Americans Trust Green Claims, But Support Government Oversight: Survey
The 2008 Green Gap Survey found that while about half of U.S. residents think companies are being truthful in their green messages, even more would support increased government regulation of green claims.
With only a couple weeks until a Federal Trade Commission hearing on green marketing, a survey had found many U.S. residents misunderstand environmental phrases and support enhanced government regulation of green claims.
The FTC hearing on April 30 will focus on green packaging terms like recyclable, biodegradable, sustainable and renewable, as well as consumers’ understanding of such terms and trends in packaging.
The 2008 Green Gap Survey by Cone LLC and the Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship found that almost four out of every ten consumers are preferentially buying products they believe are environmentally friendly.
Although about half of the 1,080 adults surveyed trust companies to be truthful with their environmental marketing and believe companies are accurately presenting information about their impact on the earth, almost 60 percent would like to see more government regulation of green claims to ensure they are accurate.
A large majority also believes third-party organizations, watchdog groups, the media and bloggers can provide helpful oversight of claims. "The fact that Americans are so primed to trust companies may suggest the lack of control they feel around complex environmental issues, so it is not surprising that they also seek a third-party gatekeeper to help ensure the messages they see and hear are accurate,” Bradley Googins, executive director of The Boston College Center for Corporate Citizenship, said in a statement.
In addition, almost half of those surveyed believe a product marketed with green credentials has a positive impact on the environment, while only 22 percent realize that greener products actually have less negative impacts on the environment.
The research also provides advice for businesses on how best to provide their green messages: make claims as specific as possible with quantitative impacts, explain the connection between a product or service and the environment, provide additional information, be consistent in the image you present of yourself, be realistic with messages and provide context when explaining environmental improvements.
