The green factor

HOW, WHEN AND IF GREEN MARKETING

CAN IMPACT YOUR BRAND

C O P Y R I G H T 2 0 0 8 , S T R A T E G I C O X Y G E N

Awareness

Consideration

Purchase
PLEASE CONSIDER THE ENVIRONMENT BEFORE CHOOSING TO PRINT THIS DOCUMENT.
IN A TIME WHEN

WE ARE

INCREASINGLY

CHALLENGING

OUR LEADERS

TO LISTEN TO

ENVIRONMENTAL

SCIENTISTS, WE,

AS BRANDS,

MUST ALSO

LISTEN TO OUR

CUSTOMERS

AND DEVELOP This brief overview of Strategic Oxygen's GreenFactor research (v1.0)
A MORE
looks at how effective green marketing would be for 26 of the world's
SCIENTIFIC

APPROACH TO top technology brands, translating these findings into information any
MARKETING

“GREEN.”
brand can use. The research is based on the input of 3,500 BtB influ-

encers from around the world.

Introduction mattered most to them in server purchasing,

the message of power consumption ranked
You cannot escape the onslaught of green-
eight out of nine choices. Today it is fifth,
driven messaging. Turn the page of any
and even higher in some segments. (See
newspaper, visit any well-known website—
Chart B on page 4.)
it's there. Wherever you stand on the issues
and/or the messages, this onslaught of mar-
The call to “Go Green” is a visceral and
keting is seeping into every area of life.
emotional one for many brands, and the
marketing method has often been far more
Even within the past year, as we were
passion than science. We believe that apply-
tracking green-related messaging, we saw
ing more analysis to our marketing
significant shifts. In 2007, when U.S. busi-
decisions will help generate more rational
ness people were asked which messages

1
 PERCENT
PERCENT OF
OF VARIOUS
VARIOUS MARKETS
MARKETS THAT
THAT VALUE
VALUE A
A GREEN MESSAGE
“GREEN” MESSAGE
IN TECHNOLOGY MARKETING (U.S. MARKETS ONLY)
IN TECHNOLOGY MARKETING, U.S. COMPANIES ONLY

50% 50% 52%

48% 48%
41% 41%
34%
2008 23%
21% 22%
19% 17%
14%
2007
SMALL MID MID ENTER- ENTER- ENTER- TOTAL
BUSINESS MARKET MARKET PRISE PRISE PRISE U.S.
CXO CIO ITM CIO ITM NET MARKET
ADMIN

CHART A SOURCE: Strategic Oxygen GreenFactor Study v1.0, 2008

support, and will further build green
budgets, green programs and potential
changes in green products and services.
This white paper summarizes Strategic
Oxygen's recent GreenFactor research
(v1.0), which compiles the views of BtB
influencers worldwide on issues like who
they see as green leaders, who they believe
should increase their green focus, how like-
ly they are to purchase green technologies
and whether or not they would expect to
pay a premium for those technologies.
This research has also uncovered the per-
ceived and actual barriers to increased
green adoption.
By correlating these attitudes and beliefs
with Strategic Oxygen's INE tool, a brand
can clearly identify where and how to best
communicate with specific targets on
green-related issues.
resources your brand puts toward green ini-
tiatives. If green is about sustainability, so
too should green marketing be—generating
at least enough volume or premiums to pay
for the green marketing programs.
To be or not to be green?
Green marketing is in. And if we believe in
the premise of the green mantra (that we
are all responsible for environmental care),
then there is logically no choice. We must
“go green.” However, securing the
resources to do so, and using them effec-
tively, is difficult. Producing green
marketing is not as easy as putting a leaf on
a PowerPoint template, as one of our clients
jokingly suggested.
There are three ugly issues we must address
in order to get real traction:
only our budgets, but also our customers'
1) the threat of recession tightening not

The intent here is not to solve global warm- budgets;

ing. Instead, we are laying out a simple
framework for maximizing the energy and

2
 2) increased pressure around ROI—again
within our brand and among our cus-
tomers; and
3) a widening set of geographies to reach
and manage.
As brands, we must consider these issues
and ask the right questions before we blind-
ly start sending green messages. While
some brands are well positioned to turn
green marketing into brand sustainability,
for others the chance to charge premium or
improve brand value might be limited.
ASK: IS THERE AN UP-SIDE FOR US?
This must be one of our first questions.
Few brands can afford to allocate valuable
media landscape, product resources or con-
tent-development budgets unless there is
some form of measurable up-side. Why
market to a target who has already stated
he does not expect to pay a premium for
your green technology, or who is not plan-
ning to adopt enough green products to
make the economics viable? The key here
is to find the targets who are open to the
technology and the potential extra cost, and
market there.
WHILE SOME BRANDS ARE WELL
POSITIONED TO TURN GREEN MARKETING
INTO BRAND SUSTAINABILITY, FOR
OTHERS THE CHANCE TO CHARGE A
PREMIUM OR IMPROVE BRAND VALUE
MIGHT BE LIMITED.
ASK: LEAD OR FOLLOW?
Not all brand perceptions are created equal.
If your brand is seen as a leader in the
development of green solutions, you carry
both an advantage and a liability.
Customers are open to you, but they also
expect a lot. If you are not seen as a leader,
3
you will need to seriously consider how
much investment is worthwhile at this time.
ASK: PRODUCTS OR PROMOTIONS?
Often in new categories, pseudo-associa-
tions can be as effective for a brand as
“fundamental” investments. For example,
customers are often confused about the new
rules (i.e., what really constitutes being
green?) and are looking for leadership. At
the early stages of a new construct—like
green—few, if any, brands are capable of
investing in the new, defining products. In
some cases, brands can instead piggy-back
on the movement through marketing com-
munications. In other words, for a time, you
may be potentially proclaiming more green
than your products or services truly offer.
But knowing whether to invest in green
technology or just green marketing
demands a clear understanding of your
brand and your market. It also requires an
understanding of what it will take for your
targets to adopt green technologies.
Knowing how much they might expect to
pay as a “green tax” is critical.
Developing an amazing green product that
nobody knows about—or believes you can
deliver—can be as irresponsible as using
toxic components. Yet, having a marketing
proposition with no weight behind it, espe-
cially if you are a brand that is expected to
deliver actual substance, can be as compro-
mising as a luxury liner without life boats.
In our work around the world, we have
seen how environmental issues are driving
brand decisions and messaging. (See chart
on page 4.) The risks can be high. Think
how costly it would be to carve out 10 per-
cent of your budget for programs that have
virtually unpredictable outcomes. Crazy!
Yet this is the approach many brands have
so far taken to their green marketing.
 The information in this paper should help
you sculpt and justify your marketing
actions, based on:
a) which quadrant of the Green Chart your
brand is in—or how close you are to
what we call the Green Zone (see page
6);
b) whether or not the prime targets for
green technology are influencers you are
comfortable communicating with; and
c) whether you have something substantive
to talk about. By substantive we mean
HOW GLOBAL MARKETS RATE THE
IMPORTANCE OF GREEN MESSAGES
IN TECHNOLOGY MARKETING
OUT OF NINE POSSIBLE MESSAGE CHOICES
CHART B SOURCE: Strategic Oxygen GreenFactor Study v1.0, 2008
4
anything from educating and enabling
targets to understand the value of green
investments to promoting your brand's
technological breakthroughs.
It could be that after doing this informal
assessment, you decide not to allocate sig-
nificant funding toward green marketing at
this time, but instead to wait it out for bet-
ter opportunities.
Find the right customers
(those who are willing to
buy and expecting to pay)
Why push water uphill? If we proclaim the
virtues of green technology and it falls on
deaf ears, then we have acted with poten-
tially noble intent, but have wasted our
communications resources. Or, if those who
listen will neither adopt nor expect to pay a
premium for green technology, we have
been chasing a red herring. Such are the
dilemmas we face as brands.
The GreenFactor research has proven that
there are some simple dynamics to consider.
If a market is willing to adopt green technol-
ogy, we should be offering it. If a market
expects to pay a premium, we should be
charging one. The combination of both of
these factors is the sweet spot—the Green
Zone—that deserves our immediate atten-
tion. Success with this ripe segment could
even justify and fund green investments in
other markets.
The whole world is affected by environ-
mental issues, but we cannot boil the ocean
in an attempt to get improvement every-
where. What CMO has the funding to
launch a complete, global, green marketing
program anyway? By focusing on the suc-
cess quadrant, we can build case studies of
success and generate ROI toward future ini-
tiatives.
 WHICH GLOBAL MARKETS ARE READY FOR GREEN MARKETING

CHART C SOURCE: Strategic Oxygen GreenFactor Study v1.0, 2008

The upper-right quadrant of the chart above

indicates, by geography, which targets THE TRUTH HERE IS THAT WE
expect to pay a premium for—and are open
to adoption of—green products, versus CANNOT ASSUME THAT ALL
markets where premium expectations are MARKETS BEHAVE IN THE
there but high-volume adoption is question- SAME WAY.
able.

The truth here is that we cannot assume that

all markets behave in the same way.

5
 Sitting in the Green Zone: might appear to be arbitrary brands (Google
Asset or liability? and Microsoft). Top-right brands should
take these target perceptions seriously. The
Usually, in a fairly new market category,
expectations are already there.
showing a brand map with top-right
strength and bottom-left weakness can seem
In the quadrant chart below, brands fall into
premature. Targets typically would have ill-
three general areas: the Green Zone in the
formed opinions, not pressure tested by
upper-right circle, the Edge of the Green in
experiences and relevant purchase histories.
the center tan oval and The Masses in the
However, in this situation, targets under-
lower-left quadrant. Obviously, the opportu-
stand the global issues around green, and
nity to elevate a brand's profitability and,
we have seen a very mature ability to mix
potentially, volume will offer itself far more
core brands (Dell, HP, etc.) with what

HOW “GREEN” VARIOUS TECHNOLOGY BRANDS ARE PERCEIVED TO BE

WHERE SPECIFIC BRANDS FALL IN THE “GREEN CHART”
IN THE COUNTRY OF JAPAN
IN THE COUNTRY OF JAPAN
EXPECTED TO BECOME GREEN IN THE FUTURE
FUTURE GREEN

CURRENT GREEN
VIEWED BY TARGETS AS BEING GREEN NOW

CHART D SOURCE: Strategic Oxygen GreenFactor Study v1.0, 2008

6
readily to those in or near the top right than Turning barriers into
the lower left. assets
When asked what is keeping them from
Following are some questions we must ask
adopting green technology, the most com-
if we plan to maximize our current position:
mon answers for business-to-business
influencers worldwide were price and the
THE GREEN ZONE
unproven ROI.
– If we are already in the Green Zone, what
will sustain this position for us? What
A key issue here is that brands have failed
types of communications and offers
to adequately educate targets about the
should we be developing?
value and importance of green technology.
– If we aren't in the Green Zone now but
This new research sends a clear signal to
targets expect us to become more green in
brands: Invest in more—and more believ-
the future, how can we deliver on that
able—educational activities. Committing to
perception?
targeted marketing and highlighting real
– Are the brands close to us partners or
customer success stories will help, as we
foes?
will cover in the next segment,
– Is the market expecting to pay premiums
“Communications as a Weapon.”
on green products? Or are they not ready
for that differentiation yet?
Another thing a brand can do to improve its
– Are we consistent globally? And does that
position in the Green Chart is to recruit
matter?
advocates from within target companies.
This can be tricky. At Strategic Oxygen, our
THE EDGE OF THE GREEN
findings show that the most passionate
– What types of marketing could move us
advocates for green tend to be the most
into the Green Zone?
peripheral to the day-to-day technology
– Are we capable of moving to the Green
purchasing. Line-of-business (LOB) man-
Zone by developing green products
agers are common advocates, as are CXOs
and/or services?
(every C-title position except the CIO). The
– Could we partner with other brands who
secret is to empower LOBs to formally or
are also in the Edge of the Green to mul-
informally include green requirements in
tiply the value of our activities? If so,
their RFPs (especially in the largest enter-
who?
prises) and to encourage CXOs to ratify
– Can we focus on green-believer targets
purchase recommendations only if there is
with whom we already do naturally well,
some sense of green being delivered.
versus shooting blindly? If so, who?

THE MASSES
– Can we differentiate our brand with a
green breakthrough?
– Should we just lie low for a while, espe-
cially if we do not have funds or
products?
– Are we in the Green Zone or on the Edge
of the Green in any other geographies? If
so, can we lead from there?
WHEN BUSINESS-TO-BUSINESS
INFLUENCERS WORLDWIDE
WERE ASKED WHAT IS KEEPING
THEM FROM ADOPTING GREEN
TECHNOLOGY, THE MOST COM-
MON ANSWERS WERE PRICE
AND THE UNPROVEN ROI.

7
WHERE TO RECRUIT GREEN
Having leverage with these advocates is

ADVOCATES
tougher for brands in The Masses segment,

ally a responsibility if they want to sustain

but for brands in the Green Zone, it is virtu-

AMERICAS
HOT HOT their position there.
TARGET TARGET
SIZE ADVOCATES Chart E on the left shows the best compa-
nies to target for recruiting advocates of
BRAZIL 1000+ CIO green—by country—including the number
of employees, and the job title that is most
likely to be supportive of green.
CANADA 1000+ CIO

Communications as a
MEXICO 1000+ IT MANAGER weapon
Strategic Oxygen has produced a global
segmentation of green-is-important targets.
U.S. 100-999 CXO
As we can see from Chart F, there are clear-
ly cross-regional differences. It would be

EMEA
HOT HOT foolish, and naive, to assume that all of
TARGET TARGET these targets share the same communica-
SIZE ADVOCATES
tions needs across the globe. They may all
care about one core issue—green issues—
FRANCE 100-999 CIO but their consumption patterns, and even
their reason for caring about green, can dif-
fer greatly. Our tactics for reaching them
GERMANY 1000+ LOB must, too.

If there is an underlying theme to this white

ITALY 1000+ LOB paper, it is that we cannot deliver the same
green value to—or project green adoption
with—every target in every situation.
U.K. 1000+ LOB
Strategic Oxygen’s toolsets offer brands a
sensible pathway toward profitable invest-
APAC
HOT HOT
TARGET TARGET ments in green communications and
SIZE ADVOCATES therefore encourage further investments. In
addition, Chart G on page 10 identifies key
AUSTRALIA 1000+ CIO messages and actions to take based on a
country’s current stance on green issues.

INDIA 1000+ CIO

JAPAN 1000+ CXO

CHART E SOURCE: Strategic Oxygen GreenFactor Study v1.0, 2008

8
EFFECTIVENESS OF GREEN MESSAGING
WITH KEY MARKETING VEHICLES

US EMEA LA INDIA
DIRECT MAIL MEDIUM

CATALOGS MEDIUM MEDIUM

EMAIL (NEWS/SUB) MEDIUM MEDIUM

DIRECT EMAIL MEDIUM

BUSINESS PRINT/NEWS

TECHNOLOGY PRINT HIGH MEDIUM

INDUSTRY PRINT

CONTENT INSERTS

VENDOR PRINT

WWW.IT FORUM / BLOG MEDIUM

WWW.SEARCH HIGH MEDIUM MEDIUM HIGH

TECHNOLOGY ANALYSTS

WHITE PAPERS HIGH

WWW.ROI TOOLS

WWW.MICROSITES MEDIUM MEDIUM

WWW.BUSINESS PRINT/NEWS MEDIUM

RSS HIGH

WWW.TECHNICAL PRINT HIGH MEDIUM HIGH

WWW.TECHNICAL INFO HIGH MEDIUM

VIRTUAL WORLDS/SECOND LIFE SITES

WWW.GENERAL INTEREST

WWW.VENDOR MEDIUM HIGH

SPONSORED SEMINAR HIGH

TRADE SHOW HIGH

INDUSTRY CONFERENCE

INDUSTRY ASSOCIATION HIGH

VENDOR EVENTS

WEBCASTS

PODCASTS MEDIUM

TV/RADIO MEDIUM MEDIUM

CHART F SOURCE: Strategic Oxygen INE v6.0®

9
HOW TO MARKET TO VARIOUS COUNTRIES BASED ON HOW GREEN THEY ARE

IN THE GREEN ZONE NEEDS CONVINCING LATE ADOPTER

OR ON THE EDGE OF GREEN OF GREEN

Build awareness & consideration of green

Explain ROI of green premium

Build awareness of green

Build awareness & consideration of green

Explain ROI of green premium

Build awareness & consideration of green

Explain ROI of green premium

Wait until proven

elsewhere

Wait until proven

elsewhere

Build awareness of green

Focus big on building awareness

and educating on green

Build consideration of green

Market green offerings with a premium

Find a way to persuade that the

“green” premium is worthwhile
Find a way to persuade that the
“green” premium is worthwhile

CHART G

IF THERE IS AN UNDERLYING
THEME TO THIS WHITE PAPER,
IT IS THAT WE CANNOT
DELIVER THE SAME GREEN
VALUE TO — OR PROJECT THE
SAME ADOPTION WITH — EVERY
TARGET IN EVERY
SITUATION.

10
Recommendations These choices are interconnected by nature
and will have differing outcomes. We must
The flow diagram on page 12 delivers a
realize that targets see a multitude of differ-
simple framework for thinking through
ent brands in the green arena. Some make
green marketing investment strategies.
actual “stuff”—like HP, Dell and Apple—
Remember, no brand can be green or rele-
and therefore have practical ways of being
vant to all targets in all situations.
green. Others—like Google and
Microsoft—are perceived as being quite
Some things to consider:
green even though their products are not
manufactured. This may be because they

be based on building an image of per-

– It may be that your green efforts should
are major brands with an inherent and

ceived green strength. Just the act of

imbedded reputation as leaders.

promoting green might help raise your

While you may discover that now is not yet
status closer to the Green Zone—espe-
the time for your brand to make significant
cially if it is paired with an attempt to
investments in green, it’s crucial to make
educate on the potential ROI of green.
this an informed decision. Not all brands
are entering the green arena on equal foot-
– Your brand may choose to focus its green
ing. Knowing where your brand stands, and
offerings on an organizational commit-
where your targets stand, will make every
ment to green.
dollar you spend on green marketing worth-
while.
– Your brand must be in or around the
Green Zone or on the Edge of the Green
to yield some level of medium-term pay-
off to green marketing. This pay-off could CALL OR EMAIL STRATEGIC
involve an increased association with OXYGEN TO OBTAIN THE
green initiatives and/or the ability to
COMPLETE RESULTS OF THE
charge a premium for green products.
GLOBAL GREENFACTOR V1.0
– Your brand might want to start with RESEARCH. THIS DATA IS
friendlier markets first—those that say
AVAILABLE AT NO COST TO ALL
they will be more and more open to green
technologies as the ROI is proven, and TECHNOLOGY BRANDS (THOSE
those that expect to pay a premium for TRACKED AND THOSE NOT
green products. TRACKED). WE ARE MORE THAN

– If you are savvy about your approach, HAPPY TO SPEND THIRTY

your brand’s green marketing program MINUTES RUNNING THROUGH
could, in many cases, become self fund- THE DECISION TREE (ON PAGE 12)
ing. For example, consider the pay-off if
WITH YOU AND YOUR BRAND.
a five-percent allocation of marketing
dollars toward green promotion enables
us to charge an additional ten-percent pre-
mium for our products.

Today’s technology brands have choices to

make when it comes to how they are going
to respond to the current green momentum.

11
 GREEN MARKETING FLOW CHART

CHART H

12
COPYRIGHT 2008 | STRATEGIC OXYGEN | WWW.STRATEGICOXYGEN.COM | WWW.MONITOR.COM
EDITORIAL CONSULTING, DESIGN & PRODUCTION | JULIE RYBARCZYK | RE-BAR-CHEK@USA.NET
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Strategic Oxygen, a member of the Monitor Group, specializes in making the art of
marketing more scientific. Its marketing-planning tools are produced and used globally.
Based on over 100,000 interviews with technology influencers about their purchasing and
consumption patterns — in markets as diverse as Mexico, Brazil, Russia, India, the PRC
(Tier III/IV) and the classic mature markets — Strategic Oxygen’s patent-pending INE tool
provides valuable insights on sales and marketing strategies. Over the last five years, these
tools have been used to model and plan over $5 billion in sales and marketing activities in
BtC and BtB markets for some of the world’s largest technology brands.

FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT MICHAEL GALE AT MICHAEL@STRATEGICOXYGEN.COM.