Businesses Getting Greener By The Day

The green business movement continues to pick up speed.   Health clubs can learn from other industries trying to profit and grow with the expanding eco-concious market.  Below are two examples of companies making substantial investments in their environmentally friendly offerings.

Discovery Communications - “Ecotainment’ with Planet Green

Health clubs have long been interested in providing ‘exertainment’ to keep members engaged and sell memberships.  Adding green content that attracts advertising dollars and entertains viewers is the motivation behind Discovery’s bet on the power of “ecotainment”.

They recently launched an entire channel dedicated to sustainable living.  Ruters reports…

“Planet Green will launch with more than 250 hours of original programming, featuring a range of name talent in front of and behind the camera, including Leonardo DiCaprio, celebrity chef Emeril Lagasse, rocker Tommy Lee and rapper Ludacris.

It officially kicks off at 6 p.m. with the entertainment newsmagazine “Hollywood Green With Maria Menounos,” followed by the Tom Bergeron-hosted “Supper Club.”Planet Green president and GM Eileen O’Neill said it’s the perfect time to launch an eco-friendly channel.

“Now is a critical time in our planet’s health,” she said. “There is a rally cry out there, and now we’re really going to bring it into viewers’ own homes to be the inspiration for them to make changes around their household and lifestyle.”

O’Neill brushed aside any concerns about the network’s ability to reach those viewers who have yet to jump on the green bandwagon.

“Ecotainment is a new genre, and we have a lot of great content that’s very diverse,” she said. “We’re bringing green into the mainstream. We need to reach even more people so they see the entertainment value but also the green message.

EcoExertainment For Health Clubs?
What if health clubs bundled an element of green into their exercise offerings?  I propose an “EcoExertainment” offering would draw the media to your club like a magnet.    Any ideas?  Leave a comment…

Pizza Fusion - Saving The Planet One Pizza At A Time

What happens when you take a highly competitive, low margin, commodity like pizza and add green to the business model?  You get Pizza Fusion.  They provide an interesting example of marketing and differentiating a franchise brand with green.

Green Branding
Franchising success is built on the strength of the franchiser’s brand.  And the brand is only as strong as the story, promise, systems and distinctiveness behind it.  It seems the green unique selling proposition behind the Pizza Fusion brand is working.  The company reports first year results of selling 63 franchises in 10 states.

Here’s how Pizza Fusion positions their brand - in their own words…

Based out of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Pizza Fusion is a new take on America’s favorite food.  We proudly serve up delicious, gourmet pizza in its purest form - untainted by artificial additives, like preservatives, growth hormones, pesticides, nitrates and trans fats (to name a few).

While we’re famous for our pizza, our 75% organic menu features an eclectic variety of gourmet sandwiches, salads, desserts, beer and wine.  Additionally, we proudly offer health conscious alternatives for our friends with selective diets and food allergies, such as our delicious gluten-free pizza, brownies and beer and our tasty vegan selections.

Born from a desire to make a difference, every detail of our operations is continuously evaluated from an environmental perspective in an effort to further minimize our ecological footprint.

From delivering our food in company owned hybrid vehicles and offsetting 100% of our power consumption with the purchase of renewable wind energy certificates to building LEED certified restaurants, we are committed to being a leader in not only the pizza industry, but in a better quality of life. Through our spirited philosophy and principled leadership, Pizza Fusion will redefine the fast casual restaurant industry.

Takeaways For Green Health Clubs

As the founder and past president of the national fitness franchise StrollerFit®,  I gained a healthy respect for the power of building and leveraging a strong brand and systems.   I believe studying and applying the best practices of successful franchise organizations in any industry can be a great benefit to health club owners looking to increase their profits.

Why?  Because franchisers approach their businesses from a different prospective.  They have to deliver marketing, sales and operations systems that work for both the franchisee and the customer.  These systems also have to be easy to learn and use by others.   Plus, they must have the ability to replicate and scale results over time in different market environments.  So how does this apply to the greening of your health club?

Green Insights From Pizza
The Pizza Fusion example offers some great indirect lessons to help health clubs position their products and services.  From their brand messaging, systems and service - it’s all about showing how your business simultaneously helps the customer while helping the environment.

Here’s my recommended short course for health clubs looking for ways to get more green:

1. Study their franchise video.  Not only does it provide information on how they applied green to their business, the video design itself offers a great example of using , testimonials, third party endorsements and just basic story telling to create a simple video that supports and sells their brand.

What would your club’s video look like?

2.  Study their online press room.  Get a first hand look on how they use the media’s insatable need to report on all things green to help them market their company.  Also note the messaging in their press kit.

What would be in your club’s media kit?

3. Read their environmental mission and saving the earth messaging.  It’s good inspiration for creating your own green messaging.

How does your club’s green mission and value statement read?

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Curt Conrad is President of BrightCite Inc. a strategic web development and online marketing firm headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio. His work in the fitness industry spans 20 years as an entrepreneur, author, inventor and consultant.