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Encouraging green consumers
For retailers, one thing that can be done is simplifying consumer decision-making, which could involve helping consumers easily identify sustainable products.
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According to the NYU Stern Center for Sustainable Business, green or sustainable products in the US made up 16 percent of total consumer goods between 2015 and 2019, but their contribution to consumer goods growth was nearly 60 percent. (Shutterstock/-)
P
eople are becoming more concerned about environmental issues. We increasingly see people riding bicycles or taking public transportation to work in an effort to reduce the use of fossil fuels, as well as other behaviors such as reducing the use of plastic materials. This means that the phenomenon of changing behavior in order to protect the environment is becoming more common.
However, in the context of consumption, is this greener behavior reflected in purchasing habits for environmentally friendly products? According to Bain research, these things do not always go together. This is due to the fact that the current path to sustainable living focuses on reducing consumption of environmentally unfriendly products such as fuel, plastics and the like, but this awareness had not yet been linked to a number of products and services consumers use.
Bain, in its study, identifies five types of consumers related to behaviors toward environmentally friendly products. The first group is climate change deniers, who don't believe that the climate is changing and make up 4 percent of United States consumers. The second type are consumers of habit, who simplify their lives by buying familiar products, making up 30 percent of US consumers. They are not actively concerned about climate change, so sustainability is not on their minds when shopping.
The third group is curious consumers who purchase eco-friendly products because they are curious about these products, which are frequently branded as premium. They are not particularly concerned about the environment, but they enjoy trying new premium products. They account for approximately 11 percent of all consumers.
The fourth group is conscious non-consumers, those who are actively concerned about climate change and have several environmentally friendly lifestyle habits but do not purchase eco-friendly products. They account for roughly 32 percent of all consumers, making them the largest group.
The last group is conscious consumers. These consumers are actively concerned about the environment and consider a product's environmental credentials when shopping, as they see this as a path to more sustainable living. They account for about 24 percent of all consumers.
