Emission-smart advertising: Balancing performance with CO2 emissions in digital advertising

The environmental impact of digital advertising is the subject of debate. Effective media planning and content management are crucial for capturing audience attention and achieving objectives such as brand recognition, increased traffic, user engagement, and loyalty building. However, few studies highlight the risks of prioritizing economic gains over ecological sustainability and the massive tons of CO2 emissions that an average digital ad campaign generates. This study makes a significant contribution to the literature by introducing the novel framework of emission-smart advertising that balances the performance of digital advertising and CO2 emissions reduction. A two-phase methodology combined a qualitative study and the Delphi method. Based on our findings, we elaborate on innovative and rarely discussed theoretical, managerial, and community contributions. These contributions concern solutions merging media performance evaluation and reduction of CO2 emissions of digital ad campaigns, as well as the optimization process at all stages, including energy saving, choice, formats, data, and key performance indicators. • Researchers often overlook CO2 emissions in digital advertising. • Emission-smart advertising balances the performance and CO2 emissions. • The Delphi method forecasts environmental solutions in digital advertising. • Green allies and ad targeting are key solutions in emission-smart advertising.