Green Murder

A string of big-name companies have been caught out trying to cash in on the green marketing boom by making fake claims in advertisements. As public awareness of the dangers of global warming has grown, companies have been clamoring to highlight their green credentials in the hope of boosting sales. But many of the claims they have made have turned out to be false.

In the last year the Advertising Standards Authority upheld complaints about environmental statements in the adverts of nine companies, including Toyota, Volkswagen, easyJet, Ryanair, Scottish and Southern Energy and Tesco. Investigations concluded that adverts were "misleading", and many had to be withdrawn.

"In the gold rush to be green, companies can sometimes be guilty of blowing hot air," said the ASA's spokesman, Matt Wilson. "When making claims in their advertisements about the environmental friendliness of their company, product or service some advertisers have fallen foul of the advertising codes." He added: "The ASA needs to see robust evidence to back up any eco-friendly claims. We will continue to ensure that the public are not misled and that advertisers are operating in a climate of truth."

Lexus was subjected o an investigation by the ASA after complaints about its ad for an SUV with the headline "High Performance. Low Emmisions. Zero Guilt." The ad was banned because the headline gave the misleading impression that the car caused little or no harm to the environment.

Volkswagen promoted its Golf GT TSI with a nearly identical headline (above) and copy that promised "More power, less pollution. Better to drive. Better for the planet." This ad was also banned because its claims were to general, despite being relevant in the car's own class.

"Green Murder" is what some marketers are calling this exploitation of environmental ideals to make their companies look good. It seems like madness, however, when the fundamental purpose of branding is to win trust, and these are getting found out by their consumers.