Sandra O’Loughlin

For brands looking to stage events for consumers or employees the answer may be as close as their neighborhood movie theater. During off-hours those cushy seats and cup-holders are just sitting there empty; the big dark screen is just begging to light up with a movie or simulcast. Add in the efficiencies of reaching potentially thousands of people via a network of theater locations and you’ve got an opportunity that may just be worth exploring especially in this age of global warming and carbon offsets.

Imagine staging a global financial leadership conference with former Prime Minister Tony Blair former chairman of the Federal Reserve Paul Volcker and flashy CNBC anchor Maria Bartiromo as headliners. Lining up such stellar speakers and attracting C-level financial decision-makers to listen to them however pales in comparison to the economic news that could have tanked the CME Group Global Financial Leadership Conference the first ever held by CME Group a newly formed entity and the world’s largest derivatives exchange.

Digital signage—you know those high-def plasma screens electronic billboards and scrolling messages you see in your favorite restaurants stores and outdoor spaces—are more than glorified TVs. Passersby in Toronto earlier this year were stopped in their tracks on the city streets by digital images and special effects animating the windows of Hudson Bay Company’s flagship store. A Venus Breeze razor promotion last summer captured women’s real-time images as they walked past and magically projected them onto a dynamic interactive display.

The Living Green Tour and Exhibit a seven-month 15-city tour sponsored by Better Homes and Gardens and Clorox’s Green Works a line of plant-based natural cleaners was a show home filled with product and advice for consumers looking to save money live healthier and conserve natural resources.

Want to be more Earth friendly? Take this advice from brands that already walk the talk