How Claim Specificity Can Improve Claim Credibility in Green Advertising

摘要

This study establishes claim specificity as a conceptually distinct message characteristic and a robust antecedent of claim credibility. The relationship between the specificity and the credibility of green claims is examined by way of a 2 x 2 online experiment, with a broad sample of consumers. The results show that being specific increased the perceived credibility of green claims across a range of products, regardless of their perceived environmental relevance. Theoretical, practical, and research implications are discussed.