What embracing climate data in your marketing will do
Business thrives on data. We know that data drives strategy, innovation, and decision making, yet many businesses fail to unlock its full potential. While budgets are allocated and data is gathered and analyzed, a common issue arises: A lot of data remains underleveraged in the long term.
When it comes to climate data, this gap is more of a chasm. Despite the growing urgency around sustainability, environmental data is often not being effectively harnessed, particularly in brand communication, since companies want to avoid the pitfalls of greenwashing. This gap is a missed opportunity for businesses across all industries.
You’ve probably seen countless claims around eco-friendliness, green, and net zero, but the reality behind these terms is often far more complex than the slogans suggest. Too often, the actual data behind these claims is oversimplified or ignored, leaving consumers without the insights they need to make informed decisions.
Read on to effectively translate climate data into authentic, actionable marketing messaging, from a tech founder who built a company grounded in science-based climate data and its real-world applications.
Enhance granularity and accuracy
There is a reason why tech companies emphasize the importance of detailed and accurate data. For data to be both credible and actionable, it must first achieve a high degree of precision—a solid foundation that allows businesses to make confident decisions.
For example, my company Vaayu provides software that enables retail brands and businesses to track their global impact. The technology generates granular, precise data on key areas such as carbon emissions, water usage, and waste through an automated calculation process. This level of detail helps partners identify specific areas where they can make targeted reductions in their footprint and, crucially, communicate to shoppers about it, driving more meaningful sustainability outcomes.
By leveraging the most robust data available, businesses gain insights that can be translated into transparent, credible marketing messages that resonate with consumers.
Build climate data understanding
In business, data empowers everyone involved. To effectively translate climate data into consumer-facing messaging, it’s essential to get as many eyes and ears on the data as possible. By involving diverse perspectives throughout the process, the data can be refined into something that is easy to understand while preserving its nuance and detail.
In fact, as a lifelong advocate for carbon literacy, I’ve found that the most impactful way to drive real change is by involving team members that hail not only from science but across communication, climate strategy, and more. By fostering a shared understanding of data, teams can better collaborate, translate insights into meaningful actions, and communicate transparently with consumers, ultimately building credibility and trust.
Let the data tell the story
Once brands gain clarity on what they can and cannot say, data becomes the perfect storyteller, offering not just accurate conclusions but also persuasive ones. In many cases, this alignment is what drives the most compelling success stories.
Take the recent work of Vestiaire Collective, a global online marketplace specializing in buying and selling pre-owned luxury fashion and accessories. Through its collaboration with Vaayu, Vestiaire Collective harnessed the cost-per-wear metric to highlight the economic and environmental benefits of preloved fashion.
The data that fueled this campaign came from an extensive consumer survey, drawing insights from over 13,000 respondents globally. To obtain the cost-per-wear metric, we analyzed data from 250,000 transactions, cross-verified and scaled with literature values. We found that preloved luxury items purchased on Vestiaire Collective were 33% more affordable long term than brand new fast fashion, contrary to what most consumers would believe. This unique survey sets the stage for a future where consumers reconsider their fashion investments, with findings indicating that 70% prioritized items with a good resale value, also signaling a shift in consumer behavior.
“By leveraging Vaayu’s carbon tracking technology, we have shown that preloved fashion offers both economic and environmental benefits,” says Dounia Wone, chief impact officer of Vestiaire Collective. “Together, we can transform consumption habits and create a more sustainable world.”
Trustworthy, accurate data is essential for translating complex climate insights into compelling marketing. Vestiaire Collective’s campaign demonstrates that reliable data drives impactful storytelling, highlighting both environmental and financial benefits.
The future we need to build isn’t just about ticking boxes—it’s about driving a real shift in behavior and practices, aligning profit with purpose. When brands use their data strategically, it has the potential to ignite consumer trust and spark meaningful change. So, as businesses fully embrace climate data, they are not simply participants in the sustainability conversation; they’re leading it.
Namrata Sandhu is cofounder and CEO of Vaayu.