Although 49% of respondents to a national study called Eco Pulse say a company's environmental record is important in their purchasing decisions, the numbers drops to 21% when consumers are asked if
this had actually driven them to choose one product over another. And only 7% could name the product they purchased. And when asked to name which features a home would need to have before they would
consider it green, 42% say they didn't know, while 28% say solar, 12% say compact fluorescent light bulbs and 10% name Energy Star appliances. Nothing else really registered.
"If you were
an alien and you landed on the planet in April of this year, you would think that the 'green' market was pretty mature because you'd be hearing about it everywhere," says Suzanne Shelton, CEO of
Shelton Group, a Knoxville, Tenn.-based ad agency that conducted the survey. "But this is not a mature market."
The study also found that most Americans put their personal comfort ahead
of the environment. And a significant number (40%) admit to negative or ambivalent responses ("skeptical," "irritated," "guilty" or "unaffected") to increased media attention regarding our impact on
the environment, while 60% answered in a positive fashion ("better educated" or "glad").
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