Tired of your bank passing off paperless checking as the centerpiece of their environmental program? Whether those initiatives are driven by a genuine desire to save the environment or simply the ease of now doing business online is up for debate. Nonetheless, reducing junk mail is definitely on the green business radar. And companies like GreenDimes are trying to profit from the environmental benefits of getting your name off those junk mailers’ lists.

So what if mail is still the best way to reach your target audiences? Recently a Green Marketing Coalition was established to promote the greening of direct marketing, as reported by the New York Times. Unfortunately for this effort, the initiative has been received by environmentalists as somewhat of a joke.

The recommended guidelines are vague and weak, including common sense approaches like proofing on a computer rather than printing hard copies and using chlorine-free recycled paper. One particularly silly feature of the site links users to government incentives for going green. Good luck finding a way to connect renewable energy tax credits to your mailing campaign.

By Stefan Deeran at The Element Agency in New York