Defra report aims for more targeted green messages
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) is urging government departments and private sector businesses to maximise their green marketing efforts by directing the right message to the right audience.
Defra has published a report this week, which is intended to be used by both public and private sector organisations, to ensure that their green marketing messages are tailored to their target markets.
The report, entitled A Framework for Pro-Environmental Behaviours, divides consumers into seven categories, each sharing a distinct set of attitudes and beliefs towards the environment.
The categories include: positive greens, who are strongly committed to sustainable behaviours; waste watchers and concerned consumers, who make some commitment to limiting their environmental impact; sideline supporters and cautious participants, who are concerned about green issues, but have taken little action to limit their impact; and the honestly disengaged, who are either sceptical or indifferent.
Defra says the segmentation model will help policy makers understand how to encourage different groups of people to take action and inform marketing and advertising strategies.
Environment minister Joan Ruddock has also announced that a new grant scheme is being set up to support voluntary organisations that encourage people to adopt a greener lifestyle.
Defra is as yet unable to say how much money will be allocated to this fund or what it will be called, but a spokeswoman says voluntary agencies will be able to apply for funding to communicate messages around greener living in their local communities.
