Center for Sustainable Business | Effective Sustainability Communications

Consumers increasingly expect the brands they buy from to reflect their values. Yet amid growing scrutiny and polarization, companies face a communications conundrum: how to meaningfully engage audiences on sustainability in a way that is relevant, unifying, and effective.

NYU Stern Center for Sustainable Business (CSB) and Edelman developed a cutting-edge research initiative to identify which sustainability claims, when authentic, best resonate with consumers. CSB and Edelman partnered with iconic consumer brands across apparel, food and beverage, nutrition and wellness, consumer services, and technology to test more than 30 marketing claims for each brand. 

Conducted in two distinct studies: first with environmental sustainability messages (2023) and then with social sustainability messages (2025), the goal of this effort is to equip brands with the most effective communication strategies that refine positioning and empower marketers to deliver sustainability as a driver of consumer preference. 

Overall, both studies identified that the right sustainability message can amplify brand appeal across demographics. 

Social Sustainability Communications Report 

Environmental Sustainability Communications Report    

CSB’s latest study, with support from Edelman and Ford Foundation, expands the environmental messaging research to social sustainability claims—exploring how brands can communicate efforts around ethical business practices, inclusivity, and societal wellbeing in ways that activate, not alienate their core consumers. This study collaborated with seven leading consumer brands.

Social Sustainability Communications 
 

Research found social sustainability messages were among the top performing messages overall, topping the list of best performing claims for three out of the seven tested brands.

• Across all seven brands, adding a social sustainability claim to a core product message expanded brand reach by an average of 23 percentage points above a category claim alone.
• Sustainability claims were the top most appealing claim for 3 out of 7 brands.
• Sustainability claims directly connected to brand’s core offering consistently scored above average (example: “supporting food access” for food brands)
• The strongest claims performed well across demographics such as generations, gender, political affiliation, household income, education, and urbanicity.

High performing social sustainability claims are as easy as ABC

Best resonating social sustainability messages with strong performance across brands and cohorts related to the following themes:

• Access: Promoting equal access, removing gaps in opportunity
• Basic needs: Providing communities with essential needs and services
• Crisis response: Supporting disaster relief efforts and emergency response
• Disability and veteran community: Offering products designed to support people with disabilities and veterans and their families
• Economic status: Targeting underserved socioeconomic groups

Understanding your distinct audience can drive deeper engagement opportunities

While the previous messaging framework resonated across audiences, certain demographics responded especially favorably.

• Younger cohorts had stronger positive responses to parental leave and familial messaging.
• People of color responded more favorably to messages explicitly focused on racial equity, distinct from general community wellbeing and benefits for all
• Women responded more favorably to message supporting gender equity.

Research informed best practices for marketers to leverage social sustainability claims to maximize product appeal.

• While communications should be anchored in the brand’s core purpose, consumers also expect brands to take meaningful action on societal issues.
• Create social messages that ladder up to your brand’s role and mission. Identify and focus on social issues relevant to your business offerings, stakeholders, and sphere of influence. Specific, measurable actions outperform vague intentions.
• Prioritize messages that address disparities in access to products, services, or opportunities.
• Frame inclusivity around access rather than identity. To broaden appeal, use language about serving those that have been underserved, excluded, or otherwise marginalized.
• Speak to your audience. While some messages resonate universally, others work best when targeted. Demographic-specific messaging is effective when it reflects a brand’s authentic voice, a clear disparity/access problem, and demonstrated engagement in the community.

View the methodology, full research findings, and best practices here.

Launched in 2023, CSB’s first study examined how U.S. consumers respond to environmental sustainability claims in brand communications for nine brands. 

 Environmental Sustainability Communications   

The research found category claims are paramount, but certain sustainability claims have significant amplifier effects that perform across demographics.

• Across all nine brands, sustainability claims expanded brand reach by 24 - 33 percentage points above a category claim alone.
• Sustainability claims were the top most appealing claim for 2 out of 9 brands, and among the topmost appealing for the remaining 7 brands, often outperforming other category claims.
• Sustainability claims that ladder to relevant category claims were most appealing (ex. "100% sustainably farmed for great taste")
• The strongest sustainability claims performed equally well across demographics such as generations, gender, political affiliation, household income, education, and urbanicity.

High performing sustainability claims indicate consumers are ego-centric and respond best to messaging regarding "my health, my wealth, my world."

Lower resonating sustainability claims indicate consumers care less about scientific causes, traceability, and packaging.

Research informed some best practices for marketers to leverage sustainability claims to maximize product appeal.

View the methodology, full research findings, and best practices here.

(Note: the environmental and social sustainability messaging surveys used the same methodology, but tested different brands and respondents)