Blog # 4

Blog Post 4: Ethical & Sustainable Marketing

Is Ethical Marketing Genuine or Just a Trend?

Sustainability has emerged as one of the most important themes in modern marketing. Many brands are now advertising as environmentally friendly or socially responsible. Ethical marketing is pervasive, with eco- friendly packaging, carbon-neutral claims, etc. But this begs an important question - is it a real commitment, or a way of attracting customers?

Ethical marketing is grounded in the societal marketing concept, which argues that businesses should not only be focused on profits and customer satisfaction but should also take into consideration the long-term well-being of society (Jung and Kim, 2023). In theory, this helps to build trust, improve the brand's reputation and create long-term value.

A good example of effective ethic marketing is Patagonia. The company has based its entire brand on sustainability, even going so far as to encourage customers to buy less with their famous "Don't Buy This Jacket" campaign (Pham, 2024). Patagonia also recycles worn clothing and gives a portion of profits to environmental causes. This indicates that ethical values are not merely part of its marketing - they are built into the core of its business model.

However, not all companies are authentic in their mission; many are engaged in greenwashing, in which they exaggerate or mislead consumers about their efforts for the environment. For instance, fast fashion companies such as H&M and Zara advertise "sustainable collections," while still working on a mass-scale to produce garments for low cost, and contribute to waste in the environment. This leads to an obvious contradiction between the messages expressed through marketing and practices.

Another strong example is Volkswagen's emissions scandal where the car company promoted its cars as eco-friendly with the secret manipulation of emissions tests (Uikey, 2026). When discovered, it significantly adversely affected consumer trust and brand reputation.

These examples illustrate an important issue - modern consumers are better informed and sceptical than ever before. As a result, companies can no longer lean on ambiguous claims or display efforts at sustainability. Transparency and consistency are very important.

References

Jung, Y.J. and Kim, Y., 2023. Research trends of sustainability and marketing research, 2010–2020: Topic modeling analysis. Heliyon, 9(3).

Pham, D.T., 2024. Ethos, Identification, and the Environment: Patagonia’s Narrative Approach to Sustainability (Master's thesis, San Diego State University).

Uikey, S., 2026. Ethical Sustainability Marketing and Its Impact on Consumer Trust: From Greenwashing to Green Trust. In Ethical Marketing and Consumer Trust in Digital and Sustainable Markets (pp. 255-284). IGI Global Scientific Publishing.