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Making the Winning Green Pitch: Greening Greater Toronto's First "Reverse Marketplace" Helps Green Vendors Sell to Large Corporations
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Making the Winning Green Pitch: Greening Greater Toronto's First "Reverse Marketplace" Helps Green Vendors Sell to Large Corporations
TORONTO, April 20, 2010 - In the lead up to Earth Day, today Greening Greater Toronto hosted its first Green Exchange event, a Reverse Marketplace. The event gave green vendors the chance to hear from a panel of national corporate procurement executives on how to attract their business.
The Green Exchange is one of the initiatives of the Green Procurement Leadership Council, which brings vendors and buyers together at the table to increase green procurement, reduce environmental impact and build Ontario's green products and services industry.
Hosted by BMO Financial Group, the panel featured procurement executives from BMO Financial Group, TD Bank Financial Group, KMPG Canada, Sears Canada, and Rogers Communications Inc. The audience consisted of a wide variety of vendors, including suppliers of green printing, renewable energy, lighting and manufacturing, recycling, IT consulting, and transportation services. Panelists shared their advice on how vendors can increase their visibility within large organizations, how to craft and market a green offer that will stand out and how to address the enterprise needs of organizations and the real or perceived perceptions of green product price premiums.
Top tips that came out of the Reverse Marketplace include:
• Address the actual and/or perceived price premium of green products head-on
Highlight the total costs of ownership (e.g. life cycle cost analysis) from a cost and sustainability perspective. While there may be a premium to the initial cost of green products, the ongoing operating costs or longevity of the product will likely offset the initial price premium.
• Clearly highlight the greenness from a product perspective
Quantify the sustainable elements of your green product or service. Vendors need to successfully demonstrate the environmental and corporate responsibility attributes of their particular product or service in a way that speaks to perspective buyers.
• Add credibility to your green claims with third party certifications
Third party certifications or scientifically proven metrics provide the credibility green vendors may require to garner business from large organizations. Green claims often do not carry enough weight on their own; back them up with known standards.
• Imbed your green product or service within existing supply chains
Procurement executives are often looking to consolidate and streamline sourcing structures, so selling directly to organizations is not always the best approach. Instead, consider working with a distributor to integrate your product within existing supplier/buyer relationships.
• Consolidate with other green players
Identify distribution channels or resellers that can link together regional players to deliver to the enterprise scope of large organizations. Joining forces with other smaller players will give you a more extensive reach, and will help you measure up against larger vendors.
• Understand your prospective buyer's organization and buying practices
Enterprise procurement is often fragmented into silos. Understanding your customer's buying chains will help you effectively target your marketing and sales approach. Consider your perspective buyer's own environmental commitment to give you an idea about how receptive they may be to your offerings.
• Demonstrate your own environmental commitment
Vendors need to demonstrate a strong organizational commitment to environmental sustainability and corporate responsibility performance in their own operations. Don't just focus on the green product or service; green companies need to "walk the talk" within their own policies and processes.
"Green vendors often face unique hurtles in selling to large corporations. The Reverse Marketplace helps vendors address these challenges head on with advice from large national organizations," said Linda Weichel, Managing Director, Greening Greater Toronto. "By helping vendors make a more compelling pitch to large corporations, we help make it more feasible for corporations to increase their green procurement. Ultimately, it is a collective win for corporations, for Ontario's green sector and for the environment."
The Green Exchange events will continue with boardroom discussions on specific green procurement topics.
- 30 -
About Greening Greater Toronto:
Greening Greater Toronto (www.greeninggreatertoronto.ca) is an initiative of the Toronto City Summit Alliance (www.torontoalliance.ca), a coalition of thousands of civic leaders who develop and launch solutions to pressing social and economic challenges in the Toronto region. More than 170 partners from corporations, industry, government, and the non-profit sector have joined the Greening Greater Toronto initiative, which aims to make the Greater Toronto Area the greenest city region in North America. They and others are engaged in four initial programs to address the region's environmental challenges, including: driving energy efficiency measures in Toronto region commercial buildings; creating a local emissions reduction fund; encouraging green procurement; and building a network of public education/demonstration centres. The Procurement Initiative is supported by the Ontario Power Authority's Conservation Fund, which provides support for new and innovative electricity conservation initiatives that build the ability of Ontario's residents, businesses, and institutions to reduce their demand for electricity.
Media Contact:
Rebecca Geller
Communications and Events Officer
Toronto City Summit Alliance
rebecca.geller@torontocitysummit.ca
(416) 992-4966 (cell)
(416) 309-4480 x509 (work)
Making the Winning Green Pitch: Greening Greater Toronto's First "Reverse Marketplace" Helps Green Vendors Sell to Large Corporations
TORONTO, April 20, 2010 - In the lead up to Earth Day, today Greening Greater Toronto hosted its first Green Exchange event, a Reverse Marketplace. The event gave green vendors the chance to hear from a panel of national corporate procurement executives on how to attract their business.
The Green Exchange is one of the initiatives of the Green Procurement Leadership Council, which brings vendors and buyers together at the table to increase green procurement, reduce environmental impact and build Ontario's green products and services industry.
Hosted by BMO Financial Group, the panel featured procurement executives from BMO Financial Group, TD Bank Financial Group, KMPG Canada, Sears Canada, and Rogers Communications Inc. The audience consisted of a wide variety of vendors, including suppliers of green printing, renewable energy, lighting and manufacturing, recycling, IT consulting, and transportation services. Panelists shared their advice on how vendors can increase their visibility within large organizations, how to craft and market a green offer that will stand out and how to address the enterprise needs of organizations and the real or perceived perceptions of green product price premiums.
Top tips that came out of the Reverse Marketplace include:
• Address the actual and/or perceived price premium of green products head-on
Highlight the total costs of ownership (e.g. life cycle cost analysis) from a cost and sustainability perspective. While there may be a premium to the initial cost of green products, the ongoing operating costs or longevity of the product will likely offset the initial price premium.
• Clearly highlight the greenness from a product perspective
Quantify the sustainable elements of your green product or service. Vendors need to successfully demonstrate the environmental and corporate responsibility attributes of their particular product or service in a way that speaks to perspective buyers.
• Add credibility to your green claims with third party certifications
Third party certifications or scientifically proven metrics provide the credibility green vendors may require to garner business from large organizations. Green claims often do not carry enough weight on their own; back them up with known standards.
• Imbed your green product or service within existing supply chains
Procurement executives are often looking to consolidate and streamline sourcing structures, so selling directly to organizations is not always the best approach. Instead, consider working with a distributor to integrate your product within existing supplier/buyer relationships.
• Consolidate with other green players
Identify distribution channels or resellers that can link together regional players to deliver to the enterprise scope of large organizations. Joining forces with other smaller players will give you a more extensive reach, and will help you measure up against larger vendors.
• Understand your prospective buyer's organization and buying practices
Enterprise procurement is often fragmented into silos. Understanding your customer's buying chains will help you effectively target your marketing and sales approach. Consider your perspective buyer's own environmental commitment to give you an idea about how receptive they may be to your offerings.
• Demonstrate your own environmental commitment
Vendors need to demonstrate a strong organizational commitment to environmental sustainability and corporate responsibility performance in their own operations. Don't just focus on the green product or service; green companies need to "walk the talk" within their own policies and processes.
"Green vendors often face unique hurtles in selling to large corporations. The Reverse Marketplace helps vendors address these challenges head on with advice from large national organizations," said Linda Weichel, Managing Director, Greening Greater Toronto. "By helping vendors make a more compelling pitch to large corporations, we help make it more feasible for corporations to increase their green procurement. Ultimately, it is a collective win for corporations, for Ontario's green sector and for the environment."
The Green Exchange events will continue with boardroom discussions on specific green procurement topics.
- 30 -
About Greening Greater Toronto:
Greening Greater Toronto (www.greeninggreatertoronto.ca) is an initiative of the Toronto City Summit Alliance (www.torontoalliance.ca), a coalition of thousands of civic leaders who develop and launch solutions to pressing social and economic challenges in the Toronto region. More than 170 partners from corporations, industry, government, and the non-profit sector have joined the Greening Greater Toronto initiative, which aims to make the Greater Toronto Area the greenest city region in North America. They and others are engaged in four initial programs to address the region's environmental challenges, including: driving energy efficiency measures in Toronto region commercial buildings; creating a local emissions reduction fund; encouraging green procurement; and building a network of public education/demonstration centres. The Procurement Initiative is supported by the Ontario Power Authority's Conservation Fund, which provides support for new and innovative electricity conservation initiatives that build the ability of Ontario's residents, businesses, and institutions to reduce their demand for electricity.
Media Contact:
Rebecca Geller
Communications and Events Officer
Toronto City Summit Alliance
rebecca.geller@torontocitysummit.ca
(416) 992-4966 (cell)
(416) 309-4480 x509 (work)
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