A post by Chris Keating over at The Wiccan Scientist regarding his growing skepticism over the environmental impact of plastic bags reminded me of a Burst Media study from earlier this month.   According the the survey, 65.3% of consumers say they “sometimes” believe green claims made in advertisements.  22.7% of consumer say they seldom or never believe green claims made in advertisements.   That’s a whopping 88% of consumer who are skeptical about products pitched to them as green.

Interestingly, given all the cynicism, 81.9% of the respondents have incorporated some level of green activity in their lives.  This indicates to me that most folks want to live in a way that is environmentally conscious, but don’t trust corporate america to give them the real skinny on their products.

The internet has given the average citizen access to a vast amount of data to be able to verify the claims advertisers make about their products.  In fact, the same study found that 41.6% of respondents frequently or occasionally research the claims made in green advertisements.

Making an emotional connection with your customers has always been important, but in the digital age you’d better make sure that you are telling them the truth.  The age of buyer beware is slowly turning into the age of seller beware — otherwise, you’ll be called to task, probably on a forum board, blog, or wikipedia.  

And as for my paper or plastic preference, I have to admit that I am a plastic guy who wishes he was a canvas guy. 

Image Credit: by aussiegall