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Consumers Opportunities of and Interest in Purchasing Green Electronic Products

4 Focus group interviews with consumers

The project organised two focus group meetings of consumers - one in Copenhagen and one in Herning. Participants had completed the previously described questionnaire on electronic products and the environment. The participants were then selected on the basis of the segment they belong to, once the segmenting analysis was done. The project wanted to interview consumers that are neither very conscious nor very sceptical about the environment, i.e. the middle group in terms of environmental consciousness. For this reason the interviewees were selected from the categories “the accessible” or “ the convertible”.

The purpose of the focus group meetings was:

1. to gain insight into consumer behaviour when they buy electronic products
2. to gain insight into consumer attitudes to green electronic products
3. to gain insight into consumer wishes for eco-labelling of electronic products

The meetings ran for 2.5 hours with about one hour earmarked for discussing general experience in posing requirements about the environment and energy consumption, knowledge on environmental matters as well as retailers’ and shop assistants’ ability to provide information. After a break, the group spent an hour on discussing strengths and weaknesses of various eco-labels/declarations.

Participants at both meetings were very involved in the discussions, showing a keen interest in debating the issues.

In the following analysis, the results of the two focus group meetings are collated into one analysis, as the attitudes and statements expressed at the two meetings were highly uniform. When the analysis refers to attitudes or statements mentioned in only one of the groups, a note follows in parentheses.

The focus group meeting in Herning numbered 9 consumers with these profiles:

Woman, 47, home helper and trained sandwich maid
Woman, 23, customer advisor
Woman, 53, social educator
Man, 42, landscape architect
Man, 71, pensioner, former plant foreman
Man, 53, registrar, MA
Man, 52, teacher and assistant principal
Man, 42, IT consultant
Man, 54, plumber

The focus group meeting in Copenhagen numbered 8 consumers with these profiles:

Woman, 30, student of medicine
Woman, 37, sociologist and project manager
Woman, 65, voluntary early retiree
Woman, 66, pensioner
Man, 32, systems consultant (IT), M. Sc. (elect. eng.)
Man, 34, technical consultant
Man, 48, senior postman
Man, 53, unemployed mechanic

Both meetings lacked representation of young people aged 15-24, the reason being that participants were selected from among the consumers who filled in the questionnaire. Only one of the 17 consumers in the focus group was aged 15-24.

4.1 How are electronic products bought?

All participants in the focus group meetings had bought one or more electronic products in recent years. Most of them prepare their purchase thoroughly, e.g. collect information from consumer and test magazines and compare capability and prices. Several participants said that they read “Tænk og Test” at their workplaces. Other information tools include product brochures and retailers’ and shop assistants’ information. The extent of preparation also depends on the product price:

“The more expensive a product I’m buying, the more I go into details before the purchase. If the product is less expensive, e.g. a video recorder I bought costing DKK 1,000, it’s not as important. That won’t make a significant impact on the family’s finances.”

Several participants say that a buy can be very spontaneous, especially if the product is on sale. In such cases, alternatives are not studied; the buy is made on the spot.

The participants have differing opinions about when a broken product should be replaced and how much time should be spent on surveying the market. One family lived without stereo equipment for a year, others buy a new one on the day the old one breaks down. Thus, consumers’ endurance for not having a functioning product sets the framework for their information seeking.

Consumers express poor trust in shop assistants’ abilities. “Shop assistants say what consumers want to hear” is the verdict. They know nothing about the environment and energy. If consumers ask questions about aspects the

Another problem lies in obtaining contact with a shop assistant. Consumers would like shop assistants to be better prepared to give consumer guidance in purchasing of electronic products. This is true for both general technical information and information on the environment.

4.2 What is important in the choice of electronic products?

All participants say that the price greatly decides which product they buy. Several participants underline that the brand is important to them. This is equally true for purchase of both PCs, televisions and mobile phones. Further, several participants explain that through the years, design has become more important to them, and that they are ready to pay more for a nice design. This is especially true for products put in living rooms, i.e. televisions and stereo equipment. Thus, design is not as important for purchase of PCs and accessories.

The vast majority of participants are prepared to pay more for a product that looks good in their view. Even though they claim that the price is decisive, they are still willing to pay more, both for brand and for design.

4.2.1 Environmental requirements for purchasing electronic products

The environment is not an aspect that the interviewed consumers consider greatly in purchasing situations.

“I must admit that even though I make environmental requirements in many other spheres, I don’t give it any thought when I buy such electronic products. But I would be prepared to do so if the environment was a point of focus.”

Energy is the environment-related criterion capturing the participants greatest attention. Participants describe it more as a form of attention expressed when they use the appliances at home than attention they focus on a purchasing situation. Many switch off power to the appliances at the outlet to save on stand-by energy consumption. One participant always switches off power to the PC at the outlet, because the display cannot be completely switched off; another always switches off television and stereo equipment at the outlet. A third participant explains that the retailer told him video recorders must never be switched off at the outlet. On the other hand, he is one of the few participants who consciously considered the environment in purchasing the product.

The participants say their behaviour has been influenced by the campaign to lower stand-by energy consumption. All participants noticed the campaign, but none of them have seen the Energy Arrow in the shops or on any products, even though they know the label from the campaign. In general, consumers experience information on power consumption as being difficult to obtain, and that other parameters quickly come to dominate the purchasing situation.

“The last television I bought uses 4 Watts in stand-by mode compared to the old TV, which used about 2 Watts. I was aware of the difference, but then again I didn’t care, because I wanted the good sound rendition in the TV, and that costs energy.”

Participants agree that the attention paid to energy consumption is rooted in the possibility of saving money. When, on the other hand, it comes to paying more for taking environmental considerations, the participants are much less willing.

“All of us who are getting older and have a financial surplus can certainly make environmental demands and pay a little extra for products. It’s easy for us to brag. But all the young people can’t afford the extra cost of products, so I don’t believe it’s that usual to do something extra for the environment. It’s too expensive.”

As to disposal of electronic products, several participants have experience in disposing of electronic products scrap from their places of work. The large volumes handled there have helped them see the problem, and many of them mention how this has made them consider the massive amounts that must also be flowing out of homes. One participant explains how an advert for recyclable PCs showing mountains of electronic products scrap made her aware of the problem.

In both groups, the participants suggest the introduction of a scrapping reward for electronic products, similar to the one used for cars. Participants suggest amounts in the range of DKK 50-100, which might spur consumers to return appliances to the retailers. This would ensure increased recycling.

In this debate, several consumers questioned whether an environmental problem even exists in relation to the scrapped PCs.

Durability and lifetime are aspects carrying great importance, and participants underline that long durability is also significant to the environment. Several participants mention that they do not mind paying a little extra for good quality or for a product that lasts longer. This is also the argument used in favour of buying products with a “real” design.

The participants also describe how people help each other to ensure a longer lifetime for an appliance. When an appliance breaks down or needs upgrading, owners enlist the help of colleagues or friend having either the expertise or the necessary spare parts. The Herning group, especially mentions this aspect, while it is not mentioned in Copenhagen.

Other than the aspects cited - energy, disposal and lifetime - the consumers have considered no other environmental aspects of electronic products. One participant mentioned that through his work as a safety representative he knows that many chemical substances may evaporate from PCs, thus representing a hazard to health and safety.

All participants call for more information on the environmental load of electronic products. This is true for information through both retailers and other channels.

“It’s very confusing to be a consumer. There’re so many things to consider and not even the authorities are completely sure how dangerous it is. And when we’re talking about products made at the other end of the world, it becomes really difficult.”

Both groups mention the significance of critical consumer information on products, e.g. the information on rainwear made from PVC, which has just persuaded several retailers to withdraw it from the market. Participants believe that critical consumer television shows are important for consumers, retailers and producers, and they see them as a way of regulating the hazardous products on the market.

One participant mentions that for consumers to become interested, they need to benefit directly. It could be a “here and now effect”, e.g. lowered energy consumption, or a health effect.

The participants discussed in detail what it would take to make consumers environmental-conscious in this area. One participant believes that if Denmark wants a consumer response in a specific area, we must have what was described as “a general no-no”. The purchase must be one the neighbours look down on, and the environmental benefit should appeal to a collective sense of conscience. Otherwise, it will not work.

4.2.2 View of own influence

Participants in the Herning group all agreed that environmental requirements had to come from the consumers. They believed that consumers have great influence on what can be bought in shops and can be instrumental in influencing producers. Retailers just have to become aware that there is a market for such products.

The Copenhagen group was more sceptical. Several of them believed that any health-impairing substances should be banned. Many from this group supported a solution calling for bans and state regulation. They did not believe that consumers could realise such a task through political consumption, because the consequences of various chemical substances in production, use and disposal are impossible to grasp.

4.3 Consumer wishes for environmental information

At the meetings, the focus group participants were shown four examples of labels used in the environment and energy sector.

1. The official eco-labels, the Swan and the Flower
2. The Energy Arrow
3. Proposal of simple environmental declaration (from the Danish EPA work report no. 16, 2001).
4. The A label scheme for household appliances 

As agreed with the Danish IT Industry Association, its environmental declaration was not discussed at the focus group meetings, since it is not targeted at private consumers.

4.3.1 Attitudes to a simple environmental declaration

The groups were very supportive of and interested in the simple environmental declaration, which was exactly what many of them wanted: Short informative and relevant data on the environmental qualities of a product. The environmental declaration was seen as a good alternative to the eco-labels, which many found too superficial in their communication, as consumers were not told on what the labels are based.

One critical comment stated that it was difficult to prioritise the five information categories in the simple declaration. How should halogenated compounds be weighted compared to reuse? Consumers may find it difficult to relate to words they can hardly pronounce and whose meaning is beyond them.

Others believed that the strength of the declaration was that consumers could on their own weight the aspect most important to them.

There was broad consensus that the environmental declaration should contain a maximum of five data categories, or it would become pointless.

As to the selection of criteria, another participant said:

“It’s important that we don’t overdo anything. We need to select the aspects that actually have major environmental impacts. Not all those things that are used in small amounts.”

Both focus groups put forward suggestions to combine environmental declarations with colour codes or the A scheme, so that consumers wanting the simplified statements can still find them in the declaration. If data were placed in an interval, e.g. category A or B, the consumer could easily see where the product stands compared to other similar products.

“It must be very simple for the consumer to understand it. It should be designed as an icon or something with a colour scheme. Something very easy to understand and very simple.”

Even though the groups were very interested in the environmental declaration, many saw it as an overriding problem if the scheme was unverified by the authorities. For most participants, this verification is so important that they would prefer a verified eco-label, even though the environmental declaration design was rated highly.

4.3.2 Attitudes to eco-labels

All participants were familiar with the Swan label but not the Flower.

Irrespective of authority verification or not, some consumers were not in favour of an environmental declaration; they would prefer the yes/no information inherent in an eco-label. Consumers already find it very complicated to buy electronic products, so the environmental considerations should be as easy to comprehend as possible. Other participants argued that we should use the schemes already existing and not constantly invent new labels.

Others criticised the fact that as consumers we do not know what we are getting for our money when we buy Swan-labelled products. How do they differ from conventional products? Participants suggested that producers could provide information on this aspect, e.g. with the user manuals and other loads of paper that normally come with an electronic product.

Another type of information suggested by both groups was the idea of attaching a small, short brochure to the product together with the eco-label. That would allow the interested consumer to study the brochure in connection with the purchase and use it to supplement the eco-label.

The information accompanying the eco-label would allow the consumer to find out about environmental aspects prior to the purchase and enable the environmental advantages to figure in the purchasing decision - in contrast to the previously mentioned information in the user manual, which would help the consumer after the purchase.

The participants mentioned that the detailed information could be used for eco-labelled, energy-labelled and environmentally declared products.

Today it is a problem that producers have to wait to obtain the eco-label, because then consumers cannot always buy the latest product on the market. This prompted the question of how much this means to the consumer. There were no unambiguous answers. Some believed that they would not choose eco-labelled products if they were not the latest model, but others never bought the latest product anyway, and it would make no difference to them. The participants for whom the latest model did not matter outnumbered the others.

As to price, the groups discussed how much more participants would be prepared to pay for eco-labelled products, e.g. with the Swan. For purchases around DKK 3,000, one participant mentioned DKK 100-200 as a reasonable extra price, and the other participants agreed. In addition, participants mentioned that a single parameter cannot be viewed separately from the other product quality parameters, e.g. function and technology, which all agreed would probably determine the choice of product in the end.

Participants underlined the advantage of eco-labels attached to the product, since that would both provide a signal and convey symbolic values to the consumers after the purchase.

“You have to be proud of buying eco-labelled products. The label should be attached to the video recorder front, so that everyone can see you’ve considered the environment. It must be trendy like organic food. But we probably need a big change of attitudes compared to today, where nobody thinks about the environment when they buy such things.”

4.3.3 Attitudes to energy labels

All participants knew the A-label scheme, and many of them had tried to buy A-labelled products. The participants’ attitudes to energy-label schemes are that energy is a very interesting aspect to consumers, because they see subsequent savings on their power bills. But participants would like information on other environmental impacts of a product.

“We don’t know what’s behind the A label. And a fridge may be made from all kinds of harmful substances. There’s no information about that.”

As to the mandatory element of the A label scheme, the participants agreed that it boosts consumers’ possibility of using the label when the scheme is mandatory. They believe that a scheme where information can be compared will function best if most products on the market carry the label. Nobody believed that the producers would use an eco-label or an environmental declaration voluntarily.

The Energy Arrow
Almost all participants had seen the Energy Arrow in the television campaign. As to the penetration of the Energy Arrow, the groups agreed unanimously that the Energy Arrow is not displayed prominently enough in shops. No one had seen it on any product but only knew it from campaigns. Again, the groups underlined the importance of finding it on all or most products, if consumers are to use it for choosing between several products.

The participants had many questions about the Energy Arrow. Does it cover both the stand-by and the operational consumption? Which products can use the arrow? The general attitude was that the label was too simplified. The participants liked the A-label scheme better, because it puts the products in categories.

The groups suggested that a campaign subsidy be given to low energy-consuming PCs similar to the campaign for A-labelled fridges, where consumers got a DKK 500 discount on A-labelled products.

4.3.4 Attitudes to verification of eco-labels

Participants consider it a must that the authorities or an independent body verify the label scheme used. In general, the participants had no trust in the producers’ information, unless it was verified by another body. However, one participant stated that producers dare not cheat, “just think what would happen if the consumer programmes caught them red-handed”. However, the groups did not agree on this, as several believed that it would be difficult for others to verify how much of a product can be reused.

If the choice stands between a non-verified environmental declaration or a verified eco-label, the participants would prefer the verified eco-label. Thus, the verification requirement is more essential than the information design, even though the design of the simplified environmental declaration gained support.

Sub-conclusion
Consumers explain that the price is decisive when they purchase electronic products, but even so they are willing to pay a higher price for a given brand and a good design. Since consumers have enough financial latitude to prioritise design and brand, there is hope that environmental aspects can also become a conscious quality parameter for consumers. Participants explain that several aspects can motivate a purchase of “green” electronic products.

Environmental considerations are quality: The environmental considerations of a product represent a quality parameter to consumers. It may be either an actual quality or a symbolic quality - the awareness of making a difference.

Environmental considerations as risk minimisation: By avoiding chemical substances, consumers also protect themselves. A few consumers mention the health aspect as their motive for taking environmental considerations. In the focus group debates, other consumers mention that if they had more knowledge on the subject, they would do more to avoid chemical substances (e.g. brominated flame retardants) because of the evaporation risk.

Environmental considerations as good business: Consumers are very aware of energy concerns. Many participants are prepared to pay more for products consuming less energy, as they expect savings on the power bill in return.

Consumers want information
Consumers want verifiable schemes. They do not believe that producers’ information will be correct, if a given scheme is unverified.

The design of a simple environmental declaration gained widespread support, but consumers view non-verification of the scheme as a major obstacle. In that case, consumers would prefer a verified eco-label.

Participants suggested that consumers be given more environmental information than is contained in just a label or simple declaration. Either as a small brochure attached to the product or as an element of the product instruction material. Or both.

In addition, participants suggested giving campaign subsidies to eco-labelled or energy-labelled electronic products - similar to the subsidy offered to consumers purchasing A-labelled fridges in 1998.

Finally, the participants suggested the introduction of a scrapping reward of electronic products similar to the one used for cars. Participants suggested amounts in the range of DKK 50-100, which might spur consumers to return appliances to the retailers. This would ensure increased recycling.

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