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Street Marketing the Green Way |
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Written by Jennifer Cirillo
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Thursday, 08 July 2010 13:07 |
As beverage companies continue to look for ways to lower their carbon footprint and tout green-minded business practices, investing in an alternative fuel fleet has become one option where savings have been found.
Honest Tea has been one of the beverage companies that remains in the forefront when it comes to its green-minded business practices and that attitude permeates through almost every aspect of the business including its marketing vehicles.
"We strive to build relationships with innovative automobile partners that are leading the way in sustainable transportation," says Jesse Merrill, director of marketing for Honest Tea.
In 2004, the company partnered with Ford to brand a fleet of Ford Escapes, which were at the time the first to market a SUV hybrid. Since then, Honest Tea has partnered with Saturn and brought on 10 Saturn VUE hybrids, which are used in cities across the country by the sales team for anything from delivering product to using them to support sampling events. "When looking to expand on our hybrid programs, we look for the latest trends in scientific innovation, and of course, what is most functional for our marketing teams," explains Merrill. "The goal is to eventually outfit our team with zero emissions vehicles."
The movement toward green vehicles has been gaining momentum—at the end of this year hybrid vehicle sales, for example, are expected to near 1 million, according to a report released last month by the global marketing information firm J.D. Power and Associates. "We do expect hybrid vehicle sales to increase significantly over the next five to seven years, accounting for over 9 percent of light vehicle sales by 2015," says Mike Omotoso, senior manager of global powertrain forecasting for J.D. Power and Associates.
Here's a look at green vehicles that can be branded to tout a beverage company's green message as its sales and marketing team hits the streets.
Toyota: Among the greenest vehicles in the Toyota fleet is the Prius, a hybrid which gets 50 miles per gallon. "If beverage companies have large staff then of course it makes sense to get them into cars that have great gas mileage—that's where [the Prius] comes in," says Bill Burris, fleet marketing trade shows, events and mobility sales manager for Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc.
GM: At the end of the year, the 2011 Volt, an electric car that uses gas to create its own electricity, will be available. How it works: plug it in, let it charge overnight and it's ready to run for up to 40 miles gas and emissions free, the company says. After that, Volt uses a range-extending gas generator that produces enough energy to power it for hundreds of miles on a single tank of gas. "It will be the first extended range electric vehicle that will be offered by any manufacturer," says Mike McGarry, marketing manager-alternative fuels, fleet and commercial operations for GM.
Roush/Ford: Roush recently partnered with Ford for propane powered Ford E-Series vans, which could be used by a distributor's sales team to deliver beverages. Propane is a domestically produced fuel that offers a 24 percent reduction in greenhouse gas emissions compared with gasoline and, for the last 15 years, propane has cost about 40 percent less than gasoline per gallon, notes Todd Mouw, VP of sales and marketing for Roush Performance.
From Beverage World July, 15, 2010
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