According to the U.S. National Park Service, "Nearly 85 percent* of wild land fires in the United States are caused by humans." That's a pretty mind-boggling statistic considering our boy Smokey Bear has been around for almost 80 years. Have we not learned anything?

As outdoor enthusiasts who market outdoor brands, we’re constantly inspiring recreationists to go use our clients’ gear in earth’s beautiful outdoor settings. But promoting visitation to these places, by its very nature, increases forest fire risk (see wicked smart statistical reference above). That puts us in a bit of a pickle—between a rock and a hot place, you might say.

With forest fire season getting worse in recent years, we’ve been asking ourselves, “How do we do right by our clients while also doing right by Mother Nature?” And we’ve landed on some effective and actionable answers. We’ve encouraged our clients to be proactive stewards and in some cases to call their social media fans to arms to help prevent wildfires.

How do we navigate this complicated landscape? What does it mean to be a responsible outdoor brand in an era of heightened wildfire risk? Who's doing it well? And how can you make sure your brand is fireproof? We've curated our practical insights and experience to help guide you through the smoke.

If you’re a business leader, marketer, brand manager, or influencer who operates in the outdoor recreation industry, consider adopting these approaches for responsibly marketing your brand amidst increasing wildfire risk.

Why You Should Be Transparent

In tough situations, we value those with a voice, and those who keep the conversation going, no matter how uncomfortable it may be. How do you have a genuine conversation with your online community? A good example is this now iconic Patagonia ad in The New York Times telling people, "Don't Buy This Jacket.”

"Everything we make takes something from the planet we can't give back. Each piece of Patagonia clothing, whether or not it's organic or uses recycled materials, emits several times its weight in greenhouse gasses, generates at least another half garment's worth of scrap, and draws down copious amounts of freshwater now growing scarce everywhere on the planet," they wrote on their blog. "We're in business to make and sell products. Everyone's paycheck relies on that." But, they stated, "It's not hypocrisy for us to address the need to reduce consumption."

Be transparent with your community. Be honest. Give voice to the elephants in the room and the hard conversations. Relative to forest fires, this means simply discussing it honestly. Transparency is a hallmark of leadership, and your customers will respect you for it.

ACTION ITEM #1: Walk the Walk

Don’t just talk about it, be about it. Once you’ve addressed the reality of heightened forest fire risk and your business's relationship to it—maybe it’s an ad like Patagonia’s, maybe it’s a letter from the founder in an email newsletter, maybe it’s a heartfelt social media post—it’s time to take action.

Simply reposting a hashtag or trending news article can be interpreted as superficial and performative rather than genuine. Instead, highlight a non-profit that people can donate to. Better yet, make a donation yourself to set an example. Create fire safety resources on your blog and share those as a guide. Invite a smoke jumper on your podcast to give the issue a stage. Don't know where to start? Ask your online community for their thoughts on the matter. Their responses can inform your actions, and the conversation will foster a tighter community.

Why You Should Find a Unique Approach to the Issue

If your goal is merely to make another sale, remember this: consumers aren't dumb. They’ll catch on if all you're trying to do is make a buck. Remember when Pepsi® co-opted protest movements for commercial gain with supermodel Kendall Jenner on the front line? It gives us the ick just thinking about it.

But, though it’s cliched, doing good isn’t anathema to making money.

Off-road GPS app onX Offroad recently sent an email directing people to their youtube how-to, "Active Fire Layer with Nate Pickel from Dirt Lifestyle." This is an excellent example of constructively addressing the issue while staying true to its mission and supporting the bottom line. They already make maps for off-roaders and hunters—they've just added the ability to help navigate around dangerous wildfire areas. The added product feature makes their offering more compelling, the ambassador-lead educational video drives awareness among consumers, and the subject matter helps keep people safe in forest fire country.

If you can bake your cause into your product in a unique way as onX did here, you’re providing real value to customers—value that they’ll pay for and evangelize, without you beating them over the head with Buy Now buttons.

What’s your brand’s version of a more wildfire-aware product?

ACTION ITEM #2: Brainstorm With Your Team

Whether you’re making a statement on social media that’s backed up by tangible actions or you’re adding a whole new feature to your product, some internal strategizing must be done. Does your brand have a mission and a vision statement? Now would be a good time to reference that. Often, a reminder of why you’re here serves as a great guide for an important conversation. How does your consumer relate to this issue? Are there ways you can address the issue that has positive knock-on effects for your bottom line? What would appropriate right coming from your brand?

Think about these things with your leadership team. You might land on a genius way to address forest fires that’s wholly unique to your brand.

Why You Should Imagine Yourself Here, Responsibly

*Unattended fire by petesphotography/Getty Images*

All social media platforms rely heavily on imagery to sell products. Marketing firm MDG Advertising discovered that "content paired with an image attracted 94% more views on average than content without visuals." A picture might be worth a thousand words. Today, it's also worth a thousand likes on Instagram.

Within this picture-rich paradigm, shooting and sharing content responsibly is crucial. Unfortunately, social media is littered with examples of inappropriate fire safety practices, many (all?) of which can be avoided.

While big brands have legal teams cautioning them to avoid x, y, and z, smaller brands doing more run-and-gun photo/video productions often don’t, and sometimes inadvertently photograph hazardous fire safety practices. But by adopting a precautionary approach like the big brands (sans the hefty attorney’s fees) small brands can ensure they’re not accidentally looking dumb on camera.

How?

Know the rules (this might require some basic research of wildfire prevention principles and perhaps LNT principles, as well as any product-specific considerations if your products are flammable or involve the use of fire, like camp stoves). Then, imagine yourself there, responsibly.

Remember this rulebook and visualization practice when you’re preparing for a photo shoot, when you’re out on production, when you’re wading through post-production, and when you’re sourcing UGC or stock imagery. Make notes in your pre-production documents. This will mitigate any accidental fire safety malpractice caught on camera.

ACTION ITEM #3: Fireproof Your Content Production Plans

So, you know the rules, and you’ve thought of fire-relevant scenarios in your shoot. But do you even need campfires in your content production? If not, consider removing that aspect. If you do, ensure you follow local regulations when you shoot and that you shoot in a location that's not chronically devastated by wildfires. Photo of a tent too close to the campfire? Cut it! Video of activities that could produce fire or sparks when it's hot, dry, and windy? Nope! Thoughtful pre-production will go a long way.

Why You Should Reconsider Your Stance On Geotagging

As previously stated, 85 percent of wildfires are caused by humans—so maybe you feel that by not geotagging, you're taking a step in the right direction, keeping people from flocking to certain precious outdoor locales. Geotagging on its own isn’t good or bad, per se. Rather it’s the intention behind it that matters. Here’s an excerpt of a blog titled: "5 Reasons Why You Should Keep Geotagging." by Danielle Williams published on Melanin Basecamp.

"Instead of emphasizing education or the transformative quality of spending time outdoors—which has the power to make conservationists out of casual hikers—many writers and people online resort to thinly veiled or outright racist remarks. Should you feel compelled to geotag every single outdoor pic? Of course not. Just don't use racist or classist reasons to justify your opposition to geotagging . . . like refusing to geotag because urban hikers "have to earn it," or "they'll find it if they're serious enough . . ."

While this example isn’t specific to forest fires, it contains two valuable insights:

Have an official brand stance on geotagging and a rationale for that stance (hopefully it’s not “to exclude noobs from overrunning the outdoors”). Multiple brands we work with have adopted the approach of only geotagging regions or states, never specific campsites or viewpoints. This allows you to celebrate certain areas without dropping a pin. Even if you do this, though, you need to…
Consider each post in the context of current forest fire conditions. You might have done a photoshoot in Alaska three months ago that you’re sharing photos from in today’s post, but if that part of Alaska is shrouded in smoke from nearby fires, don’t geotag the specific location, and consider not posting that content for the time being. Or, you could use the post as a chance to be topical and address the current forest fire situation in the place where you did your photoshoot.

ACTION ITEM #4: Track Wildfire Conditions June-September

If a massive forest fire is sweeping through Central Oregon, don’t be the brand that posts a lifestyle photo of people smiling around a campfire in Central Oregon (especially if it’s geotagged “Central Oregon”), unless you want to become a meme.

Regardless of your stance on geotagging, knowing where the main fires are burning will allow you to make smart, game-time decisions about what to post, what not to post, or how to append social copy, so fans know when and where your photos were taken, and that you were following all local campfire regulations.

Know what’s burning and apply common sense.

The NY Times has a good West Coast Wildfire Tracker, and a quick Google search will turn up the latest on wildfires in whichever area you’re curious about.

Why You Should Educate Your Audience

REI's podcast "wildfire" is an excellent example of a brand using its financial and creative resources to educate its community on the destruction of wildfires. Yes, they have a budget that exceeds most, but it shows that education is a powerful tool. The podcast covers the "devastating and controversial" 2017 Eagle Creek Wildfire in Oregon.

For those unaware, in September 2017, a 15-year-old boy chucked a firecracker into Eagle Creek Canyon, lighting a flame that torched nearly 49,000 acres. In order to take a closer look at the devastating environmental and economic damage that this tragedy caused, podcast hosts Graham Zimmerman and Jim Aikman examined the complexities of the Eagle Creek fire.

Educating your audience reinforces your role as a thought leader on the topic at hand. If outdoor spaces are core to your brand, sharing educational content relative to forest fires makes sense. If forest fire safety is more tangential to your brand narrative, curate some of the best educational content from other brands and publications (like the aforementioned REI Wildfire podcast) and relay that content to your fans.

ACTION ITEM #5: Create Content Around the Topic

Even if you don't have REI-sized budgets to produce podcasts, you can use your blog, newsletters, and social media content to educate your audience about wildfires.

Think about timing, too. Wildfire content will be best received during wildfire season (or right before). Maybe next summer you can plan a blog about how camping trips can be just as great without campfires (or even better because you can go to higher elevation campsites and more remote locales).

Why You Should Give Actionable Resources

Whether linking to volunteer opportunities or providing a reason/location to donate, there are many ways to provide your followers with actionable steps. We like this example from one of our current clients, Therm-a-Rest: An educational blog titled "Wildfire Prevention: Backpacking During Fire Season", which provides the reader with the resources they need to stay safe and responsible while camping and backpacking during wildfire season.

Fans can read something like this and then put it into action. If you can produce content that’s similarly actionable, fans will bookmark it, save it, and share it with their friends.

ACTION ITEM #6: Create Something Evergreen

Wildfire season, unfortunately, is a perennial occurrence. But that means that good content can be refreshed annually with minimal effort. What can you create this year that you can re-share next year? Creating blogs or videos like this not only shows that your company genuinely cares about the well-being of the outdoor community and the environment, it gives you content that pays dividends repeatedly.

Why You Should Support Those On the Front Lines

Do you have the money to support firefighters on the front lines? Great! Low on money, but have a customer base you can rally? Also great. While many companies say their "thoughts are with the people being affected by these devastating fires," truly thoughtful brands are going beyond simple thoughts and prayers, finding actual firefighting organizations and contributing, either with money, time, product, or some combination thereof. We’ve talked about “walking the walk” (see action item #1) and this is a specific example of doing that.

Even symbology can take on added meaning when it goes beyond just words. The small, family-run JK Boots gifts each donor a WFF logo stamped onto their boots in recognition of every wildland firefighter (no kidding!). It's simple but meaningful. They are an outdoor brand that makes money off selling boots made for people who go outdoors and take action to support the cause by joining forces with the Wildland Firefighter Foundation "to give back to those who have given everything."

ACTION ITEM #7: Ask How, and then Ask It Again (and Again)

Have you ever used the popular brainstorming exercise “The Five Whys?” You start with a challenge you want to overcome then narrow it down by asking “why?” five times.

There is an equally productive exercise, “The Five Hows.” First, ask your team: “How can we protect and preserve our forests from deadly wildfires?” One answer could be: “We can donate money.” Next, ask how again. Workable answer: “We engage donors by raffling off a prize pack of our gear.” Then you ask how three more times. The goal is to dig deeper and deeper. That way, you thoroughly examine the issue at its core, finding tangible, actionable ways to give back to your community.

Why Does Any of This Matter?

Nowadays, consumers are holding companies accountable for how they use (or don’t use) their platforms to address environmental issues. (As they should.) This is 10x’d for outdoor brands who rely on the great outdoors for profit.

Your brand has a platform, and that comes with responsibility. But being responsible doesn’t mean torpedoing the bottom line. Integrating environmental causes, like wildfire prevention, into your brand narrative is a financial opportunity. Done well, it’s another reason consumers subscribe to your shared belief systems and ultimately evangelize your brand—the holy grail of customer relationships.

So do Smokey a solid, start a conversation, get people talking to each other, and, just maybe, change people's minds. What you say might even prevent a forest fire.

We hope you were able to take something away from this post, and if you’re interested in chatting with the crew here at WAU, don't hesitate to reach out.

*2022. Wildfire Causes and Evaluations. nps.gov. Available at: https://www.nps.gov/articles/wildfire-causes-and-evaluation

A Burning Question: How Should Outdoor Brands Address Heightened Wildfire Risk?