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In 2009 leidt duurzaam bouwen naar verwachting tot 25% minder CO2 uitstoot. Het einddoel is de halvering van de uitstoot van broeikasgassen twee jaar later. Naast de reductie van het verbruik van energie zorgen ‘cradle to cradle’ bouwoplossingen voor duurzaamheid van bouw tot sloop.

Steeds meer ontwikkelaars en architecten zien de meerwaarde van duurzaamheid voor hun opdrachtgevers. Voor eindgebruikers vertegenwoordigen deze bouwprojecten waarde in de vorm van lagere energielasten. Wethouders van Rotterdam willen hiermee kennis opdoen en voorop lopen in kennisontwikkeling. Hiermee sluiten ze aan bij het voornemen van het kabinet Balkenende om alle nieuwbouw in 2020 energieneutraal te maken, want “Duurzaam moet je doen” en wel op zes gebieden, waaronder duurzaam bouwen en verbouwen. De doelstellingen:

• 10.000 nieuwe gebouwen neerzetten met een energieprestatie 45% onder het wettelijke minimum
• 500 bestaande gebouwen energiezuinig verbouwen
• Aanscherping met 25% van de energieprestatie van nieuwe gebouwen

In november 2008 volgt een internationale benchmark en een normering voor de duurzaamheid van gebouwen. En nu nog maar hopen dat deze ontwikkeling niet leidt tot potdicht geïsoleerde gebouwen.

Bron: ANP, engineeringnow.nl; architectenweb.nl;

Klanten bepalen mede de toekomst van de onderneming. Zij hebben direct invloed op de richting van nog te maken strategische keuzes. Lego ziet een dialoog met zijn klanten als de snelste en meest directe manier van klantgerichte vernieuwing. Lego laat zijn klanten ontwikkelprogramma’s valideren, waarderen en rangschikken naar prioriteit. LEGO-fans kunnen via enquêtes, discussieforums en webblogs:

De zes basisprincipes:

1. Continu verzamelen van klantenreacties
2. Uitwisseling van kennis en informatie
3. Mond tot mond reclame (buzzing networks)
4. Gemeenschappen (communities) laten ontstaan door klanten aan te moedigen onderling informatie uit te wisselen en elkaar te ontmoeten
5. Een gemeenschappelijk doel creëren ter verbetering van de wereld of de branche waarin je werkzaam bent.
6. Kleine, makkelijk verteerbare pakketjes maken van je specifiek aanbod

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 ·         GlaxoSmithKline has been listening for more than a year to a community of women struggling with weight issues in order to better understand how to develop and market its first weight-loss pill, expected to be introduced this year:  input from packaging to where to place in-store marketing.

·         Hewlett-Packard connects every day with 300 digital-photography enthusiasts who act as a virtual digital-photography advisory board, sharing opinions, experiences, frustrations and ideas with one another — and with hundreds of HP employees responsible for this business area. 

·         Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide invited hundreds of travel-savvy consumers to join a private online community dedicated to helping the company reimagine the hotel experience in order to develop its new Aloft brand, expected to launch in 2008. They were directly involved in the development of the brand name, the services, design and style of the space and furnishing and brand introduction.

·         Frito-Lay: consumer-generated ads are simply the most publicly visible evidence of a customer-centered marketing strategy. For almost two years, the snack-food maker has continuously consulted with consumers in online communities about a whole range of topics. Plus, by listening to how people in these communities interact with one another every day, Frito-Lay has a better view of how its brand fits into the bigger context of consumers’ lives.

“Eating the Big Fish: How Challenger Brands Can Compete Against Brand Leaders”.

Adam Morgan (European Planning Director of ad agency TBWA) indicates that people share information for one of four reasons:

1. bragging rights
2. product enthousiasm
3. aspirational identification
4. news value.

Stories and anecdotes make a point real to people and imbed it in their memories. Brand stories and anecdotes can become legends. As they are told and retold, they can raise the brand to a mythological level. Stories are often told about consumer experiences that far exceed expectations. This could be the result of extraordinary customer service or some other incredible experience with the brand. Going out of your way as an organization to create these experiences will pay huge dividends – word-of-mouth marketing can not be underestimated. Ideally, you create experiences that reinforce your brand’s point of difference.

Years ago, Avis was a little fish in the car rental industry. Fearing the company would be swallowed up if they didn’t “try harder,” Avis boldly announced its #2 status to the world through advertising-and the rest is history. Why has this approach become a marketing legend? Because there are more people who can relate to being number 2, 3, or even 4, than can claim they know what it’s like to be the Big Fish. But instead of watching-and copying-every move the Big Fish makes, these “Challenger” brands need their own set of marketing rules if they have any hopes of staying afloat and competing effectively against the leader.

Challengers seem to share the need to project who you are, what you believe in and insights that brands should:

• Break with the immediate past and build a lighthouse entity
• Assume thought leadership of the category
• Create symbols of reevaluation
• Sacrifice & Overcommit
• Use publicity and advertising as a high-leverage asset
• Become Idea-Centered, Rather Than Consumer-Centered
• Make good ideas happen.

Invite consumers to make the world a cleaner, greener place.
Win a Lexus plus $10,000,- to help turn your idea into reality.

• Dove’s Campaign for Real Beauty addresses self-esteem and our society’s distortion of beauty. It’s a great example of a mindful marketing program that benefits everyone.

• Starbucks’ concept of social responsibility is embedded deep into its brand, including conservation, community volunteerism, commitment to coffee producers, the Starbucks Foundation (youth literacy), Ethos water, socially responsible investing, and more.

• Squidoo enables lensmasters to send their revenues directly to a charity of their choice (Squidoo will add your favorite charity if it’s not currently in their system.) Over half of Squidoo’s lensmasters participate in this program, and Squidoo itself donates 5% of net revenue to the charity pool.

• Intel’s World Ahead program is committing a $1 billion investment to extend broadband PC access to the world’s next billion users while training 10 million more teachers on the use of technology in education.

• Whole Foods helped establish national organic standards, supports the Marine Stewardship Council to ensure sustainable seafood, established the Animal Compassion Foundation, and helped organic farms in North America grow.

• Patagonia is committed to environmental activism. Their mission statement is to build the best product, do no unnecessary harm, and use business to inspire and implement solutions to the environmental crisis. They have an impressive list of actions that their mission has inspired.