Where is the money going? Most was given to state-owned
enterprises such as State Grid, which is investing $439 billion in
building a smart grid using resources including renewable
energy.
Is that an area where branding will make any difference?
Not likely, and multinationals can do little but complain that
they can't take advantage of the green stimulus package at all,
since government money is only heading towards domestic firms.
Consumers are also ready to accept, endorse and encourage more
green-oriented actions by marketers. The trend is national and
spans young and old, rural and urban, and rich and poor consumers.
Between 84% and 88% of Chinese urban consumers say they try to
avoid companies that harm the environment and profess a preference
for green products, while 55% claim they use energy-saving
appliances and 49% say they use renewable energy at home.
Are they telling us the truth? Of course not. The government's
target for a renewable energy supply is 20% by 2020, and nearly 50%
of Chinese people say they already use it. That's the problem with
research. Ask people a question, and they would like to show their
best face. In other markets where similar research is carried out,
it has been found that the support for environment friendly brands
is conditional on protecting the poor, especially in areas like
water, heat and other necessities of life. This is a form of moral
self-licensing which consumers often exercise to justify their
actions.
In reality, consumers have a favorable attitude towards green
initiatives but there are precious few options in the marketplace
for consumers to embrace green with gusto and affordability.
Where are the really green brands? So far, they occupy a kind of
rarefied space, both globally and in China, where their loyal
franchise wears its eco-credentials as a status symbol. They stay
at Urbn Hotel , buy cool clothes at eno , drive around in a Toyota
Prius, and carry cloth bags that scream, "I'm not a Plastic Bag."
Most corporations believe that consumers who embrace sustainability
do so for altruistic reasons. The idea that the majority of
consumers would jump on the green movement -- given the right
options -- has eluded them.
Corporations in China still look at green behavior as helping
corporate reputations or saving costs, hence a focus on internal
efficiencies. They are not alone. A recent McKinsey Global
Institute study shows that 36% (the largest proportion) invest in
sustainability to maintain or improve corporate reputations, while
19% want to improve operational efficiencies and lower costs. More
executives in business-to-business companies (20%) are likely to
seek growth opportunities through sustainability activities
compared to consumer-facing companies (14%).
Companies should make green choices easier for consumers through
their brands, and some do already. When we stay at a hotel, for
instance, it is easy for us to put the towel back on the rack and
not toss it into the tub. It is easy to return used beer and soda
cans to the supermarket and get a discount or rebate coupon for the
effort.
It should be easy to change the default setting on a printer
from single-side to double-side printing too -- but it isn't. It's
so complicated it usually involves calling an IT department for
help.
Let's stop shifting responsibility for smart green programs to
the government or to the research and development department,
neither of which is coming back with the right products, and let's
stop blaming consumers' lack of enthusiasm for doing things today.
The responsibility lies with marketers to make the right products
at the right price today, because tomorrow will be too late.
Kunal Sinha leads Ogilvy Earth, Ogilvy & Mather's
sustainability practice in China in addition to serving as
executive director of discovery at O&M, Shanghai.
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