Brands and marketing: we’re failing consumers
When times are tough, companies must make tough decisions, and the market is telling us there is real opportunity to increase sales if sustainable solutions are correctly presented, writes Howard Parry-Husbands, founder and CEO of Pollinate.
As an industry, we’re all well and truly aware of greenwashing and the various issues that lie therein. The problem is that increasingly often discussion around sustainable initiatives starts and ends with greenwashing, and that’s preventing the industry from realising a much bigger issue: brands are failing to meet consumer demand, and that’s putting them on the verge of serious crisis.
Australian consumers want to buy sustainably, 89% of them in fact; but when it comes to making these purchase decisions, our data shows consumers can’t find sustainable products, can’t afford them, or don’t trust the options being presented. Nonetheless, the responsibility for making a difference is still perceived as a consumer behaviour issue, and it’s leading to serious guilt among the buying public. In reality, Australian brands are failing the consumer, and it’s time to make a change or be left behind.
The whole point of having a market is that it provides a very efficient way to deliver to what the consumer wants. But this system is broken when it comes to sustainable products. While 73% of people think society needs to become more sustainable before it is too late, only 8% believe they can always find sustainable alternatives when shopping. Moreover, cost of living now ranks as the number one concern for Australians, at 91%, but when it comes to making sustainable purchase decisions 58% of Australians are wary of greenwashing and blame it for being charged higher prices.
