…that we can no longer afford.
Our professor posed a very important question the other day, “Should consumers have a choice of sustainability, or should it be mandatory?”
My stance on this issue is two sides of the same coin. As a marketer, we should be offering consumers choice in order to appeal to different target segments based on varying psychographics, lifestyles, behaviours, etc.
However, consumers often are not entirely conscious and aware of what it is that they need, want, and require in their daily lives, and even when they do, they don’t fully understand where it is that they’re coming from. Why do they need and want it?
And that’s why marketers conduct so much research to try and understand what consumers don’t know about themselves. When that’s all said and done, as a marketer, our job entails us to convince consumers to choose a certain product, so wouldn’t our job be easier if there were no choices to begin with?
As a member of society living on this planet that we call Earth, we should all be caring for our home. Resources should not be taken for granted, because if everyone had taken Earth and Ocean Sciences courses as I have, they would understand how long it takes the Earth to replenish the resources that we consume in a day.
If we think about it, we’re all consumers of this Earth. As business people, we prefer and reward well-behaving consumers. Teachers reward well-behaved students. Parents love obedient children (as much as we don’t like to admit it, obedient children are more loved; it’s only human nature). Business plans that work well are the ones that get executed time and time again. Those who/that listen and perform to exceed expectations are the ones that succeed. As consumers of Earth, why are we not behaving to our advantage? Why do we not listen to Mother Nature, and understand that we are running out of time and resources, and if we don’t act now, society as we know it will suffer the consequences in time too soon?
Is not being able to purchase a “brown” good really so bad? If all that was available on retail shelves were green products, there wouldn’t be a second thought on whether one should buy green or not. Rather, the leading question when doing one’s weekly shopping then transforms into which green brand, which sustainability driven product line, which environmentally committed company, one should purchase from. Consumers would no longer be hesistating about paying a premium on green products, when they become the norm and are all that they can purchase.
When there is no choice between good and bad purchases; when there is only choice between what’s good and better for the environment, consumers cannot make poor choices. What we need now is innovation in retail goods and services, to convert currently loved “brown” goods and services into green ones, and more socially and environmentally conscious business people to enable and drive forth such a future.