What is an ESG value statement?

Once you have a solid ESG strategy in place, you’ll need to create a value statement that breaks it down into a bite-sized snippet of information that people can quickly and easily understand.

The overarching strategy is likely to be very detailed, with a number of commitments and targets underneath each pillar. Your overall strategy is extremely valuable as your springboard for brand communications, but your value statement will act as a synopsis of your primary ESG strategy.

Your ESG value statement should:

• Be visionary – you need to set out your ESG intentions and what your main goal is.
• Explain why ESG is important to you and what you believe in.
• Explain how you’re aiming to achieve your vision.
• Provide clarity on impact – such as how your ESG strategy positively impacts the people who interact with your brand.

How to create an ESG value statement

Writing a value statement can be more difficult than you might imagine. It needs to encompass all the above, while being easy to understand for multiple different audiences. When writing your ESG statement, make sure it’s:

• Clear – avoid lots of buzzwords and marketing jargon. This is about facts, focusing on actions and goals.
• Concise – your statement should be simple to understand and get straight to the point. It should be short and memorable, so it’s easy for people to recall.
• Helpful – the value statement exists to help people understand what your vision is – not confuse them further.

In addition to your ESG value statement, you could also produce a value statement for each pillar: environment, social and governance. There are no hard and fast rules though, you can decide what feels right for you and your business.

Communicating your ESG value statement

Now you have your ESG framework defined with clear measurables and a concise value statement, you need to start communicating your ESG message. Your strategy is probably quite complex with multiple layers – so the key here is simplicity!

It’s important to remember that your ESG strategy will be communicated to multiple audiences, from stakeholders and investors to employees, customers, and consumers – so you should avoid putting all your eggs in one basket and just directing people to your ESG annual report. This might seem like the easier thing to do, but it’s not particularly helpful.

Shareholders will be interested in different information to consumers, so the first step is to start dissecting the strategy and figuring out what is most important to each audience. Then you can then start tailoring your messages and producing content that will resonate with them.

Time, frequency, and the right channels for your content should also be considered alongside the messaging. For example, do you have platforms that resonate with your customers vs the wider consumer audience? Internally, are there more favourable channels for employees vs senior stakeholders?

Remember, your ESG strategy will be put under the microscope, so you must ensure that everything you create permeates your brand. Your value statement should be treated with the same amount of love, care, and attention as any other campaign you produce.

Are you ready to take your ESG strategy to the next level? Get in touch to see how we could support you.