Sustainable Marketing: How DC Water turns waste into wealth (episode #106)

How I Made it in Marketing

The Accidental Recycled Poop Marketer!

That’s the headline of a recent podcast guest application.

And it came from someone leading marketing for an interesting product – a paid B2B and B2C product, sold by a nonprofit, that is run by an independent city government authority, a water and sewer utility formed in collaboration with the federal government.

So no matter what type of marketing you do or business you run, there’s probably a lesson for you in this episode with April Thompson, Senior Director for Bloom, Blue Drop [https://bluedrop.co/], (part of DC Water).

Blue Drop is a nonprofit organization created by DC water to generate revenue and therefore save its ratepayers money. DC Water is the District of Columbia Water and Sewage Authority. DC Water reported $898 million in operating revenues for 2023.

Thompson manages a two-person saleswoman team that has sold 65,000 tons of biosolids in its recycled poop fertilizer/soil amendment product in fiscal year 2024. Biosolids are a product most utilities pay to dispose of.

Stories (with lessons) about what she made in marketing

Here are some lessons from Thompson that emerged in our discussion:

• Marketing socially and environmentally responsible products is no different than marketing a conventional product
• Champion your champions
• Quit while you're ahead; no risk, no reward
• Optimism is underrated
• “It's not brain surgery on babies"
• Highly successful people give more credit than they take

Discussed in this episode

Get your Quick Start AI Productivity Kit when you sign up for a free, 3-month scholarship to the AI Guild [https://join.meclabsai.com/]
Sustainable Marketing: Take the time to understand your target audience deeply and your value proposition (podcast episode #104) [https://www.marketingsherpa.com/article/interview/sustainable]

Why You Should Thank Your Competitors [https://sherpablog.marketingsherpa.com/marketing/why-thank-your-competitors/]

Customer-First Marketing: Every click is a wish (podcast episode #85) [https://www.marketingsherpa.com/article/interview/customer-first]

Client Pitch Call from the Maternity Ward: “That sound? Oh, you know, the sounds of Brooklyn” – Podcast Episode #8 [https://www.marketingsherpa.com/article/interview/client-pitch-call]

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This podcast is not about marketing – it is about the marketer. It draws its inspiration from the Flint McGlaughlin quote, “The key to transformative marketing is a transformed marketer” from the Become a Marketer-Philosopher: Create and optimize high-converting webpages [https://meclabs.com/course/] free digital marketing course.

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