Earth Day Reality Check: Consumers 'Clueless' About Home Energy Environmental Impact Despite Rising Green Affinity

KNOXVILLE, Tenn., April 8, 2008 /PRNewswire/ -- As environmental action enters the spotlight this 38th annual Earth Day on April 22, 2008, a national study shows that consumers remain largely "clueless" about residential energy use impacting greenhouse gas emissions -- despite a vast U.S. marketing movement toward green affinity and awareness in recent years.

According to Energy Pulse(R), a national survey conducted annually since 2005 on consumer attitudes toward energy and green product marketability, Americans hold critical misperceptions about where residential energy comes from and how it emits greenhouse gases:

    -- Two-thirds of consumers do not know that nearly half of all electricity
       (48 percent) is produced by burning coal.
    -- Less than four percent of consumers name coal-fired electricity
       production as the most prominent man-made contributor to climate
       issues. (The reality: electricity generation accounts for 41 percent of
       CO2, or nearly one-third -- 32.8 percent -- of all greenhouse gases.)
    -- Nineteen percent of consumers think that hydroelectric generation is
       the number one source of electricity. (The reality: the U.S. Energy
       Information Administration cites that hydro is the source of only three
       percent of U.S. electricity).
    -- Nearly 30 percent of consumers think car and truck emissions present
       the worst man-made cause of global warming / climate change. (The
       reality: personal vehicles account for only 15.7 percent of all
       greenhouse gas emissions.)

"People hop in their cars feeling guilty about their tailpipes but are completely oblivious to the lights they left turned on at the house or that their thermostat was left at 65 degrees in the middle of August," said CEO Suzanne Shelton of Shelton Group, founder of the Energy Pulse study.

"Apart from survey data, we have found through focus groups nationwide that consumers simply don't have the facts straight about how energy generation for buildings we live and work in contribute to greenhouse gases," Shelton said.

According to Shelton, advertisers must factor in the consumer awareness void when promoting energy-efficient or sustainable products and services, since awareness is fundamental toward motivating behavior changes, including purchasing shifts toward green products.

"If consumers don't understand how their long-held energy use behaviors are causing a problem, they aren't going to be nearly as motivated to adopt new green choices, particularly in these economic times when most people's first priority is saving money," Shelton said.

"Way too many marketers are pitching consumers on the idea of 'green for the sake of green,' which is not only quickly evolving into a wishy-washy, ineffective message but it's also at the crux of the whole 'greenwashing' consumer backlash that's well-documented at this point," said Shelton, whose Energy Pulse data cites widespread consumer skepticism toward green messages.

Shelton encourages companies to avoid "a knee-jerk approach" in crafting green marketing campaigns and to do enough independent research of their customer base's true awareness levels and motivational factors before "unleashing a meaningless, mass-green message."

Shelton Group will release in spring 2008 a new study in addition to its fourth annual Energy Pulse 2008 study this fall. Eco Pulse 2008, expected to be released this June, will explore in-depth a wide range of elements influencing the effectiveness of green and sustainable product marketing, apart from energy use issues analyzed in the Energy Pulse study.

Established in 1991 and based in Knoxville, Tenn., Shelton Group is a full-service marketing firm specializing in taking energy-efficient and green products and services to market, with accounts that include BP Solar, Vectren Energy, the American Institute of Architects and Knauf Insulation.

                  www.energypulse.org and www.sheltoncom.com

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