One of the best ways to appeal to the eco-conscious customer is with the Amazon Climate Pledge Friendly badge – a feature that now allows Amazon shoppers to instantly spot products that meet certain criteria for sustainability.
Amazon’s green badge not only highlights environmentally-friendly products to those who care about their impact and carbon footprint, but SKUs will be featured in a dedicated Climate Pledge Friendly storefront, allowing users exclusively browse eligible products and sellers.
If your products have been manufactured, sourced or procured with the planet in mind, getting the climate-friendly badge on Amazon could help your offering stand out as the greener option, leading to increased conversion rates and a boost in sales.
Here’s everything you need to know about the Climate Pledge Friendly program, how to get a badge, and the potential benefits as a seller.
How to be a sustainable business on Amazon – “Climate Pledge Friendly” explained
Climate Pledge Friendly is an initiative by Amazon that helps customers discover and shop for more sustainable products in an easy way. The marketplace has partnered with trusted third-party certification authorities to determine which products to include.
While searching for products on Amazon, customers will now be able to see which products come with one or more of these certifications with the Amazon green badge featuring a small icon and the words ‘Climate Pledge Friendly’. This not only appears on the product page, but it’s also visible on product listings, making eligible products stand out.
This saves the customer time as previously these certifications may only have been mentioned in the product copy. Not all sellers will provide certification information when listing products on Amazon, which means customers would need to do their own research to find out whether products are recommended by certification bodies.
Furthermore, clicking on the badge itself allows the customer to see which certifications are linked to the product, offering full transparency and clarity.
The third-party organisations include governmental agencies, non-profits and independent laboratories, such as FairTrade International, Energy Label, EU Ecolabel, EU Organic, Global Recycled Standard, Compact by Design, Safer Choice, and Carbon Neutral by Carbon Trust (just to name a few). These partnerships are regularly reviewed and Amazon intends to add more certifications in the future.
More about the third-party certifications
Currently, there are over 50 third-party certification bodies linked to the program. Here we highlight just a few of them as examples:
· Compact by Design
This is an Amazon-developed certification, designed to identify products and packaging that have a more efficient design. Through a more efficient design process, goods in this category have been made by reducing water and/or air in the product or packaging, leading to significant carbon emission reductions.
· Energy Label
It is a legal requirement for some products, such as TVs, fridges, dishwashers, washing machines and washer-dryers to have an energy label (rated A to G) so that customers have full knowledge of the energy efficiency of an appliance or product. The Energy Label is delivered by the Energy Saving Trust for products in the EU and UK. For a product to qualify for the Amazon Climate Pledge Friendly badge, it must have a rating of C or above.
· Fairtrade International
Products with the Fairtrade label have been produced in line with ethical and environmental standards, including support for farmers in tackling climate change challenges. This is a well-known and popular label for shoppers, with Fairtrade’s latest research revealing that 77% of consumers have chosen Fairtrade products over an alternative.
· Safer Choice
A partner of the US Environmental Protection Agency, Safer Choice reviews and certifies products that contain safer ingredients for human health and the environment. This includes laundry products, cleaning products and car care products. Safer Choice is a voluntary program and many companies register to appeal to the eco-conscious customer and increase sales.
· Global Recycled Standard
Products with this certification must contain at least 50% recycled materials, and also have to meet certain social, environmental and chemical criteria.
This is just a handful of the 50+ certification bodies and non-profit organisations partnering with Amazon’s program and the official Amazon Climate Pledge badge. The platform pledges to routinely evaluate and reassess the certification landscape in order to ensure the most relevant certifications are being used to help customers shop. It plans to add more certifications and work with manufacturers to certify more products over time.
Can the Amazon green badge boost sales?
While there is no direct evidence for the impact of the Amazon Climate Pledge Friendly badge on sales, there’s ample research about environmentally-friendly products and the positive impact on sales.
For instance, an independent study commissioned by SmartestEnergy reveals that 81% of people prefer to buy from sustainable sellers. Furthermore, consumers globally are willing to pay more for products if they can guarantee that they are more sustainable and reduce their carbon footprint, with one study indicating that people are happy to pay as much as 12% more compared to a less sustainable or ethically manufactured alternative.
Here are some of the benefits of having the climate friendly badge on Amazon listings:
- Increase visibility – Amazon’s green badge will increase your visibility, getting you seen by a whole new segment of customers who prioritise sustainability and ethical consumerism. SKUs featuring the badge will also be accessible through the Climate Pledge Friendly storefront, creating an additional way for shoppers to discover your listings.
- Stand out against competition – with the green badge, it will be easier to have a USP over similar competitors in the field, giving you product listing the edge on customer search results.
- Build trust – not only will the badge help you reach new customers, but it can also help you build trust with your existing customer base. The Amazon Climate Pledge badge acts as an additional endorsement on top of your existing certifications, and your customers will feel confident when it comes to buying your products.
How can I get the Amazon Climate Pledge badge?
The Amazon Climate Pledge Friendly badge is specific to products, not the brand. So each SKU/listing will be reviewed on an individual basis.
In order to qualify for the Amazon Climate Pledge badge, your product must already be certified by one or more of the third party bodies listed within the program. If your product has at least one of these certifications, it will be eligible for the badge – and Amazon’s green badge will automatically appear on your listing.
If the badge is not displayed, get in touch with the Amazon team via Vendor or Seller Central to have your listing reviewed. All green badges are clickable, so if there are multiple awards/certificates attached to your product, it can be seen by the customer.
However, bear in mind that not every customer will click on the badge. So if your product is Climate Pledge Friendly, be sure to share details in your product detail page content. This will ensure that there’s context to the badge, and will help customers understand how you are more sustainable than other products in the same category.
Some tips for promoting sustainable products
The climate friendly badge on Amazon is a great addition to your own marketing efforts as it can increase your product visibility in search results. But there are other things you can do to further improve conversion.
Here are a few quick tips to help you get started…
- Improve your Amazon storefront
It’s amazing how far simple imaging and great copy will get you when it comes to your Amazon storefront. The use of clean, green imagery can be one of the easiest ways of promoting your sustainable products.
- Include your environmental mission in the copy
If you have ethical and eco-friendly certification, make sure you talk about this in your product copy. It’s also worth mentioning other sustainable benefits of your products, whether it’s the packaging, the process of production, or your selection of materials.
- Go green with A+ Content
With A+ Content, you can design visually beautiful product descriptions and product information. This is the perfect opportunity to expand on your mission as a company/brand, and to showcase striking visuals to help your product sell.
- Highlight sustainability in ads
When optimising ads on Amazon, be sure to highlight your sustainable efforts. This is a huge trend, and can lead to growth for brands/companies looking to connect with today’s eco-conscious shopper.
- Enhance your Amazon SEO
Remember to use sustainable keywords when creating your product listings. Phrases such as ‘eco-friendly’, ‘organic’, ‘vegan’, ‘carbon neutral’ and ‘plastic-free’ can be great for increasing your visibility in searches, as well as driving clicks and conversions. Just make sure you refrain from spammy keyword stuffing – keep your copy concise and readable. Your first audience is the customer, not the algorithm.
To find out more about Amazon account management or for help creating impactful, high-converting listings for sustainable products, get in touch with Seller Presto today. We’ll ensure that your listings are visible to today’s eco-conscious customer and showcase your sustainability so that you stand out against competition. Chat to our team about your requirements, or any questions you have regarding the climate friendly badge on Amazon.