Global warming and Gen Z—how to reduce pollution generated by digital advertising

It’s easy to blame my parents’ generation for global warming. But since I’m going to be here longer, what can I do about it? As a marketing professional, I can start by reducing the pollution generated by digital advertising—which is both harder and easier than you might think. Not only does a single ad impression consume energy, it also produces between .08 and 1.09 grams of carbon dioxide—the same as the production of 2.5 plastic straws. A million impressions produce one ton of CO2—the same per passenger on a round-trip flight between London and Boston. It’s a disturbing number since a million impressions aren’t all that much for an average digital campaign. Ad Age Gen Z Contributor Column We welcome Gen Zers to submit fresh takes exploring Gen Z within the ad industry Learn more here In some ways, reducing emissions is not a new problem for our industry, so we can look to the past for solutions. In the old days, direct marketing meant a lot of mail. But the three-part solution—targeting, efficiency and careful sourcing—can be useful in the digital age. Since the goal of advertising is to generate sales, the quality of impressions counts, not the volume. So, just as mailers learned to refine their lists to mail fewer pieces without sacrificing response, we can more efficiently target our digital efforts. This is what agencies do best. The good ones, anyway, are built to minimize cost per sale with progressively targeted email blasts and efficient media buys. The old agencies saved paper; we can save megawatts. Energy efficiency is also a matter of infrastructure. When a digital campaign goes live, the ad space is purchased on a demand-side platform (DSP) software that allows an advertiser to buy advertising with the help of automation. Bids are exchanged, and it usually takes multiple rounds of bidding. That bidding war funnels the ad down to your web browser. The computing power required to operate this funnel is the culprit; all those exchanges require a lot of electricity, which means a lot of carbon emissions. What can be done? Partnering with an eco-friendly DSP is a great way to get out in front of the problem. The greenest ones optimize their bid speeds in real time, resulting in a faster bidding process, and in turn, less energy spent on every ad. Sourcing is another solution. We can’t recycle electricity as we do paper. But you can look for a DSP, for instance, that powers its platform with solar energy. Some even offer certificates to offset carbon emissions caused by digital advertising campaigns. And while we’re at it, how energy-efficient is your office? Of course, there are other ways to achieve sustainability. Reforestation improves the ecosystem and wildlife habitats by replanting trees in areas affected by natural disasters or excessive agriculture. Carbon soil storage sequesters CO2 waste from the air into the soil where it can’t easily escape. Direct air capture removes emissions straight from the atmosphere, purifying them for storage or recycling. Just because these efforts appear generalized doesn’t mean they’re out of reach. If you can’t help directly, consider partnering with or donating to organizations that employ some of the sustainability practices mentioned above. Here are a few specific to the advertising industry: It’s not a zero-sum game. Making small changes here and there adds up. Members of Gen Z are ambitious, driven people. But you older folks are the drivers. As experienced members of the industry, you’re the ones Gen Z looks to for leadership. And we all know that it’s much easier to enact policy from the top down. So, if you’re reading this and work in digital advertising—young or old—do some research and make a few calls. It’s worth it for all of us. Ad Age Creativity Bookmark our section covering the best in brand creativity every day Read more here

Global warming and Gen Z—how to reduce pollution generated by digital advertising

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