CONSUMER ATTITUDE TOWARDS SUSTAINABILITY: A CHALLENGE OR AN OPPORTUNITY FOR GREEN MARKETING.

Abstract

Industries navigating from anthropocentric to eco-centric approach accentuate the contribution of Green Marketing towards sustainable development. The concept of Green Marketing is more towards altruism, since it comprises a pool of activities including product modification, packaging changes, modifying advertising and changes to the production process intended to satisfy human needs and wants, causing minimal detriment to the natural environment (Polonsky, 1994). However in the past many researchers identified consumer attitude in developing countries as a key challenge for effective Green Marketing strategy implementation. Since nowadays geographical boundaries do not have a pivotal influence on varying human perceptions as a result of globalization and its resultant interconnections, through this conceptual paper the author pinpoints consumer attitude in developing countries as an evolving opportunity to pursue Green Marketing within a company. Moreover, The Sustainability Imperative 2015, by Nielsen Company clearly depicts that 66% of consumers are now willing to pay more for sustainable brands and when compared to developed countries, consumers in developing countries pay more attention to sustainability due to the everyday challenges they face. Having identifying this drastic attitude change, the author indicates that the attitude of customers in developing countries is rather a dire opportunity, not a challenge for marketers. Thus, the paper finds that the companies in developing countries should establish solid Green Marketing strategies to ensure their long term survival. The research is based on text books and journal articles written on Green Marketing, Consumer Attitudes and Sustainability. Where necessary, reference will be made to research publications by leading corporate research firms.