What Is Green Marketing?
Not to be confused with greenwashing, the marketers of truly green products are only too happy to be specific about the beneficial attributes of their products.
Greenwashing vs Green Marketing
As you no doubt know, there are some quality brands out there that do deliver truly environmentally conscious products. We know this because their marketing claims are backed up by industry–recognized certificates and government–backed standards. Furthermore, they’re open and transparent with the way they operate.
So what’s the difference between greenwashing and green marketing? Green marketing is not a simple phrase to define, as several meanings cross over and contradict one and other. But, it the easiest way possible: “Green marketing is the process of marketing products based on their environmental benefits.”
There is a fine line between green marketing and greenwashing. Unlike greenwashing, green marketing is when companies sell products or services based on legitimate environmental positives. Green marketing is generally practical, honest and transparent, and it means that a product or service meets these criteria:
- Manufactured in a sustainable fashion
- Free of toxic materials or ozone–depleting substances
- Able to be recycled and/or is produced from recycled materials
- Made from renewable materials (such as bamboo)
- Does not use excessive packaging
- Designed to be repairable rather than disposable
However, it’s easy for green marketing to translate to greenwashing in practice, when an organization doesn’t live up to the standards of sustainable business practices. A great example of a competitive “green marketing” brand is The Body Shop.
As a large franchise, the company knows that it needs to understand what its customers prioritizes as important and provide a product that fits that demand. Below is an example of The Body Shop’s Enrich Not Exploit campaign that communities around the world celebrated as being genuine and effective in its goals.
Combine their eco–friendly products with a solid track record of environmental performance and social awareness, and The Body Shop is a brand that successfully pulls off green marketing. In essence, green marketing refocuses, adjusts and enhances the current concepts of modern marketing.
It also challenges the way the western world markets products to provide a different perspective. If you’re familiar with marketing in any way, below is a table from J. Ottman Consulting, Inc. that breaks down the differences.
| Issues | Conventional Marketing | Green Marketing |
|---|---|---|
| Consumers | Consumers with lifestyles | Human beings with lives |
| Products | Cradle–to–Grave | Cradle–to–Cradle |
| One–Size–Fits–All products and services | Flexible services | |
| Marketing & Communications | Selling oriented | Education |
| End benefits | Values | |
| Corporate | Reactive | Proactive |
| Independent departmentalized | Interdependent Cooperative Holistic | |
| Short–term oriented | Long–term oriented | |
| Profit maximizing | Double bottom line |
In other words, green marketing addresses the fact that modern marketing and advertising practices are by default, done for the benefit of business, rather than the environment.
The activist outdoor gear retailer brand Patagonia is another great example of transparency and green marketing. Unlike most companies, Patagonia doesn’t sugarcoat its use of chemicals or the fact that it leaves a footprint. The brand openly admits that it’s not “green.” It uses fossil fuels in some of its products. The company knows that it can appeal to a bigger audience if it didn’t use fossil fuels. That’s why it funds activism and research, while simultaneously trying to stop using fossil fuels in its products. This transparency is seen as being green. By being open and transparent, it empowers the customer to make a choice.
Patagonia connects its customers and fans with climate rallies and events near them. The company also supports environmental activism at a grassroots level. It donates millions to support sustainable agriculture. And lastly, experiments with new materials in order to phase out the use of fossil fuels entirely.
Greenwashing’s Effect on Consumerism
Greenwashing also has ripple effects on consumer behavior. In a knee–jerk reaction to avoid blatantly greenwashed products, consumers may actively search for “eco–friendly” products. This often leads to finding a product that’s not greenwashed, but not the best alternative, either. It’s at this point where honest marketing needs to be prevalent.
Source:
Jacquie Ottman Consulting Eco Innovation & Green Marketing
http://www.greenmarketing.com/