When it comes to sustainability, business leaders agree that there is progress to be made – in fact, 85% of Fortune 100 leaders have set at least one climate or energy commitment.
Their challenge - figuring out how to make it happen.
Our audience insights pointed to three problems facing executives on their sustainability journeys:
In summary, they have bold ambitions and ideas, but don’t know how to make them happen.
At McKinsey we’re well known for our work helping companies set bold strategies, including on sustainability topics, but we’re less known for our work helping companies turn their ambition into action.
We needed a campaign that met executives where they are – a bit frustrated with all the talk about sustainability, without yet seeing the action and results – and shifted their perception of McKinsey as just thinkers, to a partner to help them mobilize their organizations and make measurable progress.
These insights gave rise to a deceptively simple creative platform: ‘beyond why, to how’.
Our strategy anchored around two goals:
First, we wanted to build a cohesive creative platform that could ‘hold’ many kinds of content (e.g., research, presentations, event activations, case studies, etc.) across channels and unify our presence at two major sustainability events (Climate week and COP). This was a real step change in how we ‘go to market’, where there is typically very low cohesion across different content and activations.
Second, we wanted to break through with a very senior executive audience during a crowded season for sustainability messaging. The fall sees almost all consulting firms, banks, tech firms and more telling their sustainability stories. We needed to reach our target audience of VP and above level employees in key sectors and stand out from the pack.
For us, the go to market strategy was much more robust than in years past, forcing us to change the way we approach creative storytelling. Instead of piecemealed messaging, we sought to create a cohesive platform across many different content types – one that our colleagues could easily leverage to integrate their industry or region’s content. We focused on keeping the top line and visuals consistent but allowed our regions and practices the flexibility to let their content lead when they
Fall is an incredibly busy season for sustainability, and we knew our direct competitors would also be trying to reach our audience to similarly position themselves as the leaders in this space.
To cut through the clutter we didn’t just try to throw more money behind the campaign but looked closely at the tactics that brought that campaign to life. We took risks and tried new things.
This campaign wasn’t just about being heard; it was about changing the way we think about campaigns internally and channeling that new mindset to show up externally in new and exciting ways.
Our campaign successfully reached a significant portion of our target audience, with 3 million CXOs and VPs engaging with content over the course of the campaign. Both the CXO and VP audience penetration rates exceeded 30%, and on average, each individual saw 8 pieces of content within a 30-day period—aligning perfectly with our ideal frequency based on research.
The effectiveness of our message was evident at key events. During New York Climate Week, we engaged twice as many clients and stakeholders compared to the previous year. At COP29, our in-person venue reached maximum capacity, and our digital efforts, including webinars and distinct content, engaged thousands more.
Our document ads on LinkedIn demonstrated exceptional engagement, performing well above industry benchmarks. The average cost per lead (CPL) was $91, significantly lower than the historical benchmark of $338. Additionally, the ads had a 39% complete rate, far surpassing the industry standard of 8%. This tactic identified over 450 potential leads, which we are now actively engaging.
The targeted audience showed a strong interest in learning more about our sustainability initiatives. After enhancing our dedicated sustainability page and promoting it through owned, earned, and paid channels, we observed a 232% year-over-year increase in traffic. Notably, 34% of the identifiable traffic came from organizations we deem priority for the firm, and the most popular next link clicked was “get in touch.”
