Serco's role in the success of the Envirowise programme is a compelling example of how our environment-first culture drives our business performance.

Envirowise is a government-funded programme offering free, independent environmental advice to UK businesses. Since 2000, we have been responsible for providing strategic marketing and support services to the programme through Technology Transfer and Innovation (TTI), one of the businesses in our Science portfolio.

TTI engages Envirowise's target audiences through a variety of channels that include a technical helpline and website, best practice guides, workshops/seminars and on-site visits. Essentially, the programme aims to change the way businesses behave to help them use resources more efficiently and cut costs.

The success of the programme is beyond dispute. An independent audit has established that it has helped UK businesses to save over £1.3 billion since it was established in 1994. Envirowise has also made a significant contribution to achieving UK Government targets for cutting water usage, waste sent to landfill and chemical emissions.

Among the most notable strengths that TTI brings to Envirowise is its talent for communicating technical know-how to a largely non-technical audience, creating generic messages that resonate with businesses and persuade them to engage with the programme by taking up the free services it offers.

During 2005, the value of the Envirowise marketing contract doubled from £1.5 million to £3 million. Under the new agreement, TTI was required to demonstrate that it could reach many more businesses and increase uptake of the programme's free services, especially among small- to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the service sector. Galvanised by the challenge, the TTI team set about devising a marketing campaign that would:

Target 50,000 service sector SMEs from charities to law firms and from facilities management businesses to financial services companies 
Highlight the link between minimising waste and maximising profits 
Position Envirowise as a reliable source of independent advice 
Draw people in through a specially designed website (micro site) or a dedicated helpline, and so drive the uptake of Envirowise services.  
The results of the marketing campaign were tangible. It drew an 11.4 per cent response rate against an industry average for similar campaigns of one per cent or less. In total, more than 5,000 people engaged with Envirowise, over 90 per cent for the first time. Of these, 390 asked for more than one service or product. The team received 890 requests for on-site visits – more than three times the number expected. The total campaign was created and delivered in just three months. 

Envirowise is funded across the UK by the DTI, DEFRA and the Business Resource Efficiency and Waste Programme (BREW) in England, the Scottish Executive in Scotland and the Materials Action Programme (MAP) in Wales.