Have you ever bought a product that claimed to be eco-friendly, only to find out later that it was just a marketing tactic to increase sales? This is called greenwashing, a harmful practice that misleads consumers into thinking they are making a positive impact on the environment.
Greenwashing is not only detrimental to the environment, but it can also harm your brand in the long run. In this article, we will dive deeper into the concept of greenwashing and how it can affect the sustainable movement and your business.
What Is Greenwashing?
Greenwashing is sharing misinformation or false claims about how good a company, product, or service is for the environment only to increase sales and brand exposure. When a company spends more resources trying to make people believe that their products or services are positive for the environment than actually trying to be good for the environment. It is a tactic meant to fool people who prefer to purchase products and services from companies that care about the planet.
With the rise of the environmental movement and the consequences of climate change becoming increasingly evident… Being sustainable has become a moral fad. Which is a very good thing! Whether it is trendy or not, the more people joining, the better. The real problem is that big corporations have joined in the message but not the actions. Creating campaigns such as "The lowest emissions in Europe" but in their practices, we see waste, toxic materials, and the pursuit of consumption at all costs.
The environmentalist Jay Westerveld introduced the word "Greenwashing" in 1986. He used it in an article to criticize the common practice of resorts requesting guests to reuse towels to save energy. Westerveld said that the same hotels did not do much to improve the environment and that the towel request was just a way to make the hotels look greener.
How Greenwashing is harmful to the Sustainable Movement & Your Brand
Greenwashing can be harmful in several ways. For one, it can lead to an increase in pollution as consumers unknowingly purchase products that are harmful to the environment.
Additionally, greenwashing can create skepticism about the sustainability movement, causing people to lose faith in it altogether. This not only affects popular opinion but also small sustainable businesses that are genuinely making a positive impact.
How To Make Sure You Are Not Doing Greenwashing
If you want to help the environment but at the same time, achieve economic growth by creating a slower and more conscious global economy, here are Five Tips to avoid accidentally falling into greenwashing.
- Learn about sustainability terms and their impact on the environment. This will help you communicate better and avoid using misleading words or phrases.
- Be clear about your brand and avoid creating logos that misrepresent your company's values.
- Avoid Hypocrisy: Try that your chain is as clean as possible, don’t create an organic product but in a partnership with a factory that exploits the workers.
- Be transparent about your sustainability efforts. If your company is not 100% sustainable, be open about it and communicate your efforts to improve.
