted our partnership with the nonprofit Pact Collective to distribute an educational campaign focused on responsible beauty product disposal. We developed a social media video that guided consumers on exactly how to clean/empty their beauty packaging before properly recycling and disposing — an often-overlooked component of sustainability. Our goal was to raise awareness about the Pact Collective’s drop-off bins at Sephora and Ulta, but we took it a step further by also breaking down the steps before taking it to the drop-off bin," explains Haffey.

For Bioforcetech, the company took a media angle, not only by participating in a documentary but tying that to its Earth Day marketing.

"Bioforcetech is proud to be featured in two episodes of The Climate Restorers, a new global documentary series highlighting the people and technologies actively restoring the planet. The series brings together a diverse range of voices, from scientists and entrepreneurs to Indigenous leaders and climate justice advocates—and we’re honored to be among them. To celebrate the occasion, we planned a watch party and an in-person plant tour at our facility," said Benisch.

Earth Day Messaging

While choosing the medium is one aspect of an Earth Day campaign, it's critical to also think about your target audience and the tone of the Earth Day message. For Alder Packaging, the goal was to strike the balance between informing consumers without shaming them about doing the wrong thing.

"We focused on sustainability for the everyday beauty customer who may not even know how to properly dispose or recycle their beauty empties. Wishcycling is an unfortunate reality where consumers throw a used beauty product into the recycling bin and hope for the best. Our messaging avoided negative judgment or criticism and instead empowered the beauty customer to understand how easy and fun it can be to clean out their beauty products before disposing," explains Haffey.

Bioforcetech also took an educational approach with an emphasis on in-person interactions.

"We decided to plan these events because we are always thinking of ways to engage with the community, and this would give us the opportunity to invite guests into our world. It’s not often that one gets to tour a wastewater treatment plant, so we find our guests are excited both for our technology and for learning about what's at the end of the drain in general," says Benisch.

"These activations aren't just celebrations of our media feature; they’re part of a long-term strategy to make climate tech more visible, tangible, and community-connected. After all, we’re literally transforming the community’s waste into something valuable and sustainable — they should be a part of it," he added.

What Worked Well for These Brands' Earth Day Campaigns

While it's still early to say exactly what the impact of these Earth Day campaigns will be from a business perspective, both brands found that their campaigns helped drive organic brand awareness. For Alder Packaging, that includes connecting with a B2C audience too, since their beauty brand clients are selling consumer goods.

"Collaboration has been key. By tapping into our partnership with the Pact Collective, we opened up a like-minded community for both B2B and B2C social media followers. The engaging video style of our campaign helped simplify the complex topic into an easy-to-digest social media sensation — over 4,000 views and counting. We also saw great traction from both companies and consumers commenting and sharing, which extended our reach organically," says Haffey.

Similarly, Bioforcetech saw traction throughout April in terms of inbound engagement in terms of learning more about the company.

"People are curious and genuinely want to understand how we transform waste into climate-positive materials.  Earth Month has given us a natural platform to meet that interest. Our plant tours are filling up, and we’ve seen a meaningful boost in awareness and engagement as a result. By opening our doors and letting people witness the process, we’ve strengthened visibility and deepened credibility," says Benisch.

Advancing Sustainability Communication Past Earth Day

While these brands found some success in their marketing, it's important to show up for more than just Earth Day if you want to leverage the full benefits of becoming a more sustainable brand.

"Earth Day is a beautiful celebration, but it’s also a reminder that every day leads up to Earth Day. Part of our brand strategy and social media content is to make sustainable packaging education a year-round initiative. We’re continuously adding training to our external and internal communications," says Haffey.

That includes both educating customers  (including potentially the B2C customers who could drive demand at Alder Packaging's B2B customers) and employees so that the company's sustainability communication can be more effective going forward.

"On social media, we spotlight sustainable packaging trends and innovation. Within our company, we host quarterly ‘Packaging School’ refreshers so all of our team members understand how different stages of the supply chain impact sustainability. We review the benefits and drawbacks of different materials, nearshoring options for our clients, and how to avoid greenwashing in our everyday interactions with clients. The more our team knows and cares, the more they share that passion with our beauty brand clients and their beauty customers," explains Haffey.

Focusing on sustainability communication throughout the year can also be an advantage in terms of differentiating your marketing and attracting interest when the competition is lower. 

"One of the biggest challenges is standing out during high-volume moments like Earth Day or Climate Week SF, when hundreds of events compete for attention. Moving forward, we want to spread our storytelling and engagement efforts throughout the year. By hosting smaller-scale activations during 'quieter' months, we can cut through the noise and foster more authentic connections with our community and stakeholders," says Benisch.

"We also believe in leaning into your role as a solutions provider. Our partnerships with municipalities allow us to deliver real change, addressing PFAS contamination, reducing landfill emissions, and creating valuable resources from waste. Communicating that kind of impact takes more than press releases. It takes transparency, storytelling, and a commitment to ongoing dialogue with your community," he adds.

Disclosure: Carbon Neutral Copy's parent company, JournoContent LLC, has clients involved in sustainability-related areas, among others. The owner of Carbon Neutral Copy, Jacob (Jake) Safane, has investments in sustainability-related companies, among others.

As such, conflicts of interest related to these and other investments/business relationships, even if unintended, may exist at times. Please email info@carbonneutralcopy.com if you'd like further clarification on any issues.