Green Marketing

A Case Study of the Sub-Industry in Turkey

A. Kirgiz

• Publisher: Palgrave Pivot
• Year: 2016
• ISBN:
  9781137535894
• Topic: Business
• Subtopic: Marketing
• Index: Business

Green Marketing examines the concept of 'Green Marketing' using examples from Turkey and the rest of the world. The book examines Sa-ba Inc. as a case study which is among the pioneering enterprises in Turket's automative sub-industy and its green marketing strategies.

1

Sustainable Green Marketing

Abstract: Green business administration means focusing on alternatives that will cause the least harm to the ecological balance, or even eliminate such damage completely, by selecting subcontractors and suppliers that are ecologically minded. In this chapter, the traditional discipline of marketing has been restructured to make it more sensitive to the environment and as a result, the concept of green marketing has emerged. Besides, the green marketing strategies are examined conceptually, and examples from Turkey are given in the broader global context.

Keywords: green marketing; green marketing strategies; green pressure

Kirgiz, Ayca Can. Green Marketing: A Case Study of the Sub-Industry in Turkey. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan, 2016. DOI: 10.1057/9781137535894.0008.

1.1An overview of the green marketing concept

Green marketing is perceived by many to be a means of promotion or advertisement used in the marketing of products made in an environmentally sensitive manner. Consumers usually associate terms such as GDO-free, recyclable, ozone layer friendly and environmentally friendly with green marketing. In fact, even though these terms are related to green marketing, it is a much more comprehensive concept that is used for consumption goods, industrial products and even services. Green marketing includes products, processes of production, packaging, pricing, supply, logistics and promotional activities (Polonsky, 1995, 29).

This concept is referred to in various ways in the terminology, such as environmental marketing, nature-friendly marketing and ecological marketing. By the time it became popularly known in the 1980s and early 1990s, green marketing had already been established in the field. The American Marketing Association (AMA) published its first study about ecological marketing in 1975. The reports in that study facilitated the publication of the book Ecological Marketing, the first in its field, following which many books on the topic have been published. Green marketing has been defined by the AMA as “the marketing of products that are presumed to be environmentally safe.” In addition, it states that it is the “development and marketing of products designed to minimize negative effects on the physical environment or to improve its quality” (http://www.marketingpower.com/_layouts/Dictionary.aspx?dLetter=G).

According to another definition, green marketing is a “kind of exchange of activities developed in order to satisfy the demands and needs of people and it is a kind of marketing ensuring that this performance [is carried out] in a manner causing minimum damage to the natural environment while meeting these needs and demands” (Polonsky, 1995, 30). In this way, it can be seen that green marketing is related both to activities seeking to satisfy human demands and needs as well as those that benefit businesses in the process. In short, it involves a mutual exchange in which activities that are harmful for the natural environment are minimized. Green marketing has also been defined as “activities which are planned, created and designed in order to meet changing human needs and demands as causing minimum damage to the environment” (Grove, Fisk, Pickett and Kangun, 1996, 57).

Green marketing, which is based on respecting and protecting nature, all forms of life and the integrity of society, is grounded on the efficient utilization of limited natural sources without creating new areas of consumption. The focus is on ensuring and maintaining the natural balance while keeping energy consumption at the lowest levels possible, and it does not encourage the production of disposable products. Green marketing seeks out alternatives that eliminate environmental pollution created by industry, promotes the use of environmentally friendly products, keeps packaging processes to a minimum and encourages awareness of recycling in society.

Green marketing is actually a part of detailed business strategies (Prakash, 2002, 285). When it is used in conjunction with traditional marketing mix (goods, products, price and promotion), it needs being understood of processes concerning the public order. However, green marketing is related to the industrial ecology and environmental sustainability issues such as extended producer responsibility, life cycle analyses, material usage, source flow and eco-efficiency. Therefore, it can be said that green marketing is closely related both to business strategies and public order. Business entities can make themselves green through three ways: value addition process (at company level), management systems (at company level) and their products (at product level).

Upon enhancement of social and political pressures, enterprises have headed to produce green products, to implement production technologies and methods that will control and prevent wastes and pollution, to make designs and packaging that consume less sources and studies that make the recycling possible in order to prevent environmental pollution, decrease wastes, even eradicate them. Enterprises’ managing marketing studies for the purpose of identification of green markets and offering green products appropriate to desires of consumers in these markets will provide important acquisitions in terms of creation of new opportunities, efficiency of resources and, most importantly, fulfillment of social responsibilities. While consumers demand innovation, quality and products equipped with technological superiorities, on the one hand, they also expect environmentally sensitive efforts from enterprises on the other hand (Ay and Ecevit, 2005, 238). For this reason green marketing applications have become quite important for enterprises.

Human beings have limited resources on earth to meet their limitless desires. In the event of using these resources inefficiently in line with the desires, one day resources will be consumed away and much greater problems may occur. Therefore, human beings’ using their free choice right for the products and services least damaging the resources will be at their own benefit. Companies also must develop methods and strategies that least damage these resources to meet the unlimited needs of consumers because we have limited natural resources. Green marketing takes care how marketing activities handle these limited resources as to ensure both sides reach to their objectives while meeting the desires of consumers and enterprises.

The following items can be listed among the essential reasons of the enterprises to give importance to the studies related to green marketing (Polonsky, 2005, 31):

seeing green marketing as an opportunity to reach their goals;

using their environment-related activities as a pressure element on other companies being rivaled;

the parties’ collaboration in the reduction of wastes;

being aware of the cost-lowering effects such as effective use of resources and recycling studies;

believing that they boost their morals by showing sensitivity to the environmental issues,

the obligations for complying with rules and practices about the environment of various institutions along with the central and local administrations.

1.2What are the stages of green marketing?

Green marketing is related to products and services aiming to protect environment. However, this concept is not only comprised of naturally friendly product design. This concept, which covering a fairly wide process, also covers the green production and sales, market research strategies, marketing mix, production technologies and product packaging, consumption, disposal and the states after turning in wastes (Uydacı, 2011, 140).

There are four stages of green marketing (Warner, 1996, 3225). While some enterprises pass these stages one by one, some start from any of these stages. An enterprise that has adopted environmentally friendly production as a principle will leave behind the first and second stages. Because neither it has produced until now nor will produce a product damaging the environment. The first stage is green targeting. At this stage the production of green products is considered for environmentalist consumers. In addition, the enterprise continues to produce nongreen products. The second stage is the development of green strategies. At this stage, the production of green and nongreen products continues. In the meantime, the enterprise starts to develop strategies inclined to the environment and tries to identify environmental policies. Environmental measures are taken in the enterprise. For example, to advance, to improve energy and efficiency and generate less wastes. The third stage is environmental orientation. The production of nongreen products stops. Only the products in green classification are produced. Products are continuously renewed so as to ensure compliance with new environmental requirements, are adapted to current conditions. The enterprise devotes itself completely to the production of green products. At the last stage, the enterprise appears as a socially responsible organization. In this case the enterprise isn’t only engaged in green issues, but at the same time deals with current social matters such as equality of opportunity and minimum wage policies. In this stage, the green developments are in the status of being a part of social responsibility.

The enterprises’ passing to “green” status is also dependent on the intercompany criteria. These criteria are: to what extent the implemented programs reduce the risks on the environment, fund allocation, general views of managers, senior management’s involvement with the green issues and the support it provides, development of programs for the environment, integration for the enterprise, informing the senior management at every stage and the principles of the information (Uydacı, 2005, 140–141).

1.3What are the green marketing strategies?

Today many companies are seeking out ways to be both green and profitable. Some are trying to develop a green image, while others have been unable to maintain long-term activities that support their claims of being green. In particular, some companies have attempted to demonstrate that they are sensitive to environmental problems but haven’t made serious efforts to make their products more environmentally friendly, and this has made consumers suspicious about the “green marketing trend.” This is the result of an understanding of green marketing that can best be defined as opportunist and tactical, and unfortunately this has had a negative impact on the development of activities that are truly sensitive to the environment in the long run. However, this shouldn’t mean that tactical marketing activities are simply “wrong.” Companies have come to realize that marketing tactics will provide benefits for only a short period of time and that to achieve long-term benefits it is necessary to organizationally implement green marketing in a broader sense. To yield successful results, it must be perceived as a component of the “cultural fabric” that constitutes the organizational structure and connects organizations with one another. Such a company spirit is a reflection of organizational strategies and is revealed in the tactical implementation of strategies. This shift in the general viewpoint of a company will help it acquire the distinction of being an environmentally aware entrepreneurial entity and thus will provide sustainable competitiveness teeming with new opportunities.

The green marketing has been included in different dimensions into the marketing strategies of companies. Some implementations observed most commonly are as given here:

Repositioning without making any change in the contents of existing products.

Changing the features of existing products as being compatible with the environment and being less harmful.

Changing the culture of the entire institution taking into consideration the environment factor in all of the marketing activities.

Establishment of new companies that produce only green products and target the green consumer mass in the market.

Today, the framework of marketing has been expanded to cover the environmental dimension, and the enterprises have begun to implement green marketing intensely. The environmental understanding has a significant effect on the product development processes in many industrial areas. Green marketing is a long process that begins from the design stage of the product, continues at the production stage and highlights how it will disappear at the end of its life. This process also has a fairly important impact on the marketing mix elements. Enterprises are developing strategies that will bring the environment, human health and respect to the right to life of animal/plant into the forefront by taking into consideration the consumer typologies mentioned in Tables 1.1 and 1.2, and the...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Title
• 1  Sustainable Green Marketing
• 2  Green Marketing Mix
• 3  Green Consumers and Marketing
• 4  Automotive Sub-Industry in Turkey
• 5  A Case Study from Turkey: Sa-ba
• References
• Index