Sustainable Marketing: Speak To Consumers, Not At Them
What a wonderful world this would be if consumers actually behaved as selflessly in the marketplace as they have been telling pollsters they do since Cone Communications started studying this topic way back in 1993.
In Cone's 2010 study, for example, 80% of respondents said they were likely to switch brands, similar in price and quality, to one that supports a cause although only 41% said they had purchased a product in the past year because it was associated with a social or environmental cause.
Over the years sustainability marketing practitioners have questioned whether this 'say-do gap' is even greater than the two-to-one difference that research described. Little has been published on how to overcome it until now.
The 'Conscious Consumer Report' recently released by Public Inc., a social impact agency, offers very useful guidance to contemporary marketers on communicating more effectively.
"Brands are falling short," said CEO Phillip Haid. "To drive conscious consumerism, we need to simplify sustainability claims and focus on immediate, personal benefits, rather than overwhelming consumers with distant, aspirational messages. Despite claims that 'DEI is dead' amid political pushback, consumers continue to make choices based on their values. The future of business lies in balancing profit with purpose. Authenticity and responsibility resonate with consumers, and this shift is not just ethical—it's strategic. Companies that align with societal values and imagine a better world will thrive."
To grow sustainable business, we have to improve our understanding of the barriers that impede purchase,
Phillip Haid, CEO and Founder of Public Inc.
Public Inc.
But how to bridge the pernicious two-to-one 'say-do gap' which Public's research, conducted with Ipsos, also found? (76% of respondents viewed themselves as conscious consumers, but only 38% behaved that way in Public's inquiry.)
First of all, marketers must embrace the fact that even conscious consumers are not selfless – they want to know about immediate personal benefits of sustainable goods (e.g., durability, health) rather than abstract future impacts, Public emphasizes. That insight is supported by earlier studies such as this one published in 2023 by NYU Stern's Center For Sustainable Business and Edelman.
'If we, as marketers and business leaders, keep ignoring the reality that consumers act in their own self-interest, we will stall the growth of the sustainable economy—right when we need it most to tackle the staggering crises facing humanity,' said Caleigh Farrell, Public's Vice President of Research.
Brands trying to drive growth in the sustainable economy should consider strategies such as these, Public counsels:
This very practical advice could not be better timed since the political climate has so many marketers worried about taking strong stands on sustainability, DEI and other causes.
Decades of working as 'impact marketers' have taught the Public team a thing or two about the importance of speaking to consumers, not preaching at them.
'To grow sustainable business, we have to improve our understanding of the barriers that impede purchase,' Haid explained. 'And in 2025, this understanding is more vital than ever—otherwise we risk stagnating growth of the sustainable economy, the success of which is critical in a highly turbulent socio-political landscape.'
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