Photo by Andrea Piacquadio
CREDIBLE COMMS AUDIT
Talking about sustainability is both more vital and more risky than ever before.
As client and supply chain expectations grow while scrutiny intensifies, it can feel like you are making an impossible choice: overstate your progress and risk greenwashing, or stay silent and get left behind.
There is another way. With 25+ years’ experience advising clients from design brands such as Tarkett and Hem to designer-founders such as Bethan Gray, Katie Treggiden has developed a proprietary model to audit your eco-efforts: the Credible Comms Framework™.
Share live or ‘work in progress’ comms, and she will review them for clarity, credibility and confidence, offering a score, strategic feedback, and actionable next steps.
SELECTED CLIENTS
THE PROBLEM
Getting sustainability comms wrong erodes trust:
Vague statements like ‘where possible’ might feel like they’re covering you, but they sound like you’re covering something up.
Bold promises such as ‘Net Zero by 2050’ sound empty if they’re not backed up with regular updates about progress, albeit imperfect.
Spotlighting low-impact initiatives while ignoring the impact of day-to-day business undermines credibility in an instant.
But silence is no longer an option:
Staying quiet creates a vacuum that breeds mistrust. If you say nothing, people assume the worst.
Less credible competitors take clients and opportunities that could have been yours while you sit on the sidelines.
Implying sustainability without making overt statements still contravenes the Green Claims Code.
The Credible Comms Framework™ helps you to walk the fine line between greenwashing and ‘greenhushing’ with clarity, credibility and confidence.
If you are on the hook for what your design-led brand does (or doesn’t say!) about sustainability, read on. And if you’re not sure, but you’re in the comms, sustainability or innovation team of a design-led brand, or you’re a purpose-driven founder, that’s you!
HOW IT WORKS
The Credible Comms Framework™ has three key pillars:
Clarity: What are you talking about?
prevents confusion
without it: you risk saying the wrong things
Credibility: Why should anyone believe you?
prevents distrust
without it: you risk being called out
Confidence: How do you stand behind this?
prevents undermining genuine eco-efforts
without it: you risk hesitation or hype
The Credible Comms Audit™ is a review of your communications against these three pillars and the three tools that sit behind each one.
PROCESS
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Submit up to 1,000 words of copy or 5x social media posts that are either live or work-in-progress as an example of your current/intended comms for Katie to review
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Katie will review your comms to ensure she can help you, before sharing a payment link. She will then undertake a thorough audit against her Credible Comms Framework™ to assess whether you are communicating with clarity, credibility and confidence
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You will make payment at this stage and book a call directly into Katie’s calendar to discuss her findings and recommendations.
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During this 60-minute call, Katie will share your Credibility Score together with the findings of her 9-point Credible Comms Audit™ and a plan for consolidation or improvement.
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Katie will follow-up with a written report which summarises what was discussed on the call together with any agreed next steps.
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If appropriate and agreed upfront, Katie and the client will work together to implement any agreed next steps (additional fees may apply).
£500 GBP
|
€575 EUR
|
$675 USD
£500 GBP | €575 EUR | $675 USD
WHAT YOU GET
Credibility score from 0–100
9-point report explaining how your comms hold up against the Credible Comms Framework™
1:1 call with Katie Treggiden to discuss your report
Actionable next steps for improvement
Support with those steps as appropriate (additional fees may apply, but will be agreed upfront)
OUTCOME
Implement all the recommendations in the report, and you’ll get
Absolute clarity on the law, the science and your internal commitments
The credibility that comes from making claims you can back up and transparently sharing your progress, however imperfect
The confidence to talk about that imperfect progress towards genuine sustainability in a way that builds trust and connection
The trust of your clients, supply chain, employees and other stakeholders
And according to McKinsey, ‘financially successful companies that incorporate ESG [Environmental, Social, and Governance] into their growth strategies outperform their peers over the long term,’ so there’s also that!
