Being environmentally responsible is not the whole story about sustainability, individuals consider their social and economic impact as well (Werbach, 2009; RepTrak, 2020; Sheth , Sethia , & Srinivas , 2011; Terlau & Hirsch , 2015). Companies, hereby, must consider social and economic purpose in their businesses. This is also one of the key findings from our empirical study. When we asked the interviewees to explain what sustainability is, they all mentioned social responsibility either from an individual perspective or corporate perspective.
Some of them also stated that they want to know companies’ social responsibilities as they believe that having a green product does not mean that company is making positive social
o Price sensitiveness on the market o No big differentiation from regular
cleaning products
o Follower pricing strategy
o Discounts can bring price closer to conventional products
o Gaining new consumers with big discounts
o Functional attributes valued over sustainable – effectiveness
o Natural, chemical-free ingredients, refill option
o Involve sustainable corporate branding
o Sustainable packaging with concrete information on the contribution o Sustainability endorsements by
authorities
o Trials and sample products to break down issue of effectiveness o Advertising communication –
feelings and cognition as a motivation for consumers
o Positive emotions and continuity to be incorporated
o Strategic partnership with trusted organizations for authenticity
o Lack of awareness of green products – high visibility
o Product availability as a barrier – aim for highest distribution o Television as one of the most
mentioned channels – educational materials about the sustainability angle
Product Price
Placement Promotion
Figure 3 - The suggested optimal marketing mix to shift consumer behaviour towards sustainability
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impact. Social responsibility is one of the fundamental elements of sustainability which is included in the definition we illustrated in the theoretical framework.
Sustainable development focuses on the trade-offs between the environmental and economy pillars, and it does not neglect the social pillar. Without good governance, and being responsible for the environment and social issues, no CSR strategy can succeed. Moreover, recent studies indicate that environmental, social, and corporate governance refers to the central factors in measuring CSR impact of the investment in businesses (Bonini, et al., 2009).
Companies are using ESG to evaluate the long-term financial performance. Furthermore, leading companies in the household products industry are not only engaged with environment but also human rights and much more (Benckiser, 2019; Unilever, 2019). Nevertheless, in this research we have only focused on the environmental benefits of the home hygiene products, e.g. they reduce carbon footprints, water waste, and pollution. Therefore, we suggest that further research could include social and economic responsibilities in order to conduct a more comprehensive research to see how companies can shift consumers in the household products industry to be more sustainable through a holistic approach. Additionally, sustainability is a holistic approach that considers social, environmental, and economical challenges (The University of Alberta , 2010). Therefore, all sustainable dimensions should be evaluated together to find enduring solution and success. From our research, we also found that companies could use comprehensive CSR initiatives to remove the factors causing the sustainable consumer attitude – behaviour gap. For instance, many respondents stated that they are more likely to trust a firm who is doing more than just launching green products with recyclable package. They care about how companies treat their employees, copy with gender equality, and support communities/programs with good causes.
The core concept of this report is the green consumers’ attitude and behaviour gap. We were able to define the reasons causing this discrepancy, find the drivers that can help companies to shift consumers to be more sustainable in terms of their purchase behaviour by interviewing consumers. In order to prove the defined motivational factors are able to affect green consumers’ purchase behaviour, we believe an eye-tracking research could be conducted. The
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cognitive effort required in the evaluation and verification of decision-making process involve consumers’ visual attention. When consumers search for the green products, they would perform a visual search which is “the process of visually scanning a scene and forming a conceptual image or notion of the scene as assembled by the brain” (Duchowski, 2007).
Hereby, we propose that visual attention would influence green consumer behaviour, and consequently, it would be possible to test if consumers can be shifted to be more sustainable by the defined factors in this report.
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Appendices
Appendix 1: The interview guide
Personal background of interviewees Gender:
Age:
Educational background:
Place of current residence:
Sustainable consumption in household products industry
1. Could you please describe what is sustainability? What do you do in your daily life to contribute to the environment?
2. Please tell us how sustainable household products can contribute to the environment from your knowledge. Where did you learn these?
3. Why are you purchasing/not purchasing sustainable household products regularly?
4. How do you normally decide which household products to buy when you are offered with many different products within the same category? When it comes to sustainable household products purchase, do you act/think differently and how?
Individual-self
1. How do you think about yourself when you are engaged in sustainable behaviors?
2. What kind of attributes are you looking into when you choose household products? Which type of attributes you value the most and why? (We will tell them what the sustainable and functional attributes they just mentioned.) 3. Could you tell us the barriers of consuming sustainable household products from your experience? What factors motivate you to overlook the drawbacks you have experienced from sustainable household products consumption?
Feelings and cognition
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1. The following messages are communicated by different companies in household products industry. Please tell us your feelings about those messages and how those messages change your likelihood of purchasing sustainable household products.
• Many wild animals are killed because of your water waste alone with a picture of a pile of animal carcasses.
• A commercial with cute animals in the beautiful nature and telling you that you are saving their lives by using sustainable household products.
• “Based on our current water usage, our future generation might not
have sufficient clean water to use”.
• “The country you reside has a significant carbon footprint”
• “If everyone in Scandinavia washed their clothes with cold water instead of hot water, we would save around 30 million tons of CO2 per year”
2. What kind of information are you looking for when you purchase sustainable household products? And where do you wish to find them?
3. Here are three packs of dishwasher tablets. Which one would you consider as the most sustainable one and which one would you buy if they all have the same price? (please clarify why?).
Tell them about the sustainability goals in household products industry
1. Would you consider/continue to consume sustainable household products regularly after this interview and why?
Appendix 2: The transcripts of the interviews
PARTICIPANT 1 Gender: Female Age: 24
Educational background: Bachelor’s degree Place of current residence: Denmark
Could you please describe what is sustainability?
When I think of sustainability, I think of products, where most or every part of the supply chain has been considered and optimized to meet a certain standard of sustainability. I think
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of whether the material of the product itself is sustainable, if it’s for example single use plastic or a recyclable/ reusable material. But aside from the product itself, I also define sustainability in terms of the manufacturing (e.g, what kind of energy source is used to fuel the production), as well as shipping and the environmental impact of distribution. Lastly, I think the definition of sustainability includes a social aspect, such as the whether the workers have reasonable terms, as well as the benefits that the company provides to the local
community that produces or sells the product.
Do you think you are a sustainable consumer? And what do you do in your daily life to contribute to the environment?
I am a vegan, because I personally find the topic very important. I try to be conscious about sustainability when I shop. I would describe myself as a very sustainable consumer.
Please tell us how sustainable household products can contribute to the environment from your knowledge.
Sustainable products for the bathroom, such as bamboo toothbrushes, soap and shampoo bars without plastic, biodegradable floss, reusable cotton pads, etc. Cleaning products, such as plastic-free cleaning brushes and sponges. I know that products, such as laundry
detergent, dishwashing soap, disinfecting wipes, etc. are also available in more sustainable versions, but I am less aware of how and where to buy these.
Where did you learn these information?
Firstly, sustainability is a very trendy topic. I have heard a lot from my friends and the danish government. Secondly, as I personally care about this topic very much, I try to be sustainable as much as I can, especially, when it comes to my daily consumption. I did a lot of research about sustainable products and sustainability in general.
Why are you purchasing or not purchasing sustainable household products regularly?
I buy sustainable products for the bathroom and sustainable cleaning products regularly.
However, the most conscious choice can also be more expensive, so as a student, I will sometimes opt for the cheaper option that may not be the most sustainable. I do think that as my financial stability grows, I will put more effort into researching the “better”, more sustainable consumer goods.
Any other reasons?
I also want to support companies who are pushing sustainability and greener choices on the average consumers, since it will be at least make a few more people conscious about their everyday choice. I would say I am somewhat intentionally buying products from sustainable companies. It will always make my impression of a company better if I hear that they have a focus on corporate sustainability and green or bio products. I also know, that for companies today, it’s very common to market themselves as being conscious in some way and maybe it’s not always as impactful as they market it too be.
How do you normally decide which household products to buy when you are offered with many different products within the same category?
When it’s traditional household products, I normally choose a product with fair price and good quality. The price has to be affordable as student, but it also has to be effective. I actually don’t really think when I buy the traditional ones, as I usually buy the products from
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the same brand because I know their products are good. But if there’s another brand I know but I don’t normally buy from have discount, I would buy that one as well.
When it comes to sustainable household products purchase, do you think you act or think differently? And how is that?
Hmm, I think for sustainable products, I typically think about whether the products are single use products or if they can be used continuously. For products like detergent, I will think more about the packaging than the product itself. It’s a major plus if there is a “refill” option, so I don’t have to throw out large plastic packaging regularly. I did some research about it, so I am loyal to some sustainable brands. It became the norm for me to buy sustainable for bathroom and cleaning.
How do you think about yourself when you are engaged in sustainable behaviors?
I love sustainable products! I feel much better when I know I am using something that is a bit better for the planet. I think everyone should take a bit of social responsibility, and buying greener everyday products is a fairly easy thing for most people to do. I’m not sure if green cleaning products are the norm at the moment, but I think it is going in that direction.
The purchase behaviour in my circle is very mixed and people care about sustainability at varying degrees. I don’t think it personally has that much influence on my behaviour, since I live alone and make all purchasing decisions myself. However, when I lived with my
parents, their habits of course rubbed off on me, and they only became more environmentally conscious in the last couple of years. When I first began thinking about green consumption, it made me feel great whenever I bought something I knew was sustainable. But now it’s just becoming the norm for me to buy these products, so I would rather feel bad if I didn’t buy them. In a way it does make me feel satisfied when I buy these products, since the other option is not great.
What kind of attributes are you looking into when you choose household products?
Whether the products are single use products or if they can be used continuously. For products like detergent, I will think more about the packaging than the product itself. Does the company behind doing something to contribute the planet. Of course price and efficacy are also important determinants for me.
As for different products, there are functional and sustainable attributes in a product.
Functional ones are traditional attributes, like effectiveness, price etc, while sustainable ones are natural ingredients etc, attributes that make the product sustainable. Which type of attributes you value the most and why?
Sustainable attributes are more important, because I really care about our planet, I want to make a change. I also don’t think sustainable products are less effective than traditional products nowadays.
Could you tell us the barriers of consuming sustainable household products from your experience?
Price is a barrier sometimes. Also, lack of information can also lead me to buy the easy option, that isn’t the most sustainable. As mentioned before, there are certain products, I know I could buy more sustainable versions of, but the information is not always so readily