The Role of Corporate Social Responsibility Orientation in Green Demarketing Publicity & Advertising

Hye Jin Yoon, Yoon Joo Lee, Jinho Joo, and Youngjee Ko (Ph.D. candidate), “The Role of Corporate Social Responsibility Orientation in Green Demarketing Publicity & Advertising,” has been accepted for presentation at the 2023 ICA conference in Toronto, Canada.

Abstract: Green marketing asks consumers to buy more of a green product, while green demarketing recommends buying less of what you need and doing more with what you have. With an online experiment, this research found that for individuals with lower corporate social responsibility orientation (CSRO), any mix of green or demarketing publicity or ad did not lower perceptions of the “brand as honest.” On the other hand, individuals with higher CSRO perceived the brand to be more honest when demarketing publicity was followed with a demarketing advertisement (vs. a green advertisement). These effects on purchase intention (if one needed to buy a product of this type) and anticipated product satisfaction (which could help lower repeat and follow-up purchases) occurred through the mediating role of "brand as honest." Inarguably an uphill battle, demarketing could have societal and environmental benefits while increasing trustworthiness for companies and building a solid and ongoing relationship with consumers. Thus, this paper proposes that companies should put in continuous efforts in demarketing for a more sustainable future.