Sustainability research between context and confusion

Researchers are as much at fault as large corporations when it comes to how we handle sustainability.

If we ask people if they are interested in sustainable products and CSR initiatives, obviously they say yes. Who wants to be seen to not be green? We then feed this back to marketers and confuse their brand strategy further.

Just as brands must be authentic and real in their approach to sustainability, so researchers should also be. When we discuss sustainability with consumers  we need to ensure that the conversation is put in perspective vs. the wider agendas of needs fulfilment, pricing and brand image etc.

This is essential as we need to report back more than ‘invest in being green’ to marketers. We need to be able to tell them where being sustainable sits on a wider needs hierarchy and how investment should reflect this vs. other consumer priorities.

Marketing ‘green’ is tough – and getting tougher – so let’s help marketers more by making sure sustainability research is placed in the context of other purchasing dynamics. By doing so, we better reflect the realities of both consumers and marketers.

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