The importance of authenticity in green marketing (and life!)
Every once and awhile, I come across a special principle — one of those golden, shimmering standards that seems to be true no matter what corner of reality you apply it to. There aren’t many, but one of the most important ones, especially when it comes to green marketing, is authenticity.
Authenticity may mean many things to many different people depending upon what angle you view it from. Here’s my angle:
au·then·tic: true to one’s own personality, spirit, or character.
As consumer response to marketing and advertisements matures and evolves, the demand for sincerity of intention has become one of the minimum prerequisites for doing business — and rightfully so. This isn’t simply an educated guess or a logical assumption. It’s the truth, and the growing significance of user-driven watchdog organizations such as The Greenwashing Index and CorpWatch provide some hard evidence. These groups are dedicated to holding businesses accountable for the green claims they make. They are validators of authenticity.
What happens when you betray the trust of the people you rely on to keep you in business? Let’s ask Goodyear. When the well-known tire company released their Eagle LS2000 tire alongside lofty eco-friendly claims, it’s clear that someone in the marketing department wasn’t thinking very far in advance. Claims that the tire had a “minimum environmental impact,” and that it was manufactured using a special process that reduced carbon dioxide emissions turned out to be completely baseless. But the marketers at Goodyear didn’t stop there. On top of their hefty pile of lies, they decided they might as well throw in the arbitrary claim that special technology also increased the lifespan of the tire and improved fuel economy! All lies.
Now Goodyear finds itself in a difficult position. First of all, they must compensate the victims of their twisted claims with partial refunds (which should be complete refunds, if you ask me). But a much larger problem looms for the tire giant.
It’s becoming clear that sustainability is the future of industry. Adapt or risk being phased out entirely. Intelligent companies have the vision and the foresight to realize that without compliance, they will either have no reason to market anything (because of the permanent implications of climate change or other environmental crises), or they won’t be able to keep up with more profitable, sustainable competition.
Now what will happen the next time Goodyear tries to make a claim about the environmentally-friendly aspects of its new products? Aside from being investigated at the end of every sentence, I’d venture a guess and say those who truly value authenticity will simply take their business elsewhere. The tire industry certainly isn’t immune to the potential for innovation. Goodyear must now defend its position against companies that are willing to remain true to their claims. And Goodyear has nobody to blame but themselves.
If you think an image overhaul is all you need to connect with a green audience, you’re going to end up doing more harm than good to your company. Be authentic about your intentions, or don’t speak about them at all. In an economic world of increased accountability and transparency, authenticity will always remain king.
Tags: authenticity, Green Marketing, green news, Greenwash
