Eco-labels: A tool for green marketing or just a blind mirror for consumers

Abstract

Studies show that greening the business is not only helpful in getting the green products to the consumers, but it also helps the business as a strategy for enjoying a competitive advantage and strengthening brand image. Green marketing practices are gaining wide acceptance among various marketing practices. Green marketing is the set of marketing activities that start with the procurement of the product to the delivery of the product to the end user in a greener way. On the other hand,eco-labeling is one of the important tools for the green marketing as it helps to differentiate the green products from non-green products. However, many times these eco-labels fail to attain their goals. The objective of this paper is to establish a relationship of eco-labels with consumer knowledge, information communication, trust and its impact on green purchase intention. Further, all these relationships were verified with the help of structural equation modeling (SEM), performed by using SmartPLS 3.0. The total sample size for the study was 506 Indian consumers. The study reveals that eco-labeling is a significant criterion for consumer trust and green purchase intention via consumer information and knowledge.

Bridging the Information Gap Between Science and Society: A Solution to Nonpoint Source Contamination?

“…As consumers have become more environmentally conscious, companies have become motivated to produce chemical formulations that are more protective of the environmental sinks of such compounds (Dangelico 2016; Sharma and Gyaneshwar 2019). Eco‐friendly de‐icing formulations are highly prevalent within the residential consumer market, with many formulations claiming to be more protective of lawns, pets, gardens, and wildlife.…”

“…Admittedly, it is unlikely that “eco‐friendly” labels were intended to protect species like C. dilutus ; thus, stating that these claims of enhanced environmental safety are completely unfounded would be unwarranted. Rather, this type of green marketing is symbolic of a larger problem regarding a lack of consensus regarding what constitutes the “ecosystem” and what criteria are used to define “friendly” (Sharma and Gyaneshwar 2019). To resolve this confusion, the USEPA has unveiled the Safer Choice Program (https://epa.gov/saferchoice), which works with industry and environmental advocacy groups to identify chemical substitutes that are less toxic to the environment.…”

“…From a scientific perspective, this lack of information leaves many unanswered questions, and while the Safer Choice Program seems like a step in the right direction toward protecting sensitive ecosystems, the criteria used to define an “eco‐friendly” alternative is based largely on presumptions of improved environmental safety compared to known chemicals of concern. Failing to include the toxicological information that validates a chemical substitute as “safer” sets a potentially dangerous precedent for green marketing, specifically for the eco‐minded consumer and those interested in reduced environmental risk, as trust is identified as a major contributor to individual actions oriented towards change (Wachinger et al 2013; Sharma and Gyaneshwar 2019). This information gap could result in well‐intentioned consumers being drawn toward products that ironically exacerbate the problem.…”

“…It would be unfair to blanketly assert that manufacturers are solely seeking to capitalize on environmentally conscious consumers, as such assumptions are more likely to doom green marketing efforts than successful campaigns (Dangelico 2016), but there is certainly potential for abuse. Based on the prevalence of such marketing tactics and the recent rise in green marketing, consumers are at least moderately aware of the threat that excessive and haphazard chemical use can pose to receiving ecosystems (Hart 2003; Dangelico 2016; Sharma and Gyaneshwar 2019). Unfortunately, improper labeling and the marketing of pseudo‐green products may take advantage of the good intentions of consumers.…”

Strateji̇k Yeşi̇l Pazarlama Bağlaminda Yeşi̇l Fi̇yatlandirma Li̇teratürünün İncelenmesi̇

“…Odağında tüketici istek ve ihtiyaçlarını tatmin etmek için mal ve hizmetlerin tüketicilere sunulması olan pazarlama, özellikle çevresel sürdürülebilirlik konularının yoğun bir şekilde ilgi görmesi sonucunda farklı bir boyut kazanmış ve çevre konularının pazarlama uygulamalarına ne şekilde uyarlanabileceği üzerine çeşitli yaklaşımlar geliştirilmeye başlanmıştır. Yeşil üretim, yeşil fiyatlandırma, çevreci etiketleme ve geri dönüşüm gibi çeşitli yeşil pazarlama uygulamaları ile yeşil pazarlama stratejileri, pazarlamada yeni bir kavram olarak dünyada ivme kazanmaya devam etmektedir (Sharma ve Kushwaha, 2019).…”