Greenwashing Diesel?

This is the first post counting towards the course Commerce 296 – Introduction to Marketing.

It is commonly accepted practice for companies to stretch the truth – and only very few do not engage in this behaviour – when advertising a product. I did have this in mind when watching Audi’s commercial (see below) that aired 3 years ago. What the commercial actually did, however, went far beyond my expectations in terms of exaggeration. Although the ad is from 2010, none of its relevance is lost today.

The commercial describes how a “green” police is arresting people for offenses pertaining to the environment. The one and only way to avoid the power of said police is to drive an Audi with a “clean” diesel. A seemingly amusing and witty idea, it left a somewhat bitter taste. Does Audi seriously suggest that a “clean” diesel is better than, say, taking the bike? Walking? Driving a vegetable-oil-powered vehicle, as was shown in the commercial? The message Audi sends to its potential customers is of a “feel-good” nature: drive an Audi and feel as though you did something great for the environment (such as using a compost bin, or refusing plastic bags?).

I believe this to be highly questionable. Is it ethical to present a car – so harmful to the environment – as an environmentally-friendly product? Buying a car should not make you feel like you did something good for the environment. Hence the term in the title: “greenwashing”, describing the deceptive use of marketing to present a product as environmentally-friendly.

Don’t get me wrong, I think Audi produces great cars. Nonetheless, a little more honesty would not hurt. Marketing ethics deals with such honesty issues in advertisements, but we lack appropriate legislation that prevents greenwashing. A step in the right direction would be a gentleman’s agreement to stop obvious greenwashing (e.g. as is in place among European companies that prevent comparative advertising).

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qIz-su6ueoI