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The rise and rise of green marketing

19 Apr 2010

Green advertising is on the rise, but 2009 has certainly tested the commitment of consumers to green products and services.

For this reason it was very illuminating to review the recently released 2009 Australian Green Marketing Trends Report. Given that research on this topic is still quite rare, this is an important document in terms of its context.

The 2009 Australian Green Marketing Trends Report was released by Melbourne firm GoGreen Creative, who claim to not only help businesses to translate their sustainability achievements into real brand value, but also aim to accelerate the movement of sustainability in business, by providing a range of services that demonstrate the commercial benefits of eco-advantage.

It’s (mostly) all good
Surprisingly the report shows that the state of green purchasing in the Australian market remains strong and the economic downturn has not withered the demand for ‘green’ products. The majority of purchasers are willing to pay a price premium, albeit a relatively small one, for products with an eco-advantage, although buying decisions are still highly influenced by product performance concerns and brand loyalty.

95% of respondents are prepared to pay a price premium for more sustainable products

Not surprisingly though, was an important finding that over 55% of respondents are only willing to pay up to 10% of a price premium, which is significantly less than is commonly reported.

Regardless, those companies that can deliver products that works, while still maintaining price competitiveness, are likely to gain significant market share and this is also true of services. In a competitive landscape consumers are seeing eco-impact as a major product and service differentiator.

62% deemed product performance as the most important or 2nd most important factor

Skeptical
Of concern to consumers, however, is the lack of clear, concise communications. Vagueness is widespread and this affects consumer confidence when being exposed to green products and advertising.

Contributing to this vagueness is the widespread use of catch phrases that poorly communicate about sustainable achievements and are open for interpretation. ‘Environmentally friendly’, ‘made from natural ingredients’ and ‘energy efficient’ were some of the phrases polled and found to be open to interpretation.

In response, the report highlights that consumers want to see more transparent communication containing eco labels, third party certifications and web links to more detailed information, which they can actively use to determine the validity of claims.

86% felt that the clarity of green advertising in the market was vague

In many ways this particular finding rings loud and clear in our ears, working as we do for Australia’s pioneer in green print.

We’ve made what seems to be the obvious point, time and time again, that the only true path to enlightenment is with external independent validation of a company’s claims. So too is full disclosure of our methods.

But by far the most important aspect of our green marketing work has been the education of our staff and clients. Our own polling has 9 out of every 10 new clients list our environmental initiatives in their top three reasons for choosing to work with us.

So it follows that consumers are also very keen to understand what environmental values are built into the products they want to buy. The problem we see, though, is that the advertising, marketing and to some extent design industries as a whole are not communicating the benefits well enough and continuing to focus only on price, rather than selling the benefits of an environmentally preferable product or process.

86% seek to find out more information when seeing green advertising

In general, though, the data highlights that consumers are paying more attention and absorbing more advertising related to sustainability and the environment. Feedback from the 509 respondents to the report suggested that there is an inherent desire to know more about businesses who are doing the right thing, so they can proactively take this on board when considering a purchase decision.

Get it right, make it real
The challenge for all of us involves both the content and the form of the message. You can counsel your clients on the form of the message, while balancing the aesthetic decisions from economic, social and environmental perspectives.

So for marketers, I believe the message is very clear. Educate yourselves and then educate your clients. It sounds like the wrong way around, but from our experience it makes the message real and not some cynical public relations exercise.

Now we know that most will say that your clients or management are driving costs, so we understand the pressures. However, what we are trying to communicate is that a broad understanding of the benefits of an environmentally preferable product will present new business opportunities, not only for your clients but also for the companies that you work for.

Marketers that are able to present this wealth of information correctly will be rewarded with communications that are more likely to be absorbed by consumers when compared to traditional advertising, leading to better returns for marketing expenditure and presumably better sales.

The 2009 Australian Green Marketing Trends Report is available at no cost. Download from www.gogreencreative.com.au

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