Let me caveat this article by saying that the most environmental campaign is the one you do not publish. Nevertheless, digital advertising is a vital means through which businesses can stand out from their competitors in congested markets. This heavy reliance is revealed in a recent study by Pärssinen, which states digital advertising accounts for almost 20% of internet infrastructure consumption.1 The sheer volume of digital ads requires energy-hungry, powerful infrastructure to handle the large volumes of traffic.
As a marketer who has been leading the creation and implementation of digital advertising strategies for numerous businesses across multiple markets for almost a decade, I wanted to give an insight into my approach. Below, you’ll find an outline of the ways in which I minimise the environmental impact of my clients’ ads. It’s important to say that my approach is not only for sustainably-minded brands—it’s for all businesses. If a digital advertising strategy is executed with more care, consideration and nuance, we will ultimately build an advertising ecosystem that’s not only better for the environment, but for the consumer too.
Optimise your ad creative
Optimising ad creative includes using the correct file type and reducing its size, without sacrificing its quality. By following these simple steps, you will instantly minimise the data required to load the ad. Not only will the speedier load times improve the user experience, but also decrease the energy required to display the ad in the first place. I use JPEG for images and WebM or MP4 for videos.
I opt for simpler ad creative. My style is reductive, by nature. I avoid repetition and do not use unnecessary graphics, images or videos that do not add value to my content. By reducing the overall size of the ad creative, you will reduce the server load for delivery, streaming and storing.
Upcycle your ad creative
This is my go-to for reducing the environmental impact of my clients’ ads. By upcycling existing ad creative, I’m essentially reducing the carbon footprint associated with the set-up process.