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Introduction
The environment is where we all meet; where all have a mutual interest; it is the one thing all of us share–Lady Bird Johnson
Environment-related research in general and specifically green marketing issues have become one of the most discussed topics in academia in the past three decades (Coddington, 1993; Hartmann et al., 2005; Kalafatis et al., 1999; Ottman, 1993; Peattie, 1995). Nowadays, consumers have started showing more concern for the environment by choosing eco-friendly products. A study conducted by Neilsen Global survey among the global consumers reports that 56 per cent of the global consumers are willing to pay premium prices for the product/services produced by companies that are known for conducting environmentally friendly business practices. Environmentally friendly business practices refer to sustainable business models adopted by firms intending to achieve long-term social and environmental sustainability (Bocken et al., 2014). Further, the report also mentions that young consumers, especially adopt a more positive approach toward green products, as 72 per cent of the young consumers are willing to buy and even pay more for the products belonging to companies known for conducting environmentally friendly business practices (Nielsen.com, 2015). This shift toward clean/green technology is also increasingly paying off to the investors. In the past seven years, the bonds having strong sustainability attributes have outperformed the bonds having weak sustainability attributes (Financial Times, 2017). Consumers are increasingly preferring green products and services (Borin et al., 2013). Recent reports posit that companies adopting sustainable business model can significantly increase their business savings and revenues (Financial Times, 2017).
Sustainability has become very crucial for organizations that aim to create a competitive advantage in the global marketplace. Consumers’ attitudes and intentions toward green products and services have been widely researched and discussed (Chan and Lau, 2002; Clark et al., 2003; Ha and Janda, 2012; Hartmann and Apaolaza-Ibáñez, 2012; Han and Kim, 2010). Brand positioning has been the center of all brand marketing practices, as the marketers invest a significant amount of money to create suitable brand images in the target customers’ minds (Bhat and Reddy, 1998). Brand positioning is primarily about “the place a brand occupies in the mind of its target audience” (Ionut et al., 2011) as it helps...