19 creative ways to tell your sustainability story.

Like leaves turning from green to gold and pumpkin spice wafting in the air, the start of sustainability reporting season is palpable. We’re getting a first look at clients’ progress against goals. Setting up messaging workshops. And thinking about the stories behind the numbers.

But there’s more to this season than creating a standout report. It’s also a great time to think holistically about your core sustainability messages—so you can extend your story far beyond the report. With a content plan you roll out all year long, you can bring more attention to your programs, amplify your commitments, reach specific audiences, and rally more people around your greatest causes.

If you haven’t created a sustainability content plan before, it’s easiest if you start small. And if you’ve been at it for a while, maybe this is your year to go big. Either way, your initial steps are to define your content goals, understand your audiences, pinpoint your core messages, and audit your existing content.

From there, it’s time to imagine the possibilities. And because our team simply can’t resist helping with the fun part, here are 19 ideas mined from our years in sustainability and B2B content creation—some we had a hand in and others we just find cool and compelling. From fast and easy derivatives to big rock content, this list is packed with inspiration to help you make the most of all that report research and data you’re collecting now, so you can imprint your brand in audiences’ hearts and minds far beyond the reporting season

Quick Wins

1. Create graphical infobits, each with an interesting fact, stat, or insight and a strong payoff caption. Great for your social channels.
2. Repurpose report spotlights for your employee newsletter.
3. Use your report highlights to create a fact sheet on your goals and progress.
4. Create Instagram profiles of your sustainability superstars.
5. Highlight your key initiatives in a sell sheet or deck for partners and customers.
6. Turn a static chart from your report into an animated gif—send via email and/or post to social channels.
7. Turn report highlights and stakeholder quotes into an engaging infographic.

Next level

1. Create a Q&A-style article with a sustainability exec from your organization or a partner org.
2. Create web stories that delve deeper into your key initiatives.
3. Develop an eBook or guide that takes a topic from the report and offers useful tips and strategies that readers can implement.
4. Ghostwrite a thought leadership article for one of your execs on a key sustainability pillar.
5. Create a series of “reporter on the street” videos to explore a topic from a fun and authentic consumer angle.
6. Host a podcast and interview colleagues, partners, and industry trailblazers from across your sector.
7. Create an explainer video on an interesting initiative in your sustainability program.

Big rocks

1. Create an interactive article with data visualizations of your most compelling metrics.
2. Gather audio and video at a conference or event and turn it into an interactive experience.
3. Develop a series of branded videos that provide a creative take on a key initiative. (This one could ONLY be on brand for Liquid Death!)
4. Develop a fun and creative “What’s your type?” quiz focused on sustainability types.
5. The super-hard but great one: Gamify your research and data. Bonus: How The Financial Times made the game is almost as interesting as playing it.