Consumer Electronics Companies Should Design And Market
Environmentally Responsible Products And Services
CAMBRIDGE, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Dec. 3, 2007--Twelve percent of
US adults -- some 25 million Americans -- are willing to pay extra for
consumer electronics that use less energy or come from a company that
is environmentally friendly according to a new survey by Forrester
Research, Inc. (Nasdaq: FORR). These "bright greens" are the vanguard
of an emerging consumer market segment that will be an attractive
target for technology companies.
The Forrester report is based on a survey of 5,000 US adults.
"The green leadership position is open: Which manufacturer will
create the iconic 'Prius' product in consumer electronics?" said
Forrester Research Senior Vice President Christopher Mines.
The Forrester survey identified three distinct segments of US
technology consumers:
-- Bright greens are 12 percent of US adults. These consumers are
concerned about the environment and strongly agree that they
would pay more for consumer electronics products that save
energy or come from a company that is environmentally
responsible.
-- Green consumers are another 41 percent of US adults. These 90
million consumers share concerns about environmental issues,
but do not strongly agree that they would pay more for
environmentally friendly products.
-- Non-greens are the remaining 47 percent of US adults. The rest
of the population, 96 million Americans, do not (yet) share
the greens' concerns about the environment or global warming.
Among the major PC brands, Apple's customer base is the greenest,
with 17 percent of its customers in the bright green consumer
category. HP's Compaq brand ranks second, with 13 percent of its
customers in the bright green category.
Many of the major consumer electronic manufacturers, including
Apple, Dell, HP, Sony, and Toshiba, have taken early steps to green
their operations and products. But moving forward, marketers and
designers of consumer technology products and services will change
product marketing and product design to embrace green principles like
energy efficiency, lower-impact manufacturing, longer product life
cycles, and recycleability.
"All the green efforts of consumer technology manufacturers so far
have been one-size-fits-all: They are not targeted at a particular
segment of consumers, but apply across the board to a company's
products, manufacturing, and supply chain," said Mines. "We fully
expect green technology consumers to further emerge as a target
segment for style-conscious electronics manufacturers as the industry
moves beyond beige-box design."
The report, "In Search Of Green Technology Consumers," is
currently available to Forrester RoleView(TM) clients and can also be
purchased directly at http://www.forrester.com/go?docid=43729.
About Forrester Research
Forrester Research, Inc. (Nasdaq: FORR) is an independent
technology and market research company that provides pragmatic and
forward-thinking advice to global leaders in business and technology.
For more than 24 years, Forrester has been making leaders successful
every day through its proprietary research, consulting, events, and
peer-to-peer executive programs.
(C) 2007, Forrester Research, Inc. All rights reserved. Forrester
is a trademark of Forrester Research, Inc.
CONTACT: Forrester Research, Inc.
Jon Symons, 1-617-613-6104
Director, Media Relations
press@forrester.com
SOURCE: Forrester Research, Inc.
