Sustainability plays on video and interactive budgets to attract GenZ

Is it necessary to convince or coerce public opinion to save the planet? This is the question posed by the French newspaper Libération in the midst of the crisis linked to government action against climate change. This also calls companies into question in their ability to narrate environmental and social policies. Making complex content simple. In a time marked by increasingly blurred attention spans and increasingly rapid scrolling, the challenge for sustainable organisations is to create clear, coherent, scientifically unimpeachable and creatively impactful messages. This ranges from social pages built to hook the interest of audiences to immersive out-of-home campaigns in physical spaces to (more contained) landing on mainstream television and radio media.

This is the challenge of the storytelling of sustainability reports, which become evolved consolidated reports as regulations evolve. Words, numbers, images and videos that must be able to convey what organisations implement on policies to reduce environmental impact. An interest that endures even in America in a more factual and less narrative way. "Sustainability remains a strategic competitiveness and growth factor for companies. Just think of the role it plays in facilitating access to credit and capital as confirmed by the 77% interest of global investors in sustainable investments according to the Morgan Stanley Sustainable Signals report. Everyone is increasingly demanding transparency, making communication of sustainability actions essential and reports not just a compliance tool but an opportunity to build a system of relationships based on credibility and trust," says Viviana Poletti, senior advisor reputation & sustainability for iCorporate.

So what evolves are the narrative formats that adapt to modern times. "Narratives evolve for different stakeholders. If I want to address generation Z, I will primarily use Instagram, Tik Tok and young creators as the Unipol Group has done. The report, which used to be a monolithic and technical object, is now declined with multimedia content, animations, videographics and other interactive and data visualisation methods,' Poletti points out. One of the first sustainability reports in a transmedia version is that of Eni, ranked already in the 2018 edition among the top ten in the world by the World Business Council for Sustainable Development. Among the most iconic in reporting on environmental commitments - particularly on climate neutrality by 2030 - is Apple's Mother Nature commercial. From the elimination of plastic from packaging to the use of clean energy. An example of engaging and innovative storytelling featuring not only Tim Cook, but also Oscar winner Octavia Spencer. Meanwhile, Microsoft has integrated artificial intelligence into its sustainability strategies and reports on its progress with a specific document in its Environmental Sustainability Report.

We need to focus on data visualisation that combines scientific adherence and creative experimentation. "It plays a fundamental role in making sustainability data, which are by nature extremely difficult for the general public, immediate, clear and understandable. This makes it possible to design different levels of reading according to the interest of the user. The role of information design is fundamental in exploring forms of dialogue with stakeholders," explains Poletti, who created the Call To Sustainability platform two years ago. "We have brought together specialised partners to talk to different audiences. In the future we will move towards the adoption of chatbots and agents, a revolution for the user experience. So no more organic presentations of results, but the freedom for the user to query the system and get targeted answers,' Poletti concludes. Once again, the sustainability storytelling game will be played by customised experiences. Because after all, in an ever more present future, every consumer will tailor-make his or her relationship with a brand less and less generalist and more and more identity-based.