Greening our shelves

There are estimates that there will be 1,500 new products by the end of next year available on store shelves touting green benefits. However, a recent article in MediaPost publications (By David Almy (12/30/2009)) highlights that consumers are not just interested in green, but also simple and straight forward products. This is partly due to the confusion consumers have with all these "green" claims.

Almy writes....
In March 2009, Haagen-Dazs launched a new premium product line called Five. Five was developed with fewer, more recognizable ingredients (the name reflects the number of ingredients in the product: milk, cream, sugar, eggs and a natural flavor such as vanilla bean.) In just eight months, Five sales have grown to account for 10% of Haagen-Dazs business.

The irony here, of course, is that products that aspire to be perceived as green, with their promises of enabling a simpler, less impactful lifestyle, are rife with confusing messages. This confusion in turn perpetuates distrust in the products themselves: according to a recent survey by BBMG, only 5% of respondents trust green claims in advertising.

Thus, make sure your green sport ideas are simple, transparent, and truthful to really engage your customers.
Gil-