First there was green marketing, and then there was greenwashing. Now the pendulum is swinging back again. According to a new study by Burst Media (via Green Daily), consumers are growing wise to green advertising claims. More than 20% of survey respondents said they seldom or never believe environmental claims in product ads, and two-thirds said they only “sometimes” believe.

So is consumer skepticism good or bad? Probably both.

Given the level of greenwashing in the market, it’s a good thing that consumers aren’t falling for every green marketing trick. However, the entire purpose of environmental labeling is to make environmentally-friendly choices available and apparent to the public. If consumers disregard all green advertising, it means many of them are foregoing potentially eco-friendly product alternatives. It’s important to bring clarity and transparency to ecolabelling… before consumers turn away altogether.

Fortunately, there are resources for consumers seeking a little truth in marketing. In addition to looking for accredited environmental labels like EcoLogo, consumers can visit (and contribute to) sites like the new Greenwashing Index. The Greenwashing Index aims to collect and publish examples of greenwashing in product ads. The site’s criteria for greenwashing covers a lot of the same ground as the TerraChoice “Six Sins of Greenwashing” report. For example, the site talks about ads that make green claims that are “vague or seemingly unprovable.” This matches up well with the Sin of Vagueness and the Sin of No Proof.

The more it’s possible to separate the green from the greenwash, the more consumers will buy green products when they hit the stores. Healthy skepticism is good. Giving up on green is not.

Posted by Mari in Green products, Marketing