A Better Way to Market Sustainable Products: Insights from NYU Stern and PwC

Sustainable consumer products are increasingly in demand, yet companies often struggle to tap into this green market effectively. Challenges include demonstrating growth potential and price premiums, balancing sustainability with other product features, and delivering trustworthy marketing messages.

Strong Growth and Price Premiums for Sustainable Products

Research by NYU Stern’s Center for Sustainable Business (CSB), analyzing 12 years of US point-of-sale data across 36 consumer goods categories, reveals:

• Sales Growth: Sustainability-marketed products grew at an annual rate of 12.3% between 2019 and 2024—more than double the growth rate of conventional products.
• Market Share: Such products accounted for 23.8% of total consumer packaged goods (CPG) sales in 2024.
• Price Premium: Surveys and data confirm consumers are willing to pay an average of 9.7% more for sustainable goods, with actual price premiums averaging 26.6%, reaching over 100% for some paper products and around 50% for coffee, cereal, and chocolate.

Key Strategies to Unlock the Value of Sustainable Products

1. Understand Customer Segments and Product Categories

• Millennials, college-educated shoppers, city dwellers, and high-income consumers tend to purchase more sustainable products.
• Some categories, like dairy, show strong sustainability sales across all age groups.
• Companies should identify which customer groups are most relevant to their product categories to optimize marketing efforts.

2. Amplify Appeal by Linking Sustainability to Core Product Attributes

Effective marketing combines a product’s primary appeal with one or two sustainability messages. For example:

• A chocolate bar’s rich taste can be complemented by sustainable sourcing claims.
• A skincare product’s benefit “formulated with sustainable ingredients that are good for your skin” links sustainability directly to consumer priorities.

This approach has been shown to increase product appeal by an average of 30 percentage points, working across diverse consumer segments.

3. Focus on Credible, Consumer-Resonant Claims

Research shows consumers respond best to sustainability messages emphasizing:

• Protecting human health (e.g., no harmful ingredients)
• Saving money
• Supporting local farms and food systems
• Benefiting future generations
• Preserving animal health
• Originating from local or sustainable sources

Less effective are claims based solely on scientific properties (biodegradability, climate neutrality), traceability, packaging (except all-recycled content), and certifications alone. Certification seals help validate claims but need to be paired with clear messaging.

4. Be Precise, Evidenced, and Compliant with Regulations

• Avoid ambiguous terms like "clean," "natural," or "safe," which face legal challenges, especially for products used by children or applied to skin.
• Monitor evolving regulatory frameworks such as the EU Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive and the anticipated EU Green Claims Directive requiring scientific substantiation.
• Develop robust value chain analysis and traceability capabilities to support credible sustainability claims.

Conclusion

For companies aiming to capitalize on the growing market for sustainable products, clear business cases, targeted marketing strategies, and credible messaging are essential. By aligning sustainability attributes with core product benefits and prioritizing transparency and evidence, brands can enhance consumer trust, justify price premiums, and drive sustained growth.

Authors:
Tensie Whelan, Distinguished Professor of Practice at NYU Stern and Founding Director of the NYU Stern Center for Sustainable Business
David Linich, Principal at PwC US, expert in decarbonization and sustainable operations

Source:
Research collaboration between NYU Stern Center for Sustainable Business and PwC, May 2025.

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