Abstract
In this research, we focus on the presumed negative effect of a sustainability claim on product quality. We propose that a brands’ corporate social responsibility (CSR) can reduce this negative effect. We conduct an experiment to test our hypotheses for a newly introduced detergent brand with an ecolabel vs. without one for high and low brand CSR levels. The experiment was conducted among 304 participants. Our results show that the ecolabel of the detergent can indeed trigger quality concerns. These quality concerns are reduced for brands high in CSR. This suggests that a brand’s sustained commitment to sustainability is important in overcoming negative effects of sustainability claims on product quality.
Highlights
Within supermarkets, an increasing number of sustainable products can be observed (International Supermarket News 2015 [1])
We focus on nonfood products carrying an ecolabel as a specific sustainability claim
corporate social responsibility (CSR) could be positively related to product quality. This is not the subject of our study though, as we focus on the moderating effect of brand CSR on the effect of sustainability claims on product quality
Summary
An increasing number of sustainable products can be observed (International Supermarket News 2015 [1]). Despite the increasing number of sustainable products and interest in sustainability among consumers, market share for sustainable products remain low A likely explanation is that high prices of sustainable alternatives deter consumers from purchasing sustainable products and make them continue buying non-sustainable alternatives. There is a consistent finding that environmental attitudes do frequently not translate into purchase behavior of sustainable products [5,6,7] Recent studies though point to other explanations. You could argue that this is no longer the case, as sustainability has gone mainstream with leading manufacturers, such as Unilever, offering sustainable products as well and emphasizing their commitment to sustainability.
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