Recently we posted an action on our Instagram to write to your favorite brands that are still using plastic and ask them what they’re doing about it – and what their roadmap to eliminating it is as they’ll lose you (and others) as a customer. We’ve written countless of these emails so to make this easier for you (as per a suggestion from one of our awesome followers) here are a couple of templates we’ve used & some tips.
You can use these and tweak them for whatever your cause! Whether it’s plastics, palm oil or something else. Go for it! Got an interesting response or found out something new? We’d love to hear about it. Message us on the ‘gram!
We’ve always received a reponse (which is excellent) but it’s important to also follow up on that and push the brand when you feel they’re being evasive (big brands with communication departments tend to do this). You won’t always get a satisfactory response but know that your message does chalk up as a point for the brand and note to them (just like calling your local members of government does) and sometimes you learn something surprising too – like we recently did in an example below.
Tips for your message
- Personalize your email as much as you can. Show you’ve been a loyal customer or passionate about a product. State what you like, what you’ve appreciated they’ve been working on, something good they’ve implemented and then get to it.
- Write why you care / why you’re doing what you’re doing – everyone will have angles that are most important to them and it works if that shines through. If it’s the killer whales, or the orangutans, or your children, the forests, the coral reefs or the world in general – give your why. It will also give people a tangible visual they can they about to relate back to the problem.
- Outline the question/s they need to address for you. Simply starting your frustration creates a ‘real-human’ note for the brand, but having to acknowledge and step through their process creates action and accountability. We need a lot more of both.
- Messages through social media may work better for bigger companies. They usually have staff manning their Facebook & Twitter channels – give them a message there. For conglomerates and monopolies (looking at you supermarkets) we’ve found they respond there and rarely ever to email (if you even find the right place to send that email!)
- Follow up! If they haven’t responded within a week, send a follow-up. If they still haven’t responded, get on their social and in their comment streams and DMs. Once they’ve responded and you’ve thanked them, decide on a length of time you think is suitable and pop it in your calendar to follow up on their response. Have they implemented their goals? Have you noticed anything? Can you congratulate them on anything or does it now need to be made very clear they are severely under-performing in this and you will no longer, or have already stopped, being a customer?
- Make an assessment on your tone and what you expect from the business. If they’re a really small business (say, under 5 staff and/or under 1million in revenue per year) give them a bit of a break (unless it’s of course glaringly obvious what they’re doing and they’re being eco-douches). We absolutely want all businesses to be eco-friendly & ethical but a lot don’t know, a lot can’t make it work financially and if you’re a small business you barely have time to run the thing let alone invest time, resources & money into the sustainability of your products (big hugs and love for the businesses who pursue this right out of the gates). A lot of them will already have mapped out in their heads how they’re going to improve product cycle by product cycle – it’s more of a waiting-for-the-funds issue and they’ll happily advise you on the planned changes. Decide if you need to educate them at all potentially, link out to any resources, and if it’s a smaller business ask if you can help them out! Maybe you even have a connection that they could benefit from. Also if you continue ordering, state you will only if they do X to improve. Often it’s the packaging so at checkout write a note that it’s not to be wrapped in plastic for example. The more we all do of this, the more all businesses, including tiny ones, will have to fix the problem. At the end of they’re day all businesses still exist to make money and that should not come at the detriment to the planet and we should all come together to work on a better resourcing system. It’s important for them to know their customers require better solutions or they won’t have a business to run at all.
- Should you name & shame on the socials? We wouldn’t for small businesses (unless the response is atrocious) but for big business, wait for your response and then make a call. Also check the context – is there a campaign on around it at the moment? Big businesses absolutely do respond to public pressure so use your platform & influence (no matter how small or big) to pressure them and make your point heard. Big businesses benefit tremendously off of the environment, off us as the consumers and off the government – there should be a significant amount of corporate and social responsibility exerted on them for this. It’s also important to remember that in the end these businesses are run by humans, not an abstract legal concept. Human beings with kids (mostly) at that, and largely with egos and the desire to make more. That can all be appealed to in order to craft a more sustainable world.
- Don’t let them get away with vague bullshit. We all know these responses. They come from monotonous comms & PR departments whose job is simply to answer the customer service tickets to meet their KPIs. Supermarkets are the absolute worst for this and it’s unforgivable. It isn’t helping anyone and it’s a complete waste of time. Keep pressing them (a supermarket did eventually just stop replying to us and never did answer the question they skilfully evaded each time). If we all did this, a very loud noise of action would be registered by the inundated comms team which would go up the chain to execs. As much as you can, stop buying from businesses who don’t give a crap like this.
Remember, outside of voting, how you spend your money is your biggest political act, and can affect enormous change in line with your values.
Email Template #1
Dear team,
I’m writing to you in regards to your _____________ (i.e. plastic packaging).
I absolutely love your brand however I have been consciously reducing my _____________ (i.e. plastics) and striving for less-waste in order to protect our environment, animals and selves.
Ideally I’d like to continue _____________ (how you use their product i.e. using your deodorant, drinking your tea, buying your hampers) but I would like to know the following:
- Do you have a roadmap in place for eliminating _____________ (i.e. plastics) in your product?
- What do you currently propose customers do with the packaging / product waste created? Do you have a scheme in place that we can utilize to be more responsible with our consuming?
Looking forward to hearing from you soon.
Thank you so much,
__________ (your name)
Email Template #2
When there are fairly obvious alternatives, similar products on the market being eco-conscious (so you have an option to defect to them so to speak).
Dear team,
I’m writing to you in regards to your _____________ (i.e. plastic packaging).
I absolutely love your brand however I have been consciously reducing my _____________ (i.e. plastics) and striving for less-waste in order to protect our environment, animals and selves.
There are other alternative brands on the market that have found methods to implement recyclable/compostables/reusable (pick one) _____________ (i.e. packaging) in their product. By way of example, _____________ (brand name) and _____________ (brand name) were able to achieve this. I don’t want to switch over at all, but I’ll need to if you’re unable to eliminate your _____________ (i.e. plastics) so I can respect the environmental responsibility we all have.
- Do you have a roadmap in place for eliminating your _____________ (i.e. plastics) in the product?
- What do you currently propose customers do with the packaging / product waste created? Do you have a scheme in place that we can utilize?
Looking forward to hearing from you soon.
Thank you so much,
__________ (your name)
Subject: Virgin Plastic Waste
Hi Unite team!
Over the past few years we’ve been focussing on reducing our plastic usage in daily lives, particularly single use plastics.
Recently we have decided to try and eliminate this completely as the enormous detrimental impact on the Earth is becoming ever-more present and damning.
Whilst we have been able to replace numerous of our products with sustainable goods made of quality, non toxic materials, I have recently started travelling again more frequently and am largely appalled at the amount of plastics airlines like Virgin are using. From the research, I understand Virgin provided 100’s of millions of plastic beverage containers, wraps & food packages each year across their network of flights, much of which is not recycled.
I try and fly Virgin as much as I can, particularly within Australia despite the additional cost, as I appreciate the brand ethos and what the company stands for, however I am extremely disappointed that a company founded & run by an Ocean Elder uses this much plastic, which more often than not ends up in those same oceans destroying our environment, sea life and livelihoods now and into future generations.
Given the other causes Richard Branson is actively involved in in protecting our oceans and environment (including the Virgin supported Oceans Unite), I’m surprised there isn’t more action here. To that end, could you please advise on the following:
- Is there a plan in place to eliminate the plastics provided to customers during their flights (domestically within UK, Australia & America and internationally)? This would entail sourcing alternative, sustainable and preferably re-usable packaging or products (which already exist on the market) or removing the need for packaging from the equation entirely, so there is no opportunity for the plastic to be manufactured, to leak toxins into our food & drink, and to end up in landfill, oceans and animals. Can you please provide the details/roadmap of this.
- How much plastic is Virgin currently using & how much of this is it recycling? Though this is not the answer – plastic should be eliminated altogether – on the path to achieve this, this would be a valid temporary solution. Please provide the numbers on this.
Looking forward to your reply and thank you in advance.
Thank you.
Hi,
Thank you for your comments and your shared passion for the environment. (Name removed) has asked me to respond on his behalf. I agree that much needs to be done to improve the impacts business has on the environment. With respect to Virgin Australia, here are some initiatives we have in the pipeline that work toward addressing the concerns you have noted.
We have a Sustainable Procurement Policy in place that provides guidance on the environmental, social and economic impacts of the products we purchase. This policy particularly considers support of renewables, re-using products, minimising packaging, recycling, energy efficiency, biodiversity, animal welfare, and fair labour practices. These aspects are all considered alongside value for money and particularly the weight implications, which ultimately requires increased fuel usage and, therefore, more greenhouse gas emissions. This policy is considered throughout negotiations for all new procurement contracts and we have regular conversations with current suppliers to ensure measures are being taken to improve environmental, social and economic outcomes throughout the life of contracts.
We are also members of the Australian Packaging Covenant and have committed to achieving ambitious targets to reduce packaging and improve recycling of our products as part of this program.
We currently have recycling set up on over 75% of our domestic flights. Unfortunately due to quarantine restrictions for all international flights and at some domestic terminals, there are some flights where recycling is not currently possible. We are working on ways to increase recycling rates and reduce the amount of plastic in our supply chain where practicable. At this time we do not have the exact figures on the amount of plastic that is recycled as we do not have a separate recycling stream for this. We have also implemented a range of other recycling programs for food, uniforms, amenity kits and pyjamas used on our aircraft.
Once again thank you for your inquiry and please feel free to contact me if you have any further questions.
Kind regards.
Subject: Plastic not glass
Hi!
We loved drinking from Harvest because we loved the juices…and because they were in glass!
We are attempting to go more plastic free (as it is terrible for the environment as these are all single-use plastics & are known for absorbing flavors and seeping toxins into the product), so we were really disappointed to find these are all produced in plastic now.
Was there a reason for the change and is there any chance you’ll still have glass ones available?
Is there a roadmap for producing a more environmentally friendly product?
Thank you!
Lis.
Hi,
Thank you for your email.
We did make the change from glass to recyclable plastic about 6 months ago due to Health and Safety laws.
By law in the States you cannot supply a fresh product wholesale. This law is currently being looked at for Australia. If this law comes into place, we would not be able to supply our beautiful cafes with juice.
Our brand is not just a juice to consumers it’s also a solution and a partner for café owners.
They rely on our product to sell so they can reduce labour on their own juicing and offer better coffee service, table service, customer service and overall good quality business. We can’t let these guys down or our consumers either.
We learnt the only way to keep our business going in glass if this new law comes into place was to do the following to our cold pressed juice:
- Heat Treat – Kills all nutrients in the juice. Really defeats the purpose of drinking a cold pressed juice.
- Add preservatives. This goes against what we are all about as a band and as people too.
We had the opportunity to keep our juice healthy, raw, preservative free and to keep all the nutrients locked in by using the recyclable vessel and a method of HPP to naturally zap out the bad bacteria’s in the juice to allow a safer product for consumers and is approved by the Health and Safety laws. This method cannot be done in glass sadly.
In the future we have plans to reduce single use items and packaging but it’s not something that we can just do overnight.
It is something we have researched and have looked into.
Thank you again for your email and valuable feedback.
Kindest regards
Oh Australia, you’re killing me.
This was a no win situation for you guys – I’m so sorry! Devastating to hear in terms of environmental impact (and us not being able to drink your amazing juices any more) but completely understand and appreciate business wise.
Thank you for the response – really appreciate the explanation – we would never have known/understood this otherwise.
Thanks so much.
Thanks for understanding. It was a very hard change for us also.
One we had to do this keep consumers safe.
We have spoken to a company overseas about bio degradable however the shipping that’s involved with all of the bio degradable packaging is just as bad to be honest.
It was a whole new experience we learnt about.
We have a goal and we are doing small changes as we go – Last year we aimed to be a paperless business out on the road to reduce our paper waste. We are happy to achieve that goal after 10 months minus our business cards ( we are working on that )
Hoping to continue to make small changes every way we can until a better solution for packaging is available that works for us.
Thanks again
If this happens to you, follow up with an email to the relevant authorities, council, local or federal government causing the issue as we can’t expect small businesses to magically fix this without huge teams (experts, networks & time required) & funding to do so. Find your local party representative, call them or send them an email. Calling works better with senators and their offices generally!
Subject: T2 Tea Plastic Waste
Hi!
Over the past few years we’ve been focussing on reducing plastic usage in our daily lives, particularly single-use plastics.
Recently we have decided to try and eliminate this completely as the enormous detrimental impact on the Earth is becoming ever-more present and damning.
Whilst we have been able to replace numerous of our products with sustainable goods made of quality, non toxic materials, we recently headed in store to purchase some tea. We were surprised to find that though T2 supports recycling of it’s boxes, the loose leaf tea itself is placed in single-use plastic wrapping which is one of the most environmentally damaging materials to our oceans, sea animals and our own livelihoods (including the toxins that inevitably seep through plastic, the loss of tourism & jobs due to extreme environmental damage etc).
We were advised there were foil bags but it appeared these were plastic zip liners with an inner coating of foil. We were also provided tastings however the small taste cups were plastic lined (which are not recyclable in Australia) and we noticed the large paper coffee cups (likely plastic lined) with their plastic lids were also available in store.
We’d love to continue reducing our plastic and drinking T2, however we were unable to do so. T2 has previously stated “Our customers who seek an environmentally friendly tea experience suggest loose leaf and an infuser, a statement we wholly support.” Whilst we love the in store products of reusable cups, mugs etc, given the above, unfortunately this is not an entirely environmentally friendly solution and has severe consequences.
We understand that reducing plastics can be difficult but we also understand larger companies such as yourself have the means & resources to do so if there was a willingness to act and adhere to corporate responsibility. To that end, can you please advise if you have a plan & roadmap in place to eliminate your plastic packaging (either by remove the need for it entirely or replacing it with sustainable, eco-friendly goods which are already available on the marketplace).
As a temporary solution in the meantime, can you please provide the plastic recycling option we have at T2 when purchasing our products?
Thank you so much!
Hi,
Thanks for your email and for taking the time to send through your feedback. At T2 we are committed to reducing our environmental impact and though we have made some changes, we do realise that we have a way to go yet. We are partnering with our parent brand to bring our business in line with a more sustainable model.
In the meantime, you can recycle your plastic packaging from our gift cubes at the plastic recycling area in your local supermarket.
Unfortunately at this stage our foil packs are not recyclable and we’ll be sure to pass your feedback on to our product team.
Please let me know if I can be of any further assistance.
Warm regards,
When a brand defaults to a local recycling scheme – go check on it! In Australia it turned out that there is mass confusion with the soft plastics that go into the supermarket bins. Some of it was maybe being recycled. A whole lot of it wasn’t. Nobody knew who really owned the process. It’s no good if it works (or rather doesn’t) like this. Check out the resource the brand mentions – google it first! Are there any news articles on it? Any investigative journalism? TV Shows? Follow up with that company or council itself and ask more details about it – how it works, how they’re confirming the approach etc. Become a detective to make sure it’s standing up to what it should be doing – and isn’t just green washing so we all feel better about ourselves.