Patagonia’s Stellar Strategy on Snapchat
A roundup of the climate conversation across social media this week
Welcome to Climate Monitor, a weekly, data-driven report on the digital strategies polluters and pro-Climate groups are using to shift public opinion and move legislation. Here’s what we found:
Toplines:
Patagonia is partnering with lots of local and regional organizations and utilizing Snapchat ads that make it easier for young people to take climate action
A Facebook page called Made By Us News is running new ads nationwide touting President Biden’s Clean Energy Plan
An Earthjustice post about their work to oppose the Line 5 oil pipeline went viral on Facebook
For Spanish speakers, climate misinformation and disinformation online is spreading, according to a new report by GreenLatinos and Friends of the Earth
Digital Advertising Roundup
Facebook + Instagram 👍
For starters, here were the top 25 climate and energy-related advertisers on Facebook and Instagram last week:
The top spenders on digital ads in the climate and energy space last week were the American Chemistry Council (AKA the plastics lobby) and the American Petroleum Institute. This dynamic has persisted for weeks.
One new and notable ad this week comes from Made By Us News, which is a part of Clean Energy for America’s education fund. The ads are being run on Facebook and Instagram in key battleground states like North Carolina, Michigan, and Georgia. The ads tout Biden’s Clean Energy Plan, especially in regard to the economic growth and job creation it has created in these areas.
Another new and notable ad campaign comes from the National Hydropower Association: they are running video ads on Facebook and Instagram that seem to target states on the East Coast and in the Midwest, like New York, Pennsylvania, and Ohio. The ads explain the importance of clean energy – and specifically of hydropower (as opposed to solar and wind energy). Check them out >>>
And finally, the Union of Concerned Scientists is running new fundraising ads nationwide on Facebook and Instagram that push back on any and all groups – from Exxon to the EPA– that may have contributed to climate injustice and the climate crisis.
Google & YouTube 🎞️
There were four new and noteworthy climate or energy advertisers archived by Google last week: Maine Affordable Energy ($55,900) is continuing to run ads that tell Mainers to vote no on Question 3, Clean Jobs for Michigan ($7,000) is continuing to run illustrated video ads in support of clean energy initiatives, the Virginia League of Conservation Voters ($5,200) is running ads for pro-climate VA candidates, and Clean Virginia ($4,700) is running video ads in support of VA candidates (who are presumably pro-clean energy).
Snapchat 🤳
There was one new and noteworthy climate or energy advertiser on Snapchat last week: Climate Power is running ads encouraging young people to sign up for President Biden’s Climate Corps.
🔦 Spotlight: Patagonia’s Stellar Strategy on Snapchat
When it comes to climate and energy advertisers on Snapchat, the retailer and climate action powerhouse Patagonia dominates. In 2023 alone, they’ve put up 310 ads, spent $110,661, and amassed over 33 million impressions.
This is an impressive feat in and of itself. But there is a twist. True to Patagonia’s mission to support other climate organizations and connect them to their audience, the climate giant has actually been running these ads in support of dozens of local and regional climate causes across the nation. Here are just a few examples from Montana, New Mexico, Alaska, and Massachusetts respectively.
These ads are actually a really smart way to drive local climate action and to combat feelings of climate doom amongst Americans who might feel hopeless and powerless in the face of the climate crisis. By focusing on a specific project or issue – like keeping the Anaconda power plant accountable in MT or keeping pesticides out of wild ecosystems in MA – Patagonia and their partner orgs are creating a clear and actionable task that any person seeing the ad can get involved in.
And the choice to place these ads on Snapchat was also really smart – both because of Snapchat’s functions and Snapchat’s users. The beauty of Snapchat ads is that users can click or swipe up and immediately be taken to a petition or an RSVP for a rally. It is pretty seamless in converting a call to action into action. Here’s an example of the petition page that a Patagonia ad about Snake River in Idaho >>>
In terms of Snapchat’s users (per our reporting over at FWIW last month), there are 100,000 of them and a sizable amount are between ages 18-34. Gen Z and Millennials aren’t just a crucial voting block – they are also the people who are most concerned about the threat of climate change. They are also very receptive to information – especially political and activist information – that they receive online.
All in all, this Snapchat strategy from Patagonia is a masterclass in meeting your audience where they are and giving them a clear, tangible call to action that they can get started on immediately. It also does a great job of demonstrating how major players in the climate space can amplify local climate organizations and projects that might otherwise go unnoticed. This win-win strategy provides a great template for how to keep climate action and activism firmly at the forefront of people’s minds.
What’s Trending on Social Media
How are climate and energy issues being discussed by Americans on social media? Every week, we conduct a robust keyword search using CrowdTangle for general terms like “climate change,” “global warming,” “fossil fuels,” and over 40 more specific topics (like “electric vehicles,” “gas stoves” and “pipelines”). Here were the 10 top-performing public posts (by # of interactions) related to climate and energy on Facebook last week:
Last week, over 12,300 public Facebook posts mentioned climate or energy issues, and they earned a cumulative 631,900 interactions.
This week, Earthjustice went pretty viral on Facebook. Their post addresses their partnership with the Bay Mills Indian Community to advocate for the removal of the Line 5 oil pipeline, which spans several states and three Great Lakes.
Another notable Facebook post this week came from Yale Environment 360, the publication of Yale’s environmental school. The post amplifies an article they published about the Eastwick neighborhood in Philadelphia, a predominantly Black community where 89% of the homes are at risk of severe flooding. Check it out here >>>
And finally, pop icon Christina Aguilera garnered some buzz by hosting an event for the Climate Reality Project and thanked founder Al Gore for his work.
Here were the top-performing feed posts (excluding Reels and Stories) related to climate and energy on Instagram last week:
Last week, over 6,700 public Instagram feed posts mentioned climate or energy issues, and they earned a cumulative 4 million interactions.
The top three climate-related posts on Instagram this past week (in order) came from @xtina about her work with the Climate Reality Project, @realdonaldtrump touting a new favorite, pro-Big Oil line of his, and @clips about the climate protest at Berlin’s E-Prix race.
Weekly Reading
Want to go deeper? Here’s a quick roundup of news from the past week at the intersection of climate, digital strategy, and advocacy.
P.S. Are you signed up for Climate Nexus’ daily newsletter, Hot News? It’s a one-stop shop for everything you need to know in the climate and environmental policy space. Subscribe here>>
Spanish-language misinformation and disinformation about renewable energy is spreading online (NBC News, 9/28)
Politico’s energy newsletter seems to be financed by Big Oil giant Chevron (X/@climatebrad, 10/3)
The head of the Columbia Journalism Review is leaving because he thinks journalists are doing enough on climate change – and he wants to fix it (Fortune, 10/3)
That’s it for this week! If you enjoyed reading this week’s issue, feel free to forward it to a friend or colleague.
Climate Monitor is a product of the Digital Climate Coalition + FWIW Media. Tips/comments/questions? Email lucy@fwiwmedia.com