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

Overview

Consumers love sustainable products. Yet companies often face many challenges to market them well. They must prove that these items can grow and earn a price premium. They must also mix sustainability with other key product traits. In a busy marketplace, companies need to send clear and trusted messages.

NYU Stern’s Center for Sustainable Business and PwC work together. Their research helps companies show clear business cases, appealing marketing, and credible claims for sustainability.

Key Findings on Sustainable Product Performance

• Growth Rates: Data from US sales by Circana (covering 40% of consumer packaged goods) shows that products with sustainability features grew at 12.3% per year from 2019 to 2024. This rate is 2.3 times faster than that of regular products.
• Market Share: Products marked with sustainability reached a 23.8% share by 2024.
• Price Premiums: PwC’s 2024 survey of 20,000 consumers finds that buyers will pay almost 10% more for sustainable products. NYU Stern’s data shows that actual premiums average 26.6%. In some categories, like paper, premiums can be over 100%. Other categories, such as coffee and chocolate, see premiums around 50%.

Strategic Principles for Marketing Sustainable Products

1. Understand Your Audience & Product Categories

Millennials, college-educated buyers, urban dwellers, and high earners prefer sustainable products.
Sustainable goods sell well across many age groups, especially in dairy.
It is key to know which customer groups care about sustainability in each category.

2. Amplify Sustainability by Connecting It to Core Product Qualities

Good marketing ties sustainability closely with the product’s main appeal.
For example, a skincare product should link its sustainable ideas to skin health.
Research shows that when marketers mix one core quality with one or two clear sustainability claims, product appeal rises by about 30 percentage points.

3. Use Credible and Consumer-Relevant Sustainability Claims

Consumers like claims that show clear benefits. For instance:

• They favor claims that protect health by avoiding harmful ingredients.
• They appreciate messages about saving money.
• They value support for local farms and food systems.
• They care for benefits that protect future generations and animal welfare.
• They notice claims about local or sustainable sourcing.

Claims about scientific properties, such as biodegradability, traceability, or packaging (except all-recycled content), have less impact.
Certification seals confirm claims but work best when paired with understandable messages.

4. Ensure Precision and Evidence in Sustainability Messaging

Clear, close claims work best. Avoid vague words like “clean,” “natural,” or “safe.”
This is especially true for products for children or skin care.
Marketers must check new rules in regions like the EU. For example, stay updated on:

• The Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive
• The Corporate Sustainability Due Diligence Directive
• The EU Green Claims Directive, which will need proof for environmental claims.
  Marketers should also strengthen value chain analysis and traceability to meet new rules and consumer trust.

Conclusion

Sustainability in marketing has great growth and price potential. Yet companies must use clear messages that connect with what consumers value. Leaders should make a strong case for sustainability, link it with the product’s main benefits, and use clear, fact-based claims. Insights from NYU Stern’s Center for Sustainable Business and PwC offer a clear roadmap for companies. This roadmap helps brands succeed in a market that grows for sustainable products.

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

Topics: Consumer Packaged Goods, Marketing Strategies, Sustainability, Consumer Products

Related Insights:

• How the EU’s Green Deal is driving business reinvention
• The CEO’s sustainability checklist for climate-transition strategies

This summary brings research and clear steps to help brands market sustainable products. It meets the needs of both consumers and new rules in the market.

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.