Consumers are overwhelmed by choice in nearly all segments. Commoditization is affecting both the industry leaders and the followers. And while many companies are trying out everything from new packaging to social technology adoption to stand out, the real question for most is:

What is the ultimate competitive advantage?

According to the Harvard Business Journal, sustainability is the key driver of innovation — and innovation, as many know is crucial to continued success. In other words you’re either going green or you’re going to stay put (as far as the bottom line is concerned). And as our MapChange 2010 study shows, consumers not only care about who’s eco-friendly and who’s not — they also have opinions on who’s making the effort. As it stands, however, consumers aren’t accurate in assessing a company’s actual sustainability.

As you’ll find in looking at the Food and Beverage Sector, for instance, General Mills has a perceived sustainability score of 82 — but the brand’s actual score is 49. That’s a pretty big difference. And presently, that gap doesn’t seem to be hurting their numbers —or the numbers of other industry leading brands.

But the advantage of a green perception will only go so far.

Legislation coupled with widespread consumer demand for sustainability is right around the corner. Even now, many consumers will choose a green product over a non-sustainable one if variables like price and product quality are relatively equal. Refusing to acknowledge this near future (including green mandates and consumer preference for sustainable products, services and business models) will have punitive results. And in that light:

It’s not what large companies stand to gain — but what they stand to lose that’s important.

Mid and private label brands have been gaining ground in sustainability and conscious capitalism for the past decade — and if they’re able to innovate and integrate these concepts into their products and business models the probability of overtaking larger competitors rises significantly.

A hypothesis it may be, but consider this: not only will brands face impending consequences by failing to go green, but they also could face a new breed of competitors that have been sustainable from the start-up phase. Without a green offering, a brand’s worst enemy could be a competitor — or themselves.

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