When shopping for cleaning products, how do you determine which to buy? Do you go with the most recognizable logo? Or the lowest price? How about whether a product is eco-friendly?
While marketing and price will always be important factors, more and more of us shop with our own safety and the environment in mind. We’re taking notice of what manufacturers put into the products we use and are scrutinizing how safe they are for our families and the environment.
Many products these days claim to be eco-friendly, all-natural, or eco-friendly. But why are manufacturers pushing the eco-friendly angle? And how do they convey this eco-friendly message to their customers?
They do this by applying for independent eco-certification that the manufacturer then puts on their product using easily recognizable and trusted symbols. These certifications tell customers that the product has achieved a certain environmental standard.
In this article, we’ll dive a little deeper into the world of eco-labels on cleaning products.
What Are Eco-Labels
Eco-labels are trusted third-party symbols that manufacturers put on their packaging to let customers know their products are less harmful and better for the environment compared to similar products.
Risks Of VOC’s (Volatile Organic Compounds)
Many products use eco-labels from canned fish to timber companies to household appliances. But cleaning products are somewhat unique in that they are rinsed down the drain and into our water systems and evaporate into the environment.
The chemicals that make cleaning and other products so effective also can be dangerous to people and the environment. VOCs – Volatile organic compounds – are compounds that are released from products or their processes and can be very harmful to humans, pets, and the environment.
The risks of these compounds often found in cleaning products play a key role in why the manufacturers seek out third-party eco-label certifications. They show the customer they care about health, safety, and the environment. There may be a genuine effort for these cleaning companies to be better for the environment, but these labels certainly act as an effective marketing tool to help boost sales.
Benefits Of Eco-Labels
Many companies, including cleaning product companies, seek out third-party eco-label certifications for various reasons.
Validates Eco-Friendly Claim – Eco-labels lend credibility to manufacturers’ eco-friendly claims. It also serves to define eco-friendly standards and ensure those standards have been met.
Gain Trust Among Buyers – Eco-labels are recognized and trusted by both commercial buyers and consumers, increasing brand loyalty and sales. Cost and other factors being equal, customers will more often reach for a cleaning product with an eco-label over one that does not.
Provides Easy-Buy Short Cut – Eco-labels are easy to recognize and read, providing a simple and trustworthy guide to quickly purchase products in overcrowded supermarkets.
Provides Incentives For Other Companies – Eco-labels can be a catalyst for the wider good. If environmentally-friendly companies sell better, other companies are likely to follow suit and raise their environmental standards.
Conclusion
There can be a lot of confusion around eco-labels, which threatens to undermine the entire eco-friendly system. One of the problems of the eco-friendly movement is the temptation for companies to exaggerate their claims, or make outright false claims.
Whether you’re cleaning commercial sites like offices, schools, and healthcare facilities, or your own home, it’s important to use products that are good for the environment and safe for you.
If you are someone who cares enough about the environment to buy products with eco-friendly labels, it’s always a good idea to do your research and better understand what each of them means.
There are a lot of different labels, from green and eco-friendly, to non-toxic, cruelty-free, organic, natural, green seal, ecologo, and many more.
Have questions about how safe and environmentally friendly cleaning products are? Give Picture Perfect Cleaning a call today.
