Despite a vast U.S. marketing and media trend toward green affinity and awareness, most Americans admit putting personal comfort ahead of the environment, and a significant percentage voice ambivalence—even negativity—about the increased media attention. So reports Eco Pulse, the newest national study on U.S. consumers and green affinity, produced by Shelton Group, a Tennessee-based advertising agency focused on energy, energy efficiency and sustainability.
“What we’ve quantified is that most consumers behave as ‘armchair environmentalists’ at best,” says Suzanne Shelton, CEO of Shelton Group. “Many people who talk up their green purchases and lifestyles really aren’t doing as much as they say.”
What does green mean?
Although most consumers know green buzzwords, when asked, “What does the term ‘green’ mean, as in green homes, green products, etc.?” most (56 percent) could offer only generic responses, such as “environmentally friendly” or “eco-friendly.” Another 8 percent were unable to offer any answer. The top specific answers were “energy efficient” (8 percent) and “natural or chemical-free” (5 percent).
Americans vary in what they think makes a company green. When given a range of descriptions and activities to evaluate whether they qualified the company as “green,” 69 percent chose the strictest standard offered: “A company that uses renewable energy, has zero waste in its manufacturing process and produces ‘green’ products,” while 52 percent chose one of the weakest standards: “a company that recycles.”
When given a list of criteria for deciding if a product is green, 33 percent of respondents said “manufactured with very little impact on the environment” was most important, and 19 percent chose “made of all-natural materials” and “energy efficient.”
Energy efficiency ranked relatively low on the list of criteria, although energy generation is the largest contributor to greenhouse gases worldwide, with coal-fired plants that generate electricity the top culprit.
At the checkout counter
Eco Pulse also reveals how few Americans put their own environmental views into practice at the check-out counter. Asked, “How much, if any, does a company’s environmental record and/or practices impact your decision whether or not to buy its products?” 49 percent said “somewhat” to “very much.”
However, when asked a specific follow-up to this question, “Have you ever chosen one product over another based on the environmental record/practices of its manufacturer?” only 21 percent said “yes,” and of those, only 28 percent—6 percent of the total population—could name the actual product.
When asked, “Given a choice between your comfort, your convenience or the environment which do you most often choose?” 46 percent chose comfort, 31 percent chose the environment and 23 percent chose convenience. When asked if they feel like they’re often asked to choose between comfort and the environment, 48 percent were undecided, and 26 percent agreed.
A majority (78 percent) of consumers said green products sometimes-to-always cost more. Those who said they were interested in green also said they were willing to pay a premium.
Increased green media attention
Forty percent of those surveyed admitted to a less-than-enthusiastic response to increased media attention covering human impact on the environment, while 60 percent answered in a positive fashion (such as feeling better educated or glad).
While a significant percentage of U.S. consumers don’t agree climate change is occurring and is caused by human activity, a sizable majority—nearly three-quarters—said a significant environmental slip-up can cause them to stop purchasing a company’s products.
When asked “How much do you agree or disagree with the following statement: ‘Global warming, or climate change, is occurring, and it’s primarily caused by human activity,’” 57 percent of Americans agreed or strongly agreed, 20 percent disagreed or strongly disagreed and 23 percent were unsure.
Faux green companies
When asked, “What would you do if you found out that a company that makes your favorite toilet paper and has been advertising itself as ‘green’ had received a government fine for failing emissions standards or for polluting a nearby river?,” 28 percent said they’d likely keep buying, 44 percent said they’d likely stop buying and 28 percent said they’d stop buying and encourage their friends not to as well.
“This number really got our attention,” says Shelton. “Seventy-two percent of consumers said a serious environmental infraction would cause them to take an activist-type role at the point of purchase, with more than one-quarter going so far as to encourage others to boycott an offending company.”
Consumers divided
Eco Pulse confirms consumers are divided on green perceptions. Corporate motivations are suspect, and while many companies have gotten away with “greenwashing,” Eco Pulse indicates a substantial percentage of the market may be quite unforgiving should word of environmental inconsistencies or infractions emerge.
While most consumers think green products cost more, a significant number do not care, because they value green product attributes and are willing to pay a premium for them.
Only a relatively small subset of the market is interested in green “for the greater good.” For most people, the “what’s in it for me?” factor overrides what’s best for the environment.
For Eco Pulse, Shelton Group used Survey Sampling International’s online community of more than 3.5 million respondents in May 2008. The survey was geographically stratified to mirror distribution of the population (111,617,402 households in the contiguous United States). For more information, go to www.sheltongroupinc.com.
