Share Your Participation in SmartWay-Best Practices

As a SmartWay Partner or Affiliate, your organization’s leadership and commitment to supply-chain freight sustainability are essential to the Partnership's environmental achievements.

EPA encourages all partners and affiliates to promote and communicate the benefits of your participation through press releases, annual reports, environmental disclosure reports, social media, advertising, and other marketing methods.

Use the following tips and guidance to communicate effectively to your audience (e.g., customers, clients, shareholders, stakeholders and other interested parties) about your efforts to use SmartWay to improve freight efficiency and increase transportation supply chain sustainability.

Explain Why Freight Sustainability Matters

Freight is a topic that very few people think about or understand, yet freight transportation is a significant contributor to air pollution. Your participation in SmartWay gives you the opportunity to educate your audience about this important environmental issue.

Make sure your audience understands how freight transportation fits into your organization’s sustainability goals. Show your audience how freight transportation is the link between all aspects of your operations.

Learn more about freight sustainability:

Share Specific Examples

Provide precise details to show what your organization is doing to reduce the environmental, societal, and economic impact of your freight operations. Demonstrate how participating in SmartWay reduces your environmental footprint with concrete examples that relate to your audience's everyday lives. For example, share a particular case study where eliminating empty truckloads helps reduce congestion in an urban area where your company operates.

Promote the SmartWay Brand

EPA has developed resources to help you use the SmartWay brand to promote your participation in the Partnership. Here are some examples.

SmartWay Partner Registration Document

When your organization registers as a SmartWay Partner, you receive a welcome email that tells you how to access the SmartWay Portal. In that portal, you will find a certificate establishing that your organization is a SmartWay Partner in good standing. Partners can display the registration document at a highly visible location to demonstrate EPA's recognition of the value of their partnership in SmartWay.

SmartWay Partnership Press Release

Partners and Affiliates are encouraged to issue press releases promoting their participation in SmartWay. EPA is happy to review press releases. This review is not an official “approval” process; EPA staff provide input to ensure references to the SmartWay brand are correct. EPA can also ensure that Partners and Affiliates are accurately describing their status in the program and that general or historical references about SmartWay are correct.

A sample press release is available in the SmartWay Portal.

SmartWay Partner/Affiliate Marks (Logos)

Partners and affiliates can include the SmartWay marks on a variety of outreach and communications materials for promotional or educational purposes. Some examples for use of the partnership/affiliate mark include:

Published articles
Broadcast news stories
Videos
Websites and mobile applications
Brochures, fliers, posters, and signage
Presentations and briefings
Social media content
Collateral/giveaway items (e.g., cups, backpacks, shirts)
Stationary (e.g., letterhead, business cards)
Email signature block

Using the SmartWay Partner and Affiliate marks is a powerful way to establish your environmental leadership and commitment to sustainable supply chain transportation. You will find additional resources to promote your participation on the partner/affiliate resources pages and in the SmartWay Portal.

Learn more about logo use:

Graphics Standards and Usage Guide (PDF)(33 pp, 882 K, EPA-420-B-18-018, About PDF)
Describes proper use of the SmartWay logo for Partners, Affiliates and other interested parties (e.g. media) as well as those entities interested in Tractor/Trailer labeling.
Partners can access downloadable digital logo files in the SmartWay Portal.
Affiliates can apply for the SmartWay affiliate logo by following the instructions on the Affiliate Resources page.

Package labeling (for qualified SmartWay Partners)

Shipper partners may be able to use a special version of the SmartWay brand on consumer packaging and shipping materials. Products carried by SmartWay carriers may qualify to be labeled to show your customers and consumers that you are shipping freight in a more sustainable way. Qualifying partners who elect to use this benefit will be asked to submit supplemental information to EPA to help drive greater awareness of packaging improvements which improve freight efficiency. To learn more about this program, please contact your Partner Account Manager.

SmartWay Carbon Footprint Poster

Hang this poster in your company's customer service areas, lunchroom, or other common office spaces! Let your customers, employees and community know that you are working to reduce transportation's environmental footprint.

Here are directions for ordering the poster from the National Service Center for Environmental Publications (NSCEP):

Go to the NSCEP on-line site: https://www.epa.gov/nscep.
In the Search Publications box, type in SmartWay Carbon Footprint Poster.
Click on the Search button.
A listing of the poster will appear.
Click on the "mail" icon to order free mailed copies of the poster.