“Data centers are the factories of the 21st century. We just can’t see the smoke.”
Ann Coghlan’s stark observation unveils a hidden truth of our digital era. While brands proudly parade their eco-friendly products and sustainable supply chains, there’s a silent culprit lurking behind every click and impression: the colossal energy consumption of digital advertising. Beneath the surface of sleek banners and targeted campaigns lies an unseen network of servers and data centers, humming away and contributing to a growing carbon footprint. As consumers become more environmentally conscious, merely selling green isn’t enough. The rise of green media challenges brands to scrutinize not just what they market, but how they do it. In an age where authenticity reigns supreme, embracing sustainable advertising practices isn’t just ethical—it’s imperative for staying relevant.
To address this, one emerging area that is gaining attention is green media—the practice of aligning advertising strategies with environmental sustainability.
Let’s explore the concept of green media, the environmental challenges of digital advertising, and how brands can embrace more sustainable advertising practices to reduce their carbon footprint.
What Is Green Media?
Green media refers to the use of environmentally sustainable practices in the advertising and media buying process. It involves making conscious decisions to reduce the environmental impact of digital advertising, from the energy consumed by ad-serving technologies to the carbon footprint associated with running campaigns on digital platforms.
Brands that embrace green media consider not only how to engage their audience but also how to do so in a way that minimizes harm to the planet. This approach includes evaluating the environmental practices of media partners, utilizing more energy-efficient technologies, and even offsetting the carbon emissions generated by digital campaigns.
Why Green Media Matters
The Environmental Impact of Digital Advertising
Digital advertising may seem intangible, but it has a significant environmental footprint. The infrastructure required to support digital ads—data centers, servers, and ad networks—consumes vast amounts of energy. In fact, the internet’s global carbon footprint rivals that of the airline industry, and advertising plays a big role in that equation.
Some of the environmental challenges associated with digital advertising include:
- High energy consumption: Data centers that store and serve digital ads are energy-intensive. Many still rely on non-renewable energy sources.
- Wasteful ad impressions: Programmatic advertising often leads to a large number of wasted impressions, where ads are shown to irrelevant audiences, increasing energy usage without delivering real value.
- Data-heavy formats: High-resolution video ads, complex animation, and interactive ads require significant bandwidth and energy to deliver, contributing to a larger carbon footprint.
By embracing green media practices, brands can take a proactive role in reducing the environmental impact of their advertising efforts.
Consumer Expectations for Sustainability
More and more consumers are looking to support brands that share their concern for the environment. Gen Z and Millennials are increasingly holding businesses accountable for their environmental practices through their purchasing choices. They are shifting toward more sustainable behaviors, such as avoiding fast fashion, cutting down on air travel, adopting plant-based diets, or opting for electric vehicles. Additionally, about 30% of these young consumers research a company’s environmental track record before deciding to buy its products or services. A significant portion—around 64% of Gen Z and 63% of Millennials—are willing to pay a premium for products that are environmentally friendly. Moreover, approximately 25% have chosen to end or reduce their engagement with brands due to unsustainable practices in their supply chains. (Deloitte 2024 Millenial and Gen Z Survey). This means that brands that prioritize sustainable advertising practices can not only reduce their carbon footprint but also build stronger relationships with eco-conscious audiences.
By aligning with green media principles, brands can position themselves as leaders in environmental stewardship, fostering trust and loyalty among consumers who prioritize sustainability.
How Brands Can Embrace Green Media
1. Choose Green Media Partners
The first step in adopting green media practices is selecting media partners that prioritize sustainability. This means working with platforms and publishers that actively reduce their environmental impact, whether through using renewable energy to power their data centers or investing in technologies that optimize energy efficiency.
Brands should ask the following questions when evaluating media partners:
- What energy sources power your data centers? Look for platforms that use renewable energy sources such as wind, solar, or hydroelectric power.
- Do you have sustainability initiatives in place? Some platforms are actively working to reduce their carbon footprint, either by optimizing their operations or investing in carbon offset programs. Another great question to ask here is if they measure their carbon footprint using the Green House Gas Protocol Scopes 1,2 & 3.
- How transparent are you about your energy consumption? It’s essential to work with partners that provide transparency around their environmental impact, allowing brands to make informed decisions.
2. Optimize Ad Formats for Efficiency
One of the main drivers of energy consumption in digital advertising is the complexity and size of ad formats. Large video files, high-resolution imagery, and interactive elements all require more bandwidth and energy to serve.
Brands can reduce their environmental impact by optimizing ad formats, including:
- Choosing lightweight formats: Static images or simple animations require far less energy to serve than high-definition video ads.
- Using more efficient coding: Ensuring that the code behind digital ads is optimized can reduce load times, minimize energy use, and improve user experience.
- Limiting unnecessary complexity: Ads that are data-heavy and overly complex not only increase carbon emissions but also tend to frustrate users, leading to diminished engagement.
By creating more efficient ad formats, brands can reduce the energy required to deliver their campaigns while still achieving marketing goals.
3. Reduce Programmatic Waste
Programmatic advertising—automated ad buying—has revolutionized digital media, making it easier for brands to reach targeted audiences. However, it can also lead to wasted impressions, where ads are displayed to irrelevant or unintended audiences, increasing energy consumption with little return.
To reduce waste in programmatic advertising, brands should:
- Improve targeting: Ensure that ads are being served only to relevant audiences, reducing the number of wasted impressions.
- Utilize frequency caps: Limit how often an ad is shown to the same user to avoid excessive repetition, which not only consumes more energy but can also annoy users.
- Monitor campaign performance in real-time: By keeping a close eye on campaign metrics, brands can make adjustments to reduce waste and improve overall efficiency.
Reducing programmatic waste not only conserves energy but also makes ad spend more effective.
Purpose Equals Performance
There’s a common misconception that investing in higher-quality media placements and adtech optimized for environmental stewardship means sacrificing marketing performance. In reality, the opposite is true.
When we partnered with a regional healthcare organization to align their advertising with their values, we optimized placements partly based on lower carbon-emitting websites. This strategy not only reduced environmental impact but also landed their ads on publisher sites with higher levels of engagement. In a single, concise campaign delivering nearly 400,000 impressions, we not only met our marketing goals but also provided the organization with measurable insights into their impact.
The results were both impressive and illuminating:
- Total CO₂ Emissions: 167,181 grams
- CO₂ Emissions Per Mille (per 1,000 impressions): 472.30 grams
To make these figures more relatable for internal stakeholders, we translated them into everyday equivalents:
- Carbon equivalent of driving a car: 835 km (518 miles)
- Carbon equivalent of charging: 20,336 smartphones
- Carbon equivalent of a round-trip flight from Boston to London: 0.17 trips
- Carbon equivalent of heating a home: 0.06 years
This campaign not only achieved the organization’s marketing objectives but also equipped their marketing and sustainability teams with a clear understanding of the environmental impact of their media efforts. It demonstrated that purpose-driven advertising can enhance performance, debunking the myth that environmental responsibility comes at the expense of effectiveness.
4. Offset Carbon Emissions
Even with the best efforts to reduce energy consumption, digital advertising will still have some environmental impact. Brands committed to green media should consider offsetting their remaining carbon emissions by investing in carbon offset programs.
Carbon offsets involve funding projects that either remove CO2 from the atmosphere or prevent future emissions. Examples include:
- Reforestation: Planting trees that absorb carbon dioxide as they grow.
- Renewable energy projects: Supporting the development of clean energy sources such as wind or solar power.
- Energy efficiency initiatives: Investing in technologies or practices that reduce overall energy consumption.
By calculating the carbon footprint of their digital campaigns and purchasing carbon offsets, brands can neutralize the environmental impact of their advertising. A couple of our trusted offsetting partners include Certified B Corps Native and Tradewater.
5. Collaborate with Sustainable Content Creators
Another way brands can embrace green media is by collaborating with content creators and publishers who focus on environmental issues. Aligning with influencers, bloggers, or platforms that prioritize sustainability allows brands to reach eco-conscious audiences while supporting content that promotes environmental awareness.
Brands can:
- Sponsor eco-friendly content: Partner with creators who focus on sustainable living, climate change, or green technology.
- Create educational campaigns: Develop ad campaigns that promote sustainability or raise awareness about environmental issues.
By supporting green content, brands can further align their advertising efforts with their environmental values and connect with audiences who care about sustainability.
Final Thoughts
The rise of green media represents a pivotal moment in the evolution of advertising. As environmental concerns take center stage, brands are increasingly expected to adopt sustainable practices—not just in their products but in their marketing efforts as well. The good news is that embracing green media doesn’t mean sacrificing performance. With advancements in technology, brands can reach their audiences effectively while significantly reducing their carbon footprint.
A study by MAGNA and Oracle Advertising found that digital ads with a smaller carbon footprint tend to perform better in terms of user engagement and attention, which we have proven from our own managed campaigns at Campfire. Analyzing over a billion ad impressions across 55 countries, the study showed that ads with longer in-view times produced significantly fewer carbon emissions while still maintaining high levels of viewer engagement. This suggests that making ad placements more eco-friendly can improve not just their environmental impact but also key metrics like visibility and user interaction (from Magna and Oracle Study).
By partnering with sustainable media platforms, optimizing ad formats for energy efficiency, reducing programmatic waste, and offsetting emissions, brands can align their advertising strategies with their environmental values. These efforts not only protect the planet but also strengthen relationships with eco-conscious consumers who increasingly demand accountability from the companies they support.
Navigating this new landscape can feel complex, but that’s where Campfire Consulting comes in. With our expertise in sustainability and advertising, we can help your brand develop campaigns that meet your business goals while staying true to your commitment to the environment. Together, we’ll ensure your media strategies are both impactful and responsible, leading the way toward a greener future in advertising.
