Marketing leaves more than an impression: it leaves a footprint. There’s a carbon footprint for every ad, website, and event in the marketing world.
When we think of carbon emissions, we often only think of cars, factories, or food production, but the reality is a lot greater than that.
Our digital world — powered by energy-hungry data centres, networks, and devices — is playing an increasing role in global emissions. In 2022, the world emitted 41 billion tonnes of CO2, according to the International Energy Agency, and that’s expected to rise to 41.6 billion in 2024.
That sort of growth is unsustainable.
Marketing activities — physical or digital — contribute significantly to that total, from in-person events that generate tonnes of CO2 to digital marketing campaigns that require large amounts of energy. The marketing industry’s environmental footprint is too big to overlook.
As we all know, there’s strength in numbers. Here is some data on the impact of our marketing plans to show how large its footprint is and what we can do to mitigate it.
What is the environmental impact of marketing?
Marketing and advertising are essential for business growth but have a dark side.
Marketing and advertising increase carbon emissions and use up natural resources. Digital marketing relies on energy-guzzling data centres and networks, which produce a lot of CO2.
Traditional marketing, like printed brochures and magazines, uses paper, often from non-replenishable resources, leading to deforestation and ecosystem damage. Events, promotional materials, and packaging add to waste.
These practices deplete natural resources, increase landfill waste, and contribute to our warming climate. As these marketing methods have become central to modern strategies, it’s crucial to understand their environmental footprint and find ways to mitigate it.
But just how big is the problem? Below, I round up the most common figures related to marketing’s environmental and social impact.
Top figures in digital marketing
- Digital advertising could contribute as much as 2% of global carbon emissions by 2025.
- Streaming one minute of video uses 0.02kWh of electricity. Streaming for one hour generates approximately 10 kg of CO2, stemming from the energy required to transmit data over networks.
- Digital tech, including the internet, is responsible for about 4% of global CO2 emissions, equivalent to the entire aviation industry.
- A viral social media post can cause a rise in data usage, resulting in hundreds of kilograms of CO2, depending on the extent of engagement and reach.
- In 2020, data centres produced 330 Mt of CO2, responsible for about 2% of global emissions.
- One simple query on ChatGPT consumes roughly 10 times more electricity than a basic Google search.
- Data centres consume roughly 1% of global electricity, with a projected threefold increase in the coming years.
- A single page view emits 0.9g of CO2, 4,500kg for a site with 500,000 page views. For 10,000 website views, emissions are about 9 kg of CO2, with the equivalent offset needing 0.45 trees to balance.
Top figures in event marketing
- Printing 1,000 brochures releases 5.6 kg of CO2, contributing to deforestation and energy consumption.
- In-person events can generate up to 4.6 tons of CO2 per attendee, primarily due to travel (flights, cars), venue energy use, and physical materials.
- Running large AI models for content generation, like GPT, consumes significant energy, with emissions of over 85 kg of CO2 per model training hour.
- Producing 10,000 brochures uses about 1.2 trees and emits 56 kg of CO2.
- Large trade shows can generate 5 tons of CO2 per day, mainly due to energy use, attendee travel, and physical materials like booths and printed collateral.
What is the social impact of marketing?
From needs to status symbols, marketing’s mission is simple: drive the next purchase.
But the strategies used to go beyond product promotion, using psychological tricks to get us to overconsume, impulse buy, and desire status. This creates a cycle where we buy products not for practicality but to keep up with trends or societal expectations. So, marketing contributes to materialism, environmental degradation through overproduction, and a culture of consumerism.
The question is: what are we willing to continue business as usual to reach revenue targets? But at what cost?
The environmental impact of overconsumption is obvious, but the broader social implications — unhealthy social norms, financial stress, and mental health impacts of consumerism — are also worrying.
Marketing that drives overconsumption raises questions of responsibility when the desire to sell trumps the well-being of consumers and the planet. Marketers need to consider these strategies’ long-term implications and balance profit with positive social impact.
Top figures in social impact
- Approximately 4.2 billion people are exposed to social media ads every day, with **90% of users encountering targeted advertisements.
- Consumers are four times more likely to purchase a product promoted by an influencer they follow, and 49% of social media users say they trust influencers over brands.
- Studies show advertisements can increase impulsive buying behaviour by up to 60%, especially when linked to limited-time offers or social validation.
- Research shows that 56% of people report feeling pressure to buy products they don’t need due to advertising or social influence.
- On average, 30-40% of consumer goods are discarded or unused within a year of purchase, driven by overpromotion of short-lived trends.
- 58% of millennials report experiencing stress from keeping up with the expectations created by marketing and social media trends.
- Marketing strategies designed to trigger impulse buying have contributed to a 15% increase in consumer credit card debt over the last decade.
Time to make your marketing sustainable?
Marketing is powerful, but it has a big environmental and social footprint.
Using low-carbon and low-impact marketing can help reduce marketing’s contribution to climate change and help to build stronger, more resilient communities and a future for us.
Every decision we make counts toward making a positive impact: reducing emissions, minimising waste, or promoting social good.
Interested in the data for those statistics?
‘How Does Marketing Affect Mental Health?’ by Adfree Cities
‘Top 20 Influencer Marketing Statistics you need to know in 2025!’ by Charle
Social Media Marketing Statistics – Statista
‘Social Impact Statistics You Should Know’ by Engage For Good
‘Mass Marketing: Harming The Planet, Customer Relationships And ROI’ by Forbes
‘Social Impact Trends 2024: A Data-Driven Look’ by For Momentum
‘The footprint that advertising does not want to leave’ by MOEVE
