Beware the greenwash!

This post by Joel Makower, editor of GreenBiz.com, examines the green frenzy in public relations:

You wouldn’t think that the world of green business would need much more publicity, given the steady drumbeat of media stories, blogs, websites, TV shows, billboards, events, and other shout-outs plugging green companies, products, and services.

But get ready for more. The world of public relations has discovered green with a vengeance, and the big global firms seem locked, loaded, and ready to ratchet up their drum beating. Nearly all the major PR firms have set up practices focusing on sustainability and corporate responsibility ....

... The greening of P.R. reflects a newfound reality: It’s now safe, or at least safer, for companies to tell their green stories.

More ...

You've only got to see Exxon Mobil's new campaign aimed at convincing the world that it's taken the well-being of the environment to heart (belied by the board's defeat of the pro-environment Rockefellers at the annual shareholder meeting in May) to get the idea.

Still, the post cites a 2007 Ipsos study that suggests most consumers are well aware that greenwash is a marketing tactic. We must stay tuned to learn how marketers intend to counter that.