What Is Greenwashing & How To Avoid It
Talk of the climate crisis is inescapable these days and the news makes for very concerning reading at the moment… so it’s perhaps no surprise that an increasing number of consumers are now making purchasing decisions based on the green credentials of the brands they’re interested in.
A recent report from Unilever showed that a third of people are now buying from companies based on their environmental and social impact. In fact over one in five will actively choose to shop with a brand that is transparent about the steps they’re taking to be sustainable with regards to their packaging and marketing.
Plus it’s likely that this will only increase as the climate crisis deepens and a growing number of people start to realise the impact that human activity has on the planet.
A number of brands are looking at how they can become more eco-friendly in their approach, and whilst this is commendable and certainly something that may well become a necessity in the near future, it’s important to avoid greenwashing - as this may have the opposite effect.
Greenwashing is when more time, effort and money is sunk into marketing a brand as an eco-conscious company instead of actually taking action to minimise their environmental impact.
The idea behind it is to present the brand in a particular light to appeal to consumers now looking to spend their money with brands that align with their own ideals. A range of companies have made headline news for behaving in this way.
Sustainable marketing can be difficult - so take a look at this 2015 2015 by Futerra [HS1] if you’re wondering where to begin. It details some of the marketing tactics to steer well clear of, such as using words or terms that have no clear meaning.
Avoiding suggestive pictures is also recommended, such as images that give an unjustified impression of eco-friendliness. Avoid making claims which aren’t backed up by any hard evidence or comparative data.
You can engage in green marketing if your products or services do have very real environmental positives behind them. If, for example, your products are manufactured in a sustainable way and are free of any toxic materials, shout about this as much as you can.
If your products can be recycled or are made from recycled materials, this is also something that consumers will favourably respond to.
London reputation management firm Flourish PR can help you with your green marketing strategies. Get in touch with us today to find out more.
