• Ad Age, Monday, September 28, 2009 10:42 AM

A small band of venture-funded academics are systematically rating brands that make health, environmental and social impact claims. Each brand is scored on each measure individually and then given a collective rating based on whether the reality of its ethical marketing live up to its claims about it, Jack Neff reports. Dara O'Rourke, an environmental policy professor at University of California, Berkeley, launched GoodGuide.com with a handful of colleagues two years ago; it now has about 75,000 products in its database. Distilling dozens of facts from public and private databases, it has grabbed the attention of marketers such as Clorox, which is working to improve the ratings of its Green Works products.

"We think it could evolve into a tool that is truly meaningful and intuitive for the consumer," says Aileen Zerrudo, director-corporate communications for Clorox.

In a sidebar, Neff offers six tips from O'Rourke for improving a brand's health, environment or social-rating scores.

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