It's Not Easy Buying Green

When it comes to shopping, one truth that's come out of the green movement is that shoppers put a lot of faith in brands.Based on nearly 6,500 shopper intercepts in 11 leading retail chains, the 2009 GMA/Deloitte "Green Shopper Study" revealed that "the rate of green purchase was very sensitive to the use of in-store communication and information." Translation: Shoppers don't always understand environmental benefits and need help at the point-of-purchase. Those findings align with Grail Research's "Green Revolution" study based on a June 2009 survey of 520 green buyers, of whom 63% said product labels are their primary source of information, followed by word of mouth (45%), TV ads (38%) and print media (34%).This need for information leaves shoppers susceptible to greenwashing, defined as misleading consumers about a product's environmental benefits. The practice is so widespread that consumers might eventually become unduly skeptical of all green claims, according to TerraChoice Environmental Marketing. In its guide titled "Avoiding the Seven Sins of Greenwashing," the agency found that an astonishing 98% of 2,219 North American products making green claims were guilty of committing at least one or more of its "sins." (Some include vagueness and no proof; all can be found at www.sinsofgreenwashing.org and in the sidebar below).TerraChoice updated its sins from six to seven this year, adding what they call "worshiping false labels." On-package, third-party certification seals or logos (Energy Star, Green Seal, Forest Stewardship Council, USDA Organic) provide "a shorthand method of establishing green credentials and earning trust," says Scott McDougall, president of TerraChoice, Ottawa, Canada. Unfortunately, their credibility has given rise to a practice in which companies exploit consumer trust by designing official-looking but meaningless stamps or seals to give the impression that a product's claims have been verified and endorsed. Retailers are stepping up efforts to stop greenwashing, and the most sweeping initiative comes from Walmart, which in July announced plans to develop a worldwide "sustainability product index." The mega-merchant's 100,000 global suppliers are asked to complete a list of questions to assess each company's impact on the planet and people. Then, Walmart will conduct lifecycle analyses of its wares, taking into consideration everything from raw materials to disposal, and provide customers with product ratings so they can spot the greenest options at a glance. The Home Depot uses its Eco Options label, along with recently refreshed store signage, to identify products that make less of an impact on the environment. Recreation Equipment Inc., or REI, puts an "eco-sensitive" icon on the hangtags of qualifying products. Proof is an essential element of effective green marketing, says McDougall. "Backing up claims is important," he says, adding that it's OK to direct consumers to a website for "detailed, scientific proof."Pricey PerceptionConsumer mistrust would be a major setback for marketers of green products, because those companies already battle perceptions that green products don't perform as well as their conventional counterparts and cost more.If the greener of two products sells at a higher price point, an "added value" statement might be called for, as Grail Research, Cambridge, Mass., found that price was the largest perceived barrier for would-be green buyers. In the health and beauty category in particular, it's an ongoing challenge to prove that green products stand up to their chemical-laden competitors, particularly for conditions such as an itchy scalp."We're always trying to convince people that natural and organic products can be just as good or better. The concern is that they won't work as well -- that their teeth won't be as clean, or their hair won't be as nice," says Lewis Goldstein, vice president of marketing at Kiss My Face, Gardiner, N.Y."It's a myth that will be overcome through education," he adds. The all-natural body care company offers coupons as a "trial mechanism" and sampling at retail, and uses self-referential displays with expository signage to reinforce its commitment to sustainability. One says, "Because you care, this display is planet friendly," and then goes on to explain how. Seeing an opportunity for unique positioning as an environmentally friendly option, the Earthmate brand of compact fluorescent light bulbs, introduced in 2007, chose the tagline, "Save energy. Help fight global warming." At that time, the already crowded CFL category and its claims were "homogenous," with clamshell packaging and an emphasis on cutting household energy costs vs. saving the planet, says Jim Ouellette, vice president of consumer markets.As such, even loyal CFL buyers perhaps did not grasp the connection between electrical lighting and global warming, and therefore the Alsip, Ill.-based company -- a business unit of Litetronics International Inc. -- deemed it "crucial" to use an entire side panel on the packaging to explain, Ouellette says. In-store displays include educational riser cards and sleeves for brochures discussing Earthmate's eco-friendly features.The product packaging also includes information about the packaging itself, which is made from recyclable 100% post-consumer waste rather than landfill-destined plastic. One SKU in Earthmate's product line comes in packaging that doubles as a CFL recycling kit, with a postage-paid shipping label and lining designed to reduce the risk of mercury exposure and punctures if a spent lamp shatters in transit.Finding Your ShoppersFurthering the case for at-shelf education, research shows that there are different segments (or "shades") of green shoppers. Grail Research's "Green Revolution" study identified light-green and dark-green consumers, with the latter being the more committed shopper. "For light-green consumers, the decision to buy a green product happens at the store, while for dark greens, it's more of a planned purchase," says Silvia Springolo, a client service officer with Grail Research. If your message is engaging and persuasive enough, light greens will buy out of curiosity and on impulse, she adds. However, shoppers can't read labels on packages they can't find. Green products are getting lost in the store: Although 63% of shoppers surveyed for the GMA/Deloitte "Green Shopper Study" looked for green products, only 47% actually found them."The average supermarket carries 30,000 products, and we act as if the shopper can find the 300 more sustainable products without any help. Retailers need a three-tier communication strategy that addresses awareness, visibility and information," says Scott Bearse, a director in Deloitte's Boston office who coauthored the study. While the meaning of "green" differs by brand, product and category, unified green navigational signage that ties in with a retailer's brand identity would help shoppers locate green items. Aggregating green products within a category could also increase visibility. However, research by the New York-based marketing communications agency G2 indicates that shoppers "don't want to reroute their shopping trip to get green and would prefer to see green products next to their regular counterparts," says strategy director Jonathan Dodd. And it's not just a matter of saving time: "Respondents also said that a separate section would make it difficult to make direct comparisons" on performance and price, he adds.There is no single green attribute that drives the purchase of all green products. Each category has a specific green feature that is most critical for consumers, Springolo says. For example, biodegradability is prized most when buying paper and cleaning products, while energy-efficiency tops the list for electronics, according to Grail Research's survey. However, environmentally friendly product packaging is considered important for almost all categories.Earthmate browsed categories ranging from shoes to cosmetics, looking for a common denominator in package design that Ouellette felt in his gut the average consumer would perceive as green. "It was clear to me that kraft-paper-colored packaging is what most readily communicates environmental friendliness," he says, along with muted earth tones and no glossy finishes.

It's Not Easy Buying Green

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