Wanna beat the recession and get a leg up on your competitors at the same time? Then make sure you’re shouting about the (real) eco-friendly aspects of your products and services.

Skip the greenwashing, but proudly tout how your offering helps reduce greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions.

It turns out most consumers want to buy something green — they’re just looking for a reason to do it. So don’t be shy about telling them why your products are good for reducing carbon dioxide (CO2) and GHG emissions.

Oh, and don’t fret if your think your competition is greener than you.  It turns out that companies making many environmentally friendly products aren’t doing such a great job of making the case for themselves.

Nearly 70% of those consumers surveyed by the Carbon Trust recently said they can’t reliably tell which companies are truly green. That creates a huge opportunity for marketers who can beef up their green campaigns.

The value of getting on your soapbox is underscored by other findings, such as:

• 66% said it’s important to buy from environmentally responsible companies that work on reducing their own and their customers’ carbon footprints
• 63% said they’d likely buy a product if they knew what you’re doing to reduce its carbon footprint
• 59% are skeptical about environmental claims
• 25% avoid buying from companies with poor ethical records, and
• 14% stopped buying from companies with poor environmental records.

But to win over consumer confidence, don’t just rely on advertising claims. Carbon Trust’s Harry Morrison says consumers aren’t looking for hype.  So you’ll need to offer real green benefits and have those benefits touted either in the media, through accreditation or some non-partisan third party.

The Carbon Trust survey is here.

To help you get started on your carbon footprint homework, Carbon Trust offers some tools to benchmark your energy, fuel, and vehicle usage as well as employee travel. For the Trust’s carbon footprint calculators, click here.

Tags: Carbon Trust, CO2, GHG, greenwashing