• by Erik Sass  @eriksass1, March 29, 2012

While most big brands now make some effort to appear environmentally friendly, U.S. consumers remain skeptical about their sincerity, according to a new study by Cone Communications.

Cone found that just 44% of Americans trust the “green” claims made by big companies, according to survey results cited in the 2012 Cone Green Gap Trend Tracker.

What’s more, deception around this issue could be potentially disastrous for brands that get caught lying to the public about their eco-practices. Seventy-seven percent of consumers would be willing to boycott a brand or company if they feel they have been misled.

Sixty-nine percent of those surveyed said they consider environmental impacts and policies at least some of the time when making purchase decisions.

Americans still give companies fairly low marks when it comes to the environment, with some 80% saying they don’t believe companies are addressing all of their environmental impacts -- although not necessarily in a deceptive way. They definitely feel this is the companies’ responsibility: 90% believe companies should be responsible for the environmental impact involved in making a product, 89% for the impact of disposing of the product and 88% for the impact of using a product.

Consumers also want insight into corporate practices: 73% said they want more environmental information on product packaging to help inform shopping decisions, and 71% want companies to do a better job of helping them understand the environmental terms they use to talk about their products and services.

On the positive side, 75% of those surveyed said it’s okay if a company is not perfect in its environmental practices -- as long as it’s honest about it.

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