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

Sustainable products continue to gain traction as consumer interest grows, yet effectively marketing these goods remains challenging for many companies. Research from NYU Stern’s Center for Sustainable Business (CSB) and PwC reveals strategies that help brands unlock the full market potential of sustainability.

The Business Case for Sustainability in Consumer Products

• Strong Sales Growth: Analysis of 12 years of U.S. point-of-sale data (2019–2024) across 36 consumer packaged goods categories shows that products marketed as sustainable grew sales at 12.3% annually—more than double the rate of conventional products.

• Market Share: Sustainability-marketed products accounted for nearly 24% of total sales in 2024, covering key categories including dairy and packaged foods.

• Price Premiums: PwC consumer surveys (2024) indicate shoppers are willing to pay about 9.7% more for sustainably produced goods. Actual market data shows the average price premium on sustainable items is 26.6%, reaching over 100% for paper products and around 50% for coffee, cereal, and chocolate.

Targeting the Right Customer Segments

Sustainability-marketed products resonate most strongly with:

• Millennials
• College-educated consumers
• Urban dwellers
• High-income earners

However, broad appeal exists in major categories (e.g., dairy) across multiple demographics, emphasizing the need to tailor marketing efforts to the segments most relevant to each product category.

Crafting Effective Marketing Messages: Harmonizing Core and Sustainability Attributes

• Focus on Core Attributes: Marketers should first highlight the product’s primary appeal (e.g., rich taste of a chocolate bar, cleaning power of a soap).

• Layer Sustainability Messages: Adding one or two sustainability claims related to the product’s core benefits can increase consumer appeal by up to 30 percentage points.

• Category-Relevant Claims: Messages linking sustainability to key product benefits perform best—for instance, “formulated with sustainable ingredients that benefit your skin” in skincare resonates stronger than generic claims.

Which Sustainability Claims Attract Consumers?

Top-performing claims emphasize benefits to the consumer or community, including:

• No harmful ingredients protecting human health
• Cost savings
• Supporting local farms and food systems
• Helping future generations and children
• Animal welfare
• Sourcing from local or responsibly managed supply chains

Less effective claims involve scientific properties (e.g., biodegradability), traceability, packaging details (except all-recycled content), and general sustainability certifications, though certificates enhance credibility among regulators and some consumers.

Building Credible and Legal Sustainability Claims

• Precision and Evidence: Avoid vague labels like “clean” or “natural,” often subject to legal challenges especially for products used by children or applied to skin.

• Compliance with Evolving Regulations: Companies must monitor new policies like the EU’s Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive, Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive, and the incoming EU Green Claims Directive, which will require scientific substantiation and transparent value chain analysis.

• Traceability & Transparency: Strong capabilities in value chain tracking and proof of sustainability claims will be crucial for market success and regulatory compliance.

Conclusion

Sustainably marketed products represent a robust growth opportunity with considerable price premiums. Success hinges on targeted marketing to the right consumer groups, carefully blending sustainability messaging with core product benefits, and delivering clear, credible claims backed by evidence. Businesses investing strategically in these areas can better meet customer expectations, build trust, and capture lasting value in the evolving green marketplace.

Authors:
Tensie Whelan, Distinguished Professor of Practice, NYU Stern Center for Sustainable Business
David Linich, Principal, PwC US, Expert in Decarbonization and Sustainable Operations

For further reading:

• How the EU’s Green Deal drives business reinvention
• The CEO’s sustainability checklist for climate strategy
• The value and impact of regenerative products in sustainability efforts

Design Delight Studio curates high-impact, authoritative insights into sustainable and organic product trends, helping conscious consumers and innovative brands stay ahead in a fast-evolving green economy.