Earning the green halo: A sequential model of trust, authenticity, and brand image in online sustainability marketing
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.71085/rjhsa.04.03.111Keywords:
Online Green Marketing, Brand Image, Green Trust, Brand Authenticity, Generation Z, PLS-SEM, Sustainability MarketingAbstract
This research analyses whether green trust and brand authenticity form a link or chain that forwards its effect rather than just treating green marketing in online scenario as something which has direct impact on image of brand. So, on this logic, signaling theory comes in and sustainability claims act as signals and its credibility is something which generates trust. In this research we state that trust on content is a condition infect precondition for the variable authenticity. The brand is only treated as original rather than green washing when customers have the trust on the sustainability claim the brand says and it shapes the brand image. So, to understand and study this, a survey of 500 Genz customers was done using PLS-SEM in SmartPLS. Results show that OGM has direct and significant positive impact on both variables, i.e. green trust and brand image. But the most interesting and valuable result was the indirect link, green trust and authenticity both account for a very meaningful share of online green marketing’s impact on brand image as whole, and its works in sequence rather than just a separate unrelating things. The contribution is not just another claim that online sustainability works, this research sketches a very clear picture of the route that customer’s mindset takes towards brand image.
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Copyright (c) 2026 Dr. Muhammad Umer, Shah Nawaz Khan, Kainat Fatima, Alesha Ilyas (Author)
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