How to Implement Sustainability into Your Brand Strategy with ESG Factors
From market trends and multi-channel solutions to user insights and audience segmentation, strategic thinking is the way a brand boosts revenue, generates leads, grows awareness and increases customer value.
In 2026, ESG factors are increasingly important in a brand’s strategy. It’s not marketing, it’s compliance. Companies must clearly show what they’re doing, how they’re doing it, and prove it with data. Vague “green” claims aren’t enough anymore.
ESG reporting involves disclosing data on a company’s operations in environmental, social, and governance areas.
In short, it’s all about transparency.
Environmental, Social, and Governance Responsibility – Ethical Practices
From corporate goodwill to compliance, reporting ESG initiatives is not a marketing ploy; it’s conformity. For larger companies, ESG is tied to regulations, investor requirements, risk management and legal exposure. For smaller companies, it’s about trust, local communities and having a positive impact.
Corporate Social Responsibility
The social dimension of ESG focuses on how companies affect employees and communities, including workplace well-being and human rights.
Corporate Governance
Corporate governance in ESG includes issues such as board diversity, executive pay, and accounting transparency.
Environmental Sustainability
The environmental aspect of ESG includes a company’s management of greenhouse gas emissions and natural resource responsibility. Environmental stewardship is entirely relevant in 2026, as we become more aware of sustainability issues and the environmental impact we have on the planet.
“Green-Proving” ESG Initiatives
There’s a lack of clear standards and transparency in ESG practices, leading to fears that ESG promises are actually ‘greenwashing’. This is where ‘green-proving’ has emerged, where organisations can essentially measure and prove their impact and contributions to the environment. No more false claims and undeserved applause, the ESG framework helps stakeholders understand how an organisation is managing risks and opportunities related to environmental, social, and governance criteria.
This means demonstrating sustainability efforts, not just talking about them. Think:
- Measurable ESG metrics
- Audits, reports, certifications
- Traceable supply chains
Companies can set clear, measurable goals based on the materiality assessment, such as achieving net-zero emissions or reducing waste-to-landfill. Performance data in ESG is then tracked using KPIs and AI-powered software to meet third-party requirements and achieve accurate reporting.
The Importance of ESG Investments for B2B Procurement
ESG is increasingly important for corporations to attract investment and satisfy shareholders. Approximately two-thirds of institutional investors now use ESG metrics to screen potential investments for risk management. Before they invest, buyers increasingly require ESG disclosures, ESG performance, and exclude suppliers that can’t meet ESG standards.
By 2026, leading companies will treat ESG data with the same rigour as financial reporting to meet regulations and investor expectations.
Transparency with ESG Criteria
ESG reporting enhances transparency among investors, stakeholders, customers, and employees. Approximately two-thirds of institutional investors now use ESG metrics to screen potential investments for risk management.
Long Term ESG Investing
ESG factors are used by investors to assess a company’s long-term sustainability and ethical impact, influencing investment decisions. Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) practices enhance a company’s reputation, improve risk management, increase efficiency, and provide access to new capital and talent.
Implementing the ESG Movement Into Brand Strategy
At Reech, we are trusted by businesses of many shapes and sizes with positioning, messaging and brand identity; however, there is more to brand strategy than narrative or brand direction (and that’s coming from a creative-led, data-driven marketing agency). Research shows that companies with strong ESG practices can experience improved financial performance and tend to attract more business and talent.
Integrating ESG factors into investment strategies can enhance portfolio performance and mitigate risks. Sustainable business leaders are more prepared for industry challenges, such as rising energy or resource costs. Sustainable practices build trust and credibility with clients and ESG investors and, in turn, shorten sales cycles and strengthen relationships.
3-step ESG Implementation
- Identify which ESG factors are most relevant to the business through a materiality assessment. By establishing your sustainability issues, you can develop specific, measurable goals with KPIs. Be realistic but optimistic.
- Use audits or tracking software to measure your progress, or assign responsibility to a specific team or member to ensure your ESG practices are being embedded into corporate culture. Collect the data to prove you’re doing what you said you would.
- Implement the data into brand messaging and let people know your successful ESG investments. Using certificates (like B Corp) is a brilliant way of ‘green-proving’, so people know you’re certifiably responsible, just like what we did!
Sustainable, ESG principles implemented and measured at Reech
Our journey to becoming a certified B Corp is an example of ‘green-proving’. We’re amongst the over 2,300 other B Corp-certified businesses in the UK, and we’re proud to show you how. We’ve taken sustainability very seriously in our road to B Corp, as we know the importance of it, for the environment, for our clients and for ourselves.
- Ongoing monitoring of agency energy usage and setting targets to reduce
- Measuring food waste
- Encouraged more recycling by introducing specialist bins
- Offering a cycle-to-work scheme.
If you want to know how a local business achieved this, then read our Journey to B Corp piece. If you’ve got ESG factors sorted but want to learn more about brand strategy, get in touch; there’s plenty to discuss.
ESG Frequently Asked Questions:
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In terms of your business, it is a framework that moves you beyond surface-level sustainability. ESG is about running a responsible business, showing with full transparency how you treat the planet and your people.
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The success of brand ESG strategies can be tracked like any other marketing strategy, with clear, measurable KPIs. This could be a reduction in your carbon footprint, a higher percentage of renewable energy, or less water waste. If you can measure it, then you can manage it.
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It’s all about future-proofing.
Modern consumers, especially Gen Z and Millennials, are actively supporting brands that share their values. Beyond that, strong ESG scores are increasingly a prerequisite for securing investment, attracting top-tier talent, and staying ahead of tightening government regulations.
In straight statistics, ESG leaders enjoy a 10% lower cost of capital, and up to 75% of institutional investors may prioritise companies with verified ESG practices by 2026.
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Greenwashing is when a brand spends more time marketing itself as sustainable than actually doing the work. Authenticity beats perfection, so when adopting ESG principles, show the specific steps you’re taking, bring in progress reports along the way, and be honest about the areas where you’re still improving.
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Start with a “materiality assessment.” This is where you figure out which ESG factors actually matter most to your specific industry and your customers. From there, you can assess your current position and what ESG investments look like to you.
If you’re in manufacturing, your environmental focus will likely be your supply chain and waste. If you’re in an office, your sustainable practices might be renewable energy usage.
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Of course. You don’t need to be a huge corporate chain or have a chief sustainability officer to make a difference. Small businesses can win by being agile, for example, switching to local suppliers or introducing a cycle-to-work scheme. Local impact is often the most visible and rewarded.
