Communicating sustainability: 10 ways to tell your ecotourism story
Let’s talk about sustainability.
The s-word is on the tip of everyone’s tongues because it speaks to a growing market that cares about environmental impacts and social responsibility. So much so that making sustainability a focus of your marketing and communications strategies might not only drive traffic to your website, but could increase your credibility with guests, promote customer loyalty, attract partners and help genuine ecotourism grow.
If sharing your business’ sustainability initiatives is at the bottom of your tourism business to-do list in this age of digital word-of-mouth, it’s time to think again. Here’s how to become a successful ecotourism storyteller.
1. Start with a list
Make a list of what your business does for the environment and local communities - from energy consumption and waste management to local employment. If you’re certified with Ecotourism Australia, you will have already documented all your great initiatives when you became certified. Keep that list up to date and look for things your guests would like to hear about.
2. Get creative
The average person gets one information interruption every eight minutes and some workers are interrupted every three minutes. Is that wordy, matter-of-fact sentence you wrote about your recycling practices going to stand out? We think not.
Instead of throwing content wildly into the social media abyss, look for entertaining, informative and authentic ways to connect with people. Invite tourists to step into your sustainability world before, during and after their trip. Choose eye-catching photographs or videos to showcase the unique landscapes and people where you operate and how you support them.
Dirk Hartog Island, WA
What does the rainforest around your ecolodge sound like? Where are guests’ meals sourced from? Give people stories that they can see, hear and experience - stories that enhance their trip and give them something to talk about when they go home.
3. Act while it’s fresh
In our world of insta-information, acting in the moment counts. There’s something infinitely more engaging about seeing a photo of a newborn koala, a beach clean-up or a cultural celebration as it happens - rather than weeks later.
Keep a phone or camera handy to capture expected (and unexpected) moments, and aim to post quick updates in one or two days and longer stories within a week. This keeps potential and previous customers up to date with what you’re doing, and might even encourage them to come back.
4. Tell it like it is
At one end of the sustainability communications scale is ‘greenwashing’ - creating an environmentally friendly image without implementing sound practices. At the other is ‘greenhushing’ - downplaying environmental practices to avoid the risk of greenwash accusations. The best place to be is right in the middle.
The best approach is to share what you’re doing simply, honestly, transparently and passionately, regardless of where you are on your sustainability journey. Vague words like ‘eco-friendly’ and ‘green’ might attract visitors to your website, but you’ll create far more credibility with customers if you can share real examples of what you do.
Contributing to sea turtle research. Credit Oliver Thompson/Sea Darwin.
Green Hotelier makes a great point about being realistic in their blog post Communicating sustainability to guests: “Remember, you are not saving the environment / planet / Mother Earth. You are just doing a little less bad.” If you claim to be sustainable, make sure you can back it up with good evidence - such as certification, awards and a carbon footprint. Tip: If you choose to share your sustainability goals, make sure they are S.M.A.R.T. (specific, measureable, achievable, realistic and time-bound).
5. Skip the s-word
Many businesses flash the word ‘sustainable’ around in their marketing schemes without fully understanding its meaning - or worse, without caring.
Put simply, sustainability is about acting in a way that ensures your actions don’t take anything away from future generations. For a tourism business this includes everything from way you use natural resources such as water and timber, your impacts on wildlife and natural habitats, and your waste and carbon emissions, to how you affect the social and economic wellbeing of local communities.
With so many businesses marketing themselves as sustainable, tourists can easily become sceptical about fuzzy environmental claims and words like ‘green’ and ‘eco-friendly’ can become meaningless. To stand out as a genuine ecotourism business, try telling your story without using the s-word - in numbers and accomplishments.
Have you created shelter for insects, birds and animals? Let your guests know! Credit: Old Leura Dairy.
How many trees have you planted? How many local people do you employ? How has your carbon footprint changed in the past year? Help tourists understand what meaningful difference you make.
6. Make it personal
Did a guest give you great feedback on Facebook? Did one of your guides go above and beyond (like this Ningaloo Reef Dive scuba duo)? Tag them in a post. Not only does it show how much you value your staff, it makes your business seem more real and approachable.
7. Talk to your staff
Your staff (and your guests) are your ambassadors. Inform and involve them in your sustainability initiatives, fuel them with stories and make sure they’re as excited about what you do as you are. Make them a part of your sustainability journey and they’ll help spread the word.
8. Partner up to promote
When you post to a blog or social media, don’t keep it to yourself – share! Do you work closely with a partner, such as a regional tourism body, protected area manager, supplier or local authority? Offer to share relevant news from partners and ask them to do the same for you.
The next time you write a story about your latest environmental initiative, your partners can help share it via their social media channels, exposing your business to new audiences and helping achieve common goals for your local environment and community.
Educating kids about the environment in the Scenic Rim, Queensland. Credit: Mt Barney Lodge.
9. Choose your platform
There are countless places to tell your sustainability story, but your website, social media platforms and a blog are great places to start. For example, you might devote a page on your website to your sustainability journey or include logos of your certification or awards on your home page. You can also share short, regular posts via social media platforms such as Facebook, Twitter and Instagram to engage guests before and after they visit.
If you have a little extra time, a blog is a great way to demonstrate your expertise and influence travellers’ decisions. Whichever platforms you choose, make sure you link them to each other.
10. Create your content
No matter where you tell your ecotourism story, choose catchy titles and use language that is simple and easy to understand. Here are a few ideas to get you started:
- Offer tips to travellers such as how to respect local wildlife or how to minimise their carbon footprint while traveling
- Create a video blog or a photo blog from a recent tour
- Showcase partnerships with organisations in your community
- Help raise the profile of local community and environmental issues
- Describe your sustainability challenges and successes
- Share a success such as an award or certification, and what it means for your business
- Write about a unique initiative such as an organic garden or composting system
When you think of sustainability as a story, it's easy to start talking about it. Credit: Pyndan Camel Tracks.
Communicating ecotourism for environment, business and community
If you can communicate consistently, support your claims with evidence and that make your guests feel like they’re part of a community that does good, you may be surprised by the “soft power” of your sustainability communications. You might just help safeguard a local park, convince someone that sustainability matters or inspire a guest to share your ecotourism story halfway across the world.
Ecotourism Australia is always excited to share our operators and members’ news, events and achievements (write to us anytime at lina@ecotourism.org.au).
You’ve got a unique story to tell; it’s time to start telling it.
For more ideas and information on communicating sustainability, we suggest checking out:
Green Hotelier: Communicating sustainability to guests
Green Tourism: How to tell your green business story
Main image credit: Wayoutback Australian Safaris