The Green Marketing Manifesto

The author of this “ecological marketing manifesto” shows the limitations of traditional brand practices when it comes to selling so-called “green” products or services. According to him, brands were originally designed in the age of mass consumption to create an impression of closeness and a bond of trust between companies and consumers. The brand was thus the preferred or only way to communicate the customer promise. However, the spread of healthier and more environmentally responsible products places their very characteristics in the spotlight. People are beginning to base their purchasing decisions on the fact that a product is labeled as ecological rather than with a particular name or brand. At the same time, specific products are recommended on Internet forums for their healthfulness or environmental qualities. Consumers connected through the web chat with one another and form affinity groups. Their opinion has a much greater influence on potential consumers than traditional brand messages. To be profitable in the “green” era, brands must reinvent themselves to speak and interact with customers outside or beyond their own walls.