Cosmetics gone green : A quantitative experimental study on green promotional cues and consumers’ purchase intention

In the context of the world's increasing environmental challenges and the rise of green consumerism, promoting sustainable consumer behavior is more important than ever. This study aims at extending the understanding of consumers' purchase intention of environmentally friendly cosmetic products. With a theoretical starting point in theories of green promotion and the theory of planned behavior, a total of ten hypotheses and sub-hypotheses were formulated to answer the research question how green promotional cues can be used to affect consumers' beliefs and increase purchase intention. Central concepts in the study’s constructed conceptual framework are intrinsic cues which represent concrete characteristics of a product such as ingredients and formula, and extrinsic cues which are attributes not present within the product itself such as packaging and brand. A quantitative approach using an online survey in an experimental vignette designed questionnaire generated responses from a sample of 325 participants in three treatment groups, and the data was subsequently examined through statistical analysis. The study’s main findings show that intrinsic cues have a stronger influence on purchase intention than extrinsic cues but that extrinsic cues seem to have a stronger influence on consumers’ subjective beliefs. The study provides implications on how cosmetic companies can use the insights generated by the study when developing promotional strategies for green cosmetics