Green marketing and consumer willingness to pay: Economic implications of sustainable branding in the post-COVID era

Authors

  • Bidemi Ndagana Hyekonni
  • Dishi-Khobe Pwaveno Glory
  • Hamisu Ali

Keywords:

consumer willingness, economic implications, green marketing, sustainable branding

Abstract

This study examines the relationship between green marketing awareness and consumer willingness to pay (CWP) for sustainable products in the post-COVID era, focusing on the economic implications of sustainable branding. Using a sample of 400 respondents and employing descriptive statistics, Pearson correlation, regression analysis, chi-square tests, and ANOVA, the study investigates how key factors price sensitivity (PS), perceived environmental benefits (PEB), brand trust in sustainability claims (BTSC), and post-COVID health and environmental concerns (PHEC) influence green marketing awareness (GMA) and consumer purchasing behaviour. The regression results reveal that price sensitivity is a significant positive predictor of GMA (B = 0.149, p = .005), indicating that cost-conscious consumers are more likely to engage with sustainable branding when it aligns with perceived long-term value and ethical appeal. Although other variables such as PEB, BTSC, PHEC, and CWP did not individually predict GMA at statistically significant levels, the ANOVA results confirm that these predictors collectively have a significant impact on green marketing awareness (F = 2.688, p = .021). Moreover, chi-square tests indicate significant associations between all variables and consumer willingness to pay (p < .05), underscoring the importance of trust, affordability, and post-pandemic health concerns in shaping green purchasing decisions. The findings highlight that sustainable branding is economically viable in the post-COVID marketplace, but its effectiveness depends on balancing environmental messaging with affordability and credibility. It is recommended that businesses enhance transparency in sustainability claims and adopt pricing strategies that make green products more accessible, thereby fostering stronger consumer engagement and loyalty.

References

Ajzen, I. (1991). The theory of planned behaviour. Organizational Behavior and Human Decision Processes, 50(2), 179–211.

Ajzen, I. (2005). Attitudes, personality, and behavior (2nd ed.). Open University Press.

Akerele-Popoola, O. E., Adegboyega, S. A., & Binuyo, E. L. (2024). A systematic review of Nigerian articles on sustainable and green marketing and consumer behavior. Journal of Mass Communication Department, Department of Mass Communication, University of Karachi, 31.

Akram, M. W., Mirza, S., & Mahar, S. (2024). Employee green behaviour in Pakistani education sector: does green perceived organisational support mediate the relation between green human resource management and employee green behaviours?. Global Business Review, 09721509241232195.

Bansal, P., Kumar, R. R., Raj, A., Dubey, S., & Graham, D. J. (2021). Willingness to pay and attitudinal preferences of Indian consumers for electric vehicles. Energy Economics, 100, 105340. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eneco.2021.105340

Biswas, A., & Roy, M. (2015). Leveraging factors for sustained green consumption behaviour based on consumption value perceptions: Testing the structural model. Journal of Cleaner Production, 95, 332–340. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2015.02.042

Farooghi, R., Qasim, S., & Shaikh, D. H. (2024). Exploring the impact of green satisfaction, consumer willingness to pay, and green loyalty on green brand evangelism. NICE Research Journal, 17(2), 58–71.

FuiYeng, W., & Yazdanifard, R. (2015). Green marketing: A study of consumers’ buying behaviour in relation to green products. Global Journal of Management and Business Research: E Marketing, 15(5), 16–23.

Ghobbe, S., & Nohekhan, M. (2023). Mental perception of quality: Green marketing as a catalyst for brand quality enhancement. arXiv. https://arxiv.org/

Goedertier, F., Weijters, B., & Van den Bergh, J. (2024). Are consumers equally willing to pay more for brands that aim for sustainability, positive societal contribution, and inclusivity as for brands that are perceived as exclusive? Generational, gender, and country differences. Sustainability, 16(9), 3879. https://doi.org/10.3390/su16093879

Hartmann, P., & Apaolaza Ibáñez, V. (2006). Green value added. Marketing Intelligence & Planning, 24(7), 673–680. https://doi.org/10.1108/02634500610711842

Hasan, Z., & Ali, N. A. (2015). The impact of green marketing strategy on the firm's performance in Malaysia. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 172, 463–470. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2015.01.382

Joshi, Y., & Rahman, Z. (2015). Factors affecting green purchase behaviour and future research directions. International Strategic Management Review, 3(1–2), 128–143. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ism.2015.04.001

Joshi, Y., Uniyal, D. P., & Sangroya, D. (2021). Investigating consumers’ green purchase intention: Examining the role of economic value, emotional value and perceived marketplace influence. Journal of Cleaner Production, 328, 129638. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jclepro.2021.129638

Khaleeli, M., Oswal, N., & Sleem, H. (2021). The moderating effect of price consciousness on the relationship between green products purchase intention and customers’ purchase behavior: Does environmental knowledge matter? Management Science Letters, 11(5), 1651–1658.

Kim, J. H. (2019). Multicollinearity and misleading statistical results. Korean Journal of Anesthesiology, 72(6), 558–569. https://doi.org/10.4097/kja.19087

Leonidou, C. N., Katsikeas, C. S., & Morgan, N. A. (2013). “Greening” the marketing mix: Do firms do it and does it pay off? Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, 41, 151–170. https://doi.org/10.1007/s11747-012-0317-2

Mahmoud, M. A., Tsetse, E. K. K., Tulasi, E. E., & Muddey, D. K. (2022). Green packaging, environmental awareness, willingness to pay and consumers’ purchase decisions. Sustainability, 14(23), 16091. https://doi.org/10.3390/su142316091

Mai, K. N., Nhan, D. H., & Nguyen, P. T. M. (2023). Empirical study of green practices fostering customers’ willingness to consume via customer behaviors: The case of green restaurants in Ho Chi Minh City of Vietnam. Sustainability, 15(5), 4263. https://doi.org/10.3390/su15054263

Mani, U. A., Bazza, M. I., & Usman, F. I. (2024). Consumer citizenship attitudes towards organic products: Exploring green marketing in Maiduguri, Nigeria. International Journal of Accounting, Finance and Administrative Research, 1(3), 24–33.

Mansoor, M., & Noor, U. (2019). Determinants of green purchase intentions: Positive word of mouth as moderator. Journal of Business & Economics, 11(2), 143–160.

Mohammadi, E., Barzegar, M., & Nohekhan, M. (2023). The green advantage: Analyzing the effects of eco-friendly marketing on consumer loyalty. arXiv. https://arxiv.org/

Murphy, J., & Cohen, M. J. (2001). Consumption, environment and public policy. In M. J. Cohen & J. Murphy (Eds.), Exploring sustainable consumption (pp. 3–17). Pergamon.

Nair, S. R., & Little, V. J. (2016). Context, culture and green consumption: A new framework. Journal of International Consumer Marketing, 28(3), 169–184. https://doi.org/10.1080/08961530.2015.1125860

Nguyen, L. H., Drew, D. A., Graham, M. S., Joshi, A. D., Guo, C. G., Ma, W., ... Zhang, F. (2020). Risk of COVID-19 among front-line health-care workers and the general community: A prospective cohort study. The Lancet Public Health, 5(9), e475–e483. https://doi.org/10.1016/S2468-2667(20)30164-X

Nohekhan, M., & Barzegar, M. (2024). Impact of green marketing strategy on brand awareness: Business, management, and human resources aspects. arXiv. https://arxiv.org/

Obiefuna, J. N., & Chinasa, U. (2023). Geospatial visualization of suspended particulate matter (SPM2.5) footprints across dominant land uses in Nigeria. In Proceedings of the 1st South-South Zonal Association of Nigerian Geographers Conference (pp. 82–86).

Peattie, K., & Crane, A. (2005). Green marketing: Legend, myth, farce or prophesy? Qualitative Market Research: An International Journal, 8(4), 357–370. https://doi.org/10.1108/13522750510619733

Premadasa, I. V. M. N., & Fernando, P. I. N. (2022). Does premium price mediate the consumer awareness and green purchase intention? A consumer study based on organic food, Western Province-Sri Lanka. Journal of Business Studies, 8(1).

Reddy, K. P., Chandu, V., Srilakshmi, S., Thagaram, E., Sahyaja, C., & Osei, B. (2023). Consumers’ perception on green marketing towards eco-friendly fast moving consumer goods. International Journal of Engineering Business Management, 15. https://doi.org/10.1177/18479790231170962

Sarkis, J. (2020). Supply chain sustainability: Learning from the COVID-19 pandemic. International Journal of Operations & Production Management, 41(1), 63–73. https://doi.org/10.1108/IJOPM-08-2020-0568

Sheikh, A., Mirzaei, M., & Ahmadinejad, B. (2023). Factors influencing green purchase behavior: Price sensitivity, perceived risk, and attitude towards green products. Contemporary Management Research, 19(3), 153–174.

Shrikanth, R., & Raju, D. S. N. (2012). Contemporary green marketing: Brief reference to Indian scenario. International Journal of Social Sciences & Interdisciplinary Research, 1(1), 26–39.

Stall-Meadows, C., & Davey, A. (2013). Green marketing of apparel: Consumers' price sensitivity to environmental marketing claims. Journal of Global Fashion Marketing, 4(1), 33–43. https://doi.org/10.1080/20932685.2013.763429

Testa, F., Pretner, G., Iovino, R., Bianchi, G., Tessitore, S., & Iraldo, F. (2021). Drivers to green consumption: A systematic review. Environment, Development and Sustainability, 23, 4826–4880. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10668-020-00844-5

Thakkar, R. (2021). Green marketing and sustainable development: Challenges and opportunities. International Journal of Management, Public Policy and Research, 1(1), 15–23.

Tien, N. H., Ngoc, N. M., Anh, D. B. H., Huong, N. D., Huong, N. T. T., & Phuong, T. N. M. (2020). Green marketing development strategy in post COVID-19 period in Vietnam. International Journal of Multidisciplinary Research and Growth Evaluation, 1(1), 101–106.

Tsaabitah, A. J., Ismoyowati, D., & Yuliando, H. (2025). Green consumer preferences toward green marketing: A conjoint approach. In BIO Web of Conferences (Vol. 167, p. 07003). EDP Sciences.

Uyanık, G. K., & Güler, N. (2013). A study on multiple linear regression analysis. Procedia - Social and Behavioral Sciences, 106, 234–240. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2013.12.027

Witek, L., & Kuźniar, W. (2020). Green purchase behaviour: The effectiveness of sociodemographic variables for explaining green purchases in emerging market. Sustainability, 13(1), 209. https://doi.org/10.3390/su13010209

Woohyoung, K. I. M., & Chang, H. (2024). Applying consumer value theory to determine consumer behaviour in terms of online and offline shopping during COVID-19 pandemic. Journal of Distribution Science, 22(5), 67–79.

Downloads

Published

2026-03-15

Issue

Vol. 12 No. 1 (2026): Singaporean Journal of Business Economics and Management

Section

Articles

License

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

How to Cite

Green marketing and consumer willingness to pay: Economic implications of sustainable branding in the post-COVID era. (2026). Singaporean Journal of Business Economics and Management, 12(1), 35-40. https://www.singaporeanjbem.com/index.php/SJBEM/article/view/625

Similar Articles

1-10 of 239

You may also start an advanced similarity search for this article.