It started out as nothing more than a simple idea.
Born out of a realization that without me paying any deliberate attention or effort to it, I was developing a branded identity – one that was both unique and relevant at the same time.
I was an online Dad, sharing what it was like to be a father of four through an opportunity provided to me via Erica Ehm and her uber-successful site the Yummy Mummy Club. At the same time, I was an avid environmentalist who was given the opportunity to speak to Canadians about Climate Change and other issues as a result of being trained by a couple of environmental heavyweights, Al Gore and David Suzuki via The Climate Reality Project Canada. Yes, I was an environmentalist and a dad – I was an EnviroDad.
Three years ago today, the idea that was born out of the realization that an opportunity was there to be taken, turned into a website. Today, March 19, 2014 is the 3rd anniversary of the launch of EnviroDad.com
When this site was launched, I didn’t have any real overall objectives other than to develop a resource for families and individuals who were looking to make the right eco-friendly and sustainable choices. Reviews were a given and so were pieces offering advice and tips. Beyond that though, admittedly I’ve just been winging it.
What I did realize initially was that it was more important to build a brand into one that held leverage as opposed to putting up a site that could generate some money through the placement of ads. To that point, I have refrained from populating the site with paid ads and continue to do so to this day. It’s not that I haven’t received offers to sell ad space, but I never felt comfortable giving up full control over what would be presented in the spot I let ad agencies use. What good would it do to have an environmental site that makes a few bucks from a syndicate that places ads on my site for products and services that run contrary to what I believed in?
Perhaps the monetizing of the site has been the biggest area of uncertainty to this point. To make this into a real revenue generator, I would need to take this into a direction I’m not sure I want to go. Sponsored posts have appeared on this site occasionally and will likely continue to do so.
Having a voice and becoming a respected advocate of the environment has indeed been a goal through this site and to that effect, much success has been achieved. I have had the pleasure of speaking across this country to tens of thousands of people. I have been interviewed on national TV, quoted in many publications and been able to write freelance pieces in some of Canada’s most well known newspapers and magazines. On social media I have been noted as one of the most influential dads in Canada and these benchmarks only continue to grow.
During the these past 3 years the variety of content has certainly gone beyond where I thought it would initially go. The Enviro Dad Test Drive continues to be the most popular section and my role as an Green Car expert has grown exponentially. In 3 years I’ve gone from being an occasional car reviewer to one of the more widely known green car journalists in Canada. I became a member of AJAC, the Automotive Journalists Association of Canada, began a regular TV spot as a green car expert on a Toronto TV Station and most proudly, became a co-originator of the Canadian Green Car Award. I’ve reviewed here and in other publications or media outlets, hundreds of vehicles since launching the site, and there is still plenty of room to grow.
While this site has always been about being an environmentalist, it has also been about being a Dad. To that end, it shouldn’t surprise me that the most read article that I have ever written and published on this site, by far is The Meaning of Being a Dad, with more than 23,000 unique views and consistently in the top 5 most read articles every month, despite being first published more than two years ago.
Blending the enviro side with the dad side has led to other opportunities that I hadn’t originally expected. I’ve had the opportunity to bring my family with me to many events and destinations such as Blue Mountain, Great Wolf Lodge and many other events such as movie screenings, kid-friendly events and more.
Going forward, it’s difficult to predict how the next 3 years will evolve. My goal is to continue to educate and inspire others to make the right sustainable choices in life. One goal is to continue to demonstrate to readers how being green can also be profitable, time saving and generally improve quality of life. The moral imperative to change will never go away but the abundance of other reasons to make greener choices only continues to increase.
None of the above would be possible of course, without an audience. To those who have visited, read, shared, favourited, liked or otherwise talked about EnviroDad.com, I can’t thank you enough. The online world of blogging and personal opinions can be a crowded and often lonely one. You often wonder if the heart and soul that you put into a piece ever makes it to the eyes of anyone beyond your inner circle. When you see that it does, the gratification and fulfilment from it becomes larger than the effort itself to create.
From an idea up until today, a lot has happened to me and to this space. A lot has been done but a lot more work still needs to take place. I’m up for the challenge and I hope others are up for joining me along the way.
Be sure to Like my Facebook Page and to also follow EnviroDad on Twitter.
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