Start Today is a new marketing initiative, bringing together some of the UK’s leading brands to inspire their customers to live more sustainably. Launched on 1 November 2011, the campaign encourages people throughout the UK to ‘do more with less’, and be more aware of their resource use. Participating brands include Aviva, B&Q, British Gas, EDF Energy, Eurostar, IBM, M&S, MORE THN, P&G, Thames Water, Start and Virgin Money, who will each promote a simple sustainable behaviour that their consumers can relate to and immediately adopt. This covers a range of issues from sustainable food choices and the joys of exploring on foot, to easy ways to start saving energy and creative ideas around reusing and sharing. The aim of Start Today is to defy the trend of telling consumers to stop acting in certain ways and to communicate positive and useful messages to the public in more ways than any single brand could do on their own. This is an ongoing collaborative venture. Start Today is led by Start – the sustainable living initiative inspired by HRH The Prince of Wales, The Marketing Society and Business in the Community. The idea was conceived by integrated marketing agency Meteorite in response to The Marketing Society’s 2010 Film Challenge, which asked marketers to think about how marketing can make a difference to the planet. Start Today now involves many agencies, brand owners and media partners all over the UK. Table 12.4indicates the sustainable themes supported by each brand and the related advertising activities. Source: www.starttoday.org.uk , accessed 10 July 2011

Question What are the benefits of brands collaborating in this type of advertising exercise?

Task Produce a report which assesses the rationale for each brand’s choice of advertising activities and media selection.