A Report

On

GREEN MARKETING IN INDIA

Presented for Seminar on Contemporary Issue

Submitted in partial fulfillment for the award of degree of MBA

2010-12

Management and Commerce Institute of Global Synergy, Ajmer

(Approved by AICTE, affiliated to RTU Kota)

Submitted to:

Ms Savita Panwar

Lecturer

Submitted by:

Beenu Sharma

M.B.A Part I

GREEN MARKETING IN INDIA

PREFACE

The growing thrust of different economies on environment protection, energy conservation and

ecological balance, has motivated businesses around the world to adopt an environment friendly

business model. In such a scenario terms like environmental marketing or green Marketing are a

common parlance. Green marketing is a term used to describe any marketing message that

flaunts a company’s use of ecologically safer products or processes, including recyclable and

biodegradable packaging, energy-efficient operations and better pollution controls. It

incorporates a broad range of activities, including product modification, changes to the

production process, packaging changes, as well as modified advertising.

This report tries to throw some light on green marketing and its impact on various areas. The

main objective of this project is to learn about the concept of “green marketing” and to get the

knowledge of change in marketing and study helped in providing change in market information

that can be beneficial both personally and professionally.

Although utmost care has been taken in incorporating the data, there might be some loopholes in

the report which I hope will be forgiving by the reader.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

I owe thanks to a great many people who helped and supported me during the writing of this

report.

I owe my deepest thanks to Ma’am Savita Panwar for guiding and correcting various documents

of mine with great attention and care.

She has taken pain to go through the project and make necessary correction as and when

needed.

I express my thanks to the Principal of, Management & Commerce Institute of Global Synergy,

for extending his support.

I would also thank my Institution and my faculty members without whom this report would have

been a distant reality. I also extend my heartfelt thanks to my family and well wishers.

Date:

Place: Ajmer

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

The topic for my internship project is green marketing and the organizational objectives.. Green

or Environmental Marketing

Consists of all activities designed to generate and facilitate any exchanges intended to satisfy

human needs, such that satisfaction of these needs and wants occur, with minimal detrimental

impact on the natural environment.

Secondary data was gathered from the company documents, books, internet sites, articles and

journals on green marketing. With the help of the primary and secondary data so collected,

along with the various statistical tools, an analysis will be performed. These tools provided a

water tight conclusion for the case so framed

The analysis that was performed clearly revealed that green marketing is capable of benefiting

the organization, economy and the environment despite its long gestation period. Increased fund,

imparting knowledge to farmers, good irrigation facilities – a combination of these can help in

improving the agriculture sector. Maximum threat to the environment is posed by improper

waste disposal, automobiles and vehicles and manufacturing units. However adoption of green

marketing can definitely contribute to the protection of the environment.

The organization may try and create more awareness about the benefits of herbal and neem

based products as compared to the harmful chemicals that are used for the same purpose.

Biotechnology is a relatively new field with very few organizations indulging in the same. Thus

the firm should organize and strategize all its activities keeping in mind the newness of

biotechnology and the benefits it is capable of offering

TABLE OF CONTENTSContents Pg. No.

Preface

AcknowledgementExecutive SummaryChapter 1: Introduction of green marketing

1.1 Introduction

1.2 Definition

1.3 Evolution of Green Marketing

Chapter2: Importance of Green Marketing2.1 Importance of Green Marketing:

2.2 Need of Green Marketing

2.3 Challenges in Green Marketing

2.4 Benefits of Green Marketing

2.5 Problems with Green Marketing

2.6 Suggested solution

Chapter 3: NEW CONCEPT OF GREEN MARKETING

3.1Golden Rules of Green Marketing

3.2Indian and Eco-Labeling/eco mark

3.3India and green marketing

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Chapter4: Top 10 green Indian companies

4.1 Top 10 green Indian companies4.2 Other 15Big companies that going with Green

4.3 Some Cases

Chapter5:PRESENT TRENDS

5.1PRESENT TRENDS IN GREEN MARKETING IN INDIA

5.2Green Strategy Formulation

5.3 life stage of product

Chapter 6: Conclusions and Future6.1 Future6.2 Conclusions

Bibliography

Introduction of

Green marketing in India

Introduction

“Green marketing is a golden goose”.

People around the world are becoming more aware of the environmental stresses humans are

placing on the planet. Newspapers, magazines, television and other media feature wide coverage

of environmental problems, whether they are local (e.g., depleted fisheries and air pollution) or

global (e.g., ozone depletion and climate change).Many consumers now display concern about

environmental deterioration. Increasingly often they ask how much impact a product will have

on the environment during its lifespan or during disposal. This is the major impetus for green

products and green marketing. A closely related reason is the competitive advantage or sales

potential that some corporations now see in green products. Green marketing is an attempt to

characterize a product as being environmentally friendly. In general green product are made

from recycled content and/or designed for reuse, recycling, or remanufacturing. They are

usually non-toxic, energy efficient, and durable. However, green is a relative term and depends

on the individual situation.

Green marketing can be defined as, "All activities designed to generate and facilitate any

exchange intended to satisfy human needs or wants such that satisfying of these needs and

wants occur with minimal detrimental input on the national environment."

Green marketing involves developing and promoting products and services that satisfy

customers want and need for Quality, Performance, Affordable Pricing and Convenience

without having a detrimental input on the environment.

Definition

According to the American Marketing Association, green marketing is the marketing of

products that are presumed to be environmentally safe. Thus green marketing incorporates a

broad range of activities, including product modification, changes to the production process,

packaging changes, as well as modifying advertising. Yet defining green marketing is not a

simple task where several meanings intersect and contradict each other; an example of this will

be the existence of varying social, environmental and retail definitions attached to this term.

Other similar terms used are Environmental Marketing and Ecological Marketing.

The obvious assumption of green marketing is that potential consumers will view a product or

service's "greenness" as a benefit and base their buying decision accordingly. The not-so-

obvious assumption of green marketing is that consumers will be willing to pay more for green

products than they would for a less-green comparable alternative product - an assumption that,

in my opinion, has not been proven conclusively.

While green marketing is growing greatly as increasing numbers of consumers are willing to

back their environmental consciousnesses with their dollars, it can be dangerous. The public

tends to be skeptical of green claims to begin with and companies can seriously damage their

brands and their sales if a green claim is discovered to be false or contradicted by a company's

other products or practices. Presenting a product or service as green when it's not is called

green washing

Evolution of Green Marketing

The green marketing has evolved over a period of time. According to Peattie (2001), the

evolution of green marketing has three phases. First phase was termed as "Ecological" green

marketing, and during this period all marketing activities were concerned to help environment

problems and provide remedies for environmental problems. Second phase was

"Environmental" green marketing and the focus shifted on clean technology that involved

designing of innovative new products, which take care of pollution and waste issues. Third phase

was "Sustainable" green marketing. It came into prominence in the late 1990s and early 2000.

Constantly Refine the Product

Consumers intuitively understand that no product or company is truly "green". What they want

from companies is reasonable progress. Constantly integrate, learn, and refine products and

processes. Develop a plan, set measurable goals, and work towards them.

Effective Communication

Effectively communicate with the consumers; always look for feedback from consumers as well

as from environmental organizations. Be publicly accountable, Regularly issue reports on

environmental performance, advertise them & use them as a tool to improve

public relations. Clearly state the benefits, clearly tell the consumers what are the cost savings

and how the product is eco friendly.

Importance of Green Marketing:

Since early 1990s, a major concern on ecological impact of industrial house on

environment has been surfaced on marketplace. Not only the relation between human,

organization and natural environment being redefined ,but the implication thereof are

being interpreted; because of these, new perceptions are being formed or re-evaluated on

issues like environmental friendly products, recycle ability, waste-reduction, the cost

associated with pollution and the price value relationship of environmentalism. Pressure

from various stakeholders, Govt., environmentalists, NGOs, consumers is placed on

businesses, which in turn keeps them under constant and relentless watch in their daily

operations. A direct result can be seen in developed and developing countries where

Govt. became stricter in imposing regulations to protect environment; at the same

time, the consumers of these countries are being more and more outspoken regarding

their needs for environmentally friendly products, even though questions remain on their

willingness to pay a higher premium for such products!

So in this era where consumers determine the fate of a company, green marketing

imparts a proactive strategy for these companies to cater the market by imparting nature-

friendly products/ services which otherwise reduce or minimize any detrimental impact

on environment.

A green- marketing approach in the product area promotes the integration of

environmental issues into all aspects of the corporate activities; from strategy

formulation, planning, re-engineering in production process and dealing with consumers.

So to remain competitive within the challenge thrown by the environment protectionists ,

the companies will have to find answer through their marketing strategies, product&

service redesign, customer handling etc. in this endeavour the companies may go for new

technologies for handling waste, sewage and air pollution; it can go for product

standardization to ensure environmentally safe products; by providing truly natural

products.

In this regard the companies should be concerned with what happens to a product during

and after its useful life. Companies may manifest this concern through experimentation

with ways to reassess and redesign the product life stages. Life cycle reassessment

focuses on environmental consideration in product development and design, including

energy and material inputs and out-puts in production, consumption and disposal of

products. We would then be able to manage the life stages of a product in an

environmental friendly and eco- efficient manner. Eco-efficient refers to the proper

thinking for the use or consumption of natural resource so that nature is afforded an

opportunity to renew itself.

Goals of Green Marketing

• Eliminate the concept of waste.

• Reinvent the concept of product.

• Make prices reflect actual and environmental costs.

• Make environmentalism profitable.

• Bringing out product modifications.

• Changing in production processes.

• Packaging changes.

• Modifying advertising

Need of Green Marketing: An Anthropological View

Issues like Global warming and depletion of ozone umbrella are the main for the healthy

Survival . Every person rich or poor would be interested in quality life with full of health and

Vigor and so would the corporate class. Financial gain and economic profit is the main aim of

any corporate business. But harm to environment cost by sustain business across the globe is

realized now though off late. This sense is building corporate citizenship in the business class. So

green marketing by the business class is still in the selfish anthological perspective of long term

sustainable business and to please the consumer and obtain the sanction license by the

governing body. Industries in Asian countries are catching the need of green marketing from the

developed countries but still there is a wide gap between their understanding and

implementation.

Challenges in Green Marketing

NEED FOR STANDARDIZATION

It is found that only 5% of the marketing messages from “Green” campaigns are entirely true

and there is a lack of standardization to authenticate these claims. There is no standardization to

authenticate these claims. There is no standardization currently in place to certify a product as

organic. Unless some regulatory bodies are involved in providing the certifications there will not

be any verifiable means. A standard quality control board needs to be in place for such labeling

and licensing.

NEW CONCEPT

Indian literate and urban consumer is getting more aware about the merits of Green products.

But it is still a new concept for the masses. The consumer needs to be educated and made aware

of the environmental threats. The new green movements need to reach the masses and that will

take a lot of time and effort.

By India’s ayurvedic heritage, Indian consumers do appreciate the importance of using natural

and herbal beauty products. Indian consumer is exposed to healthy living lifestyles such as yoga

and natural food consumption. In those aspects the consumer is already aware and will be

inclined to accept the green products.

PATIENCE AND PERSEVERANCE

The investors and corporate need to view the environment as a major long-term

Investment opportunity, the marketers need to look at the long-term benefits from this

new green movement. It will require a lot of patience and no immediate results. Since it is

a new concept and idea, it will have its own acceptance period.

AVOIDING GREEN MYOPIA

The first rule of green marketing is focusing on customer benefits i.e. the primary reason why

consumers buy certain products in the first place. Do this right, and motivate consumers to

switch brands or even pay a premium for the greener alternative. It is not going to help if a

product is developed which is absolutely green in various aspects but does not pass the customer

satisfaction criteria. This will lead to green myopia. Also if the green products are priced very

high then again it will loose its market acceptability

Benefits of Green Marketing

Companies that develop new and improved products and services with environment inputs in

mind give themselves access to new markets, increase their profit sustainability, and enjoy a

competitive advantage over the companies which are not concerned for the environment.

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Some of the advantages of green marketing are:

• It ensures sustained long term growth along with profitability.

• It saves money in the long run, though initially the cost is more.

• It helps the companies market their products and services keeping the environment aspects in

mind. It helps in accessing the new markets and enjoying the competitive advantage.

• Most of the employees also feel proud and responsible to be working for an environmentally

responsible company.

Problems with Green Marketing

There are a number of potential problems that must overcome. One of the main problems is that

firms using green marketing must ensure that their activities are not misleading to consumers or

industry, and do not breach any of the regulations or laws dealing with environmental

marketing. Green marketing claims must clearly state environmental benefits.

A problem of the firms face is that those who modify their products due to increased

consumer concern must contend with the fact that consumers' perceptions are sometimes not

correct. For example the McDonald's case where it has replaced its clam shells with plastic

coated paper. There is ongoing scientific debate which is more environmentally friendly. Some

scientific evidence suggests that when taking a cradle to grave approach, polystyrene is less

environmentally harmful if this is the case McDonald's bowed to consumer pressure, yet has

chosen the more environmentally harmful option.

When firms attempt to become socially responsible, they may face the risk that the

environmentally responsible action of today will be found to be harmful in the future. Take for

example the aerosol industry which has switched from CFCs (chlorofluorocarbons) to HFCs

(hydro fluorocarbons) only to be told HFCs are also a greenhouse gas. Some firms now use

DME (di-methyl ether) as an aerosol propellant, which may also harm the ozone layer. Given

the limited scientific knowledge at any point, it may be impossible for a firm to have made the

correct environmental decision. This may explain why some firms, like Coca-Cola and Walt

Disney World, are becoming socially responsible without publicizing the point. They may be

protecting themselves from potential future negative backlash; if it is determined they made the

wrong decision in the past.

While governmental regulation is designed to give consumers the opportunity to make

better decisions or to motivate them to be more environmentally responsible, there is difficulty in

establishing policies that will address all environmental issues. For example, guidelines

developed to control environmental marketing address only a very narrow set of issues, i.e., the

truthfulness of environmental marketing claims. If governments want to modify consumer

behavior they need to establish a different set of regulations. Thus governmental attempts to

protect the environment may result in a proliferation of regulations and guidelines, with no one

central controlling body. Reacting to competitive pressures can cause all "followers" to make the

same mistake as the "leader." Mobil Corporation who has followed the competition and

introduced "biodegradable" plastic garbage bags, as because technically these bags were

biodegradable, the conditions under which they were disposed did not allow biodegradation to

occur. Mobil was sued by several US states for using misleading advertising claims. Thus blindly

following the competition can have costly ramifications. The push to reduce costs or increase

profits may not force firms to address the important issue of environmental degradation. End-of-

pipe solutions may not actually reduce the waste but rather shift it around. While this may be

beneficial, it does not necessarily address the larger environmental problem, though it may

minimize its short term affects. Ultimately most waste produced will enter the waste stream,

therefore to be environmentally responsible organizations should attempt to minimize their

waste, rather than find "appropriate" uses for it.

Suggested solution

Benchmarking Establish a benchmark upon which to measure the progress of company

in term of eco aspects. Self certify the company’s progress and the efforts made by company.

External Audit conducts a thorough environmental audit to assess current performance.

To build credibility, have your audit certified by an independent third party and voluntarily

report result to the Environmental Protection Agency, and to the public via a corporate

Environmental Progress Report.

Back Up From Top Level It’s not enough to have top-level support for a corporation’s

environmental program. That commitment must be projected to the consumer as personal and

direct. In doing so, an emotional link is forged between the company and its customer.

Employee Awareness Program

It is only when employees are aware of the issues and given the authority to make changes that

greener products will be developed and environmentally sound corporate practices be put into

place. Conduct innovative and thought-provoking educational programs to heighten awareness

for the issues and empower employees to act positively on ecological issues. Invite Outside

speakers to talk about trends in population, technology, the economy and the environment.

Golden Rules of Green Marketing

1. Know Your Customer: Make sure that the consumer is aware of and concerned about the

issues that your product attempts to address, (Whirlpool learned the hard way that consumers

wouldn’t pay a premium for a CFC-free refrigerator because consumers dint

Know what CFCs were.).

2. Empower Consumers: Make sure that consumer feel. By themselves or in concert with

All the other users of your product, that they can make a difference. This is called

“Empowerment” and due to this main reason consumer will buy greener products.

3. Be Transparent: Consumers must believe in the legitimacy of the product and the Specific

claims made in regard.

4. Reassure the Buyer: Consumers must be made to believe that the product performs the

Job it’s supposed to do-they won’t forego product quality in the name of the environment.

5. Consider Your Pricing: If you’re charging a premium for your product-and many

Environmentally preferable products cost more due to economies of scale and use of higher-

quality ingredients-make sure those consumers can afford the premium and feel it’s worth it.

6. Thus leading brands should recognize that consumer expectations have changed. It is not

enough for a company to green its products; consumers expect the products that they purchase

pocket friendly and also to help reduce the environmental impact in their own lives too.

GREEN CODE

G : generalizes with care. Consumer behavior will not necessarily be consistent across

different

Product types and particular market segments may respond to certain issues on the green

agenda but not others.

R : remembers, the validity of a piece of market research is not related to the degree to which it

Supports your preferred option.

E : explores the context from which market research data comes. Be clear on the nature of the

Sample used, the questions asked, the way in which responses were recorded and the time and

Place from which the responses come

E : ensures that where market research is crossing international borderlines, that the

terminology and interpretation remains consistent. Terms like ‘environment’, ‘green’ and

‘conservation’ do not always translate precisely between languages.

N : neutrality is important. Ensure that when you pose questions to consumers, that they can

make any response without being made to feel guilty or uncomfortable, and ensure that your

own preconceptions about the green agenda (such as an assumption that green products will

cost extra) are not encoded within the questions.

NEW CONCEPT

Indian literate and urban consumer is getting more aware about the merits of Green products.

But it is still a new concept for the masses. The consumer needs to be educated and made aware

of the environmental threats. The new green movements need to reach the masses and that will

take a lot of time and effort.

By India’s ayurvedic heritage, Indian consumers do appreciate the importance of using natural

and herbal beauty products. Indian consumer is exposed to healthy living lifestyles such as yoga

and natural food consumption. In those aspects the consumer is already aware and will be

inclined to accept the green products.

PATIENCE AND PERSEVERANCE

The investors and corporate need to view the environment as a major long-term investment

opportunity, the marketers need to look at the long-term benefits from this new green movement.

It will require a lot of patience and no immediate results. Since it is a new concept and idea, it

will have its own acceptance period.

AVOIDING GREEN MYOPIA

The first rule of green marketing is focusing on customer benefits i.e. the primary reason why

consumers buy certain products in the first place. Do this right, and motivate consumers to

switch brands or even pay a premium for the greener alternative. It is not going to help if a

product is developed which is absolutely green in various aspects but does not pass the customer

satisfaction criteria. This will lead to green myopia. Also if the green products are priced very

high then again it will loose its market acceptability.

Adoption of Green Marketing

There are basically five reasons for which a marketer should go for the adoption of green

marketing. They are -

Opportunities or competitive advantage

Corporate social responsibilities (CSR)

Government pressure

Competitive pressure

Cost or profit issues

ECO-LABELING INITIATIVES

Eco label provide information regarding the environmental performance of products.

The objective ofeco- labeling is to provide authentication to genuine claims regarding

the environmental impact of products and processes by manufacturers.

In India the government has introduced the eco-mark scheme since 1981. The objectives

of the scheme are:

To provide incentives to manufacturers and importers to reduce the adverse

environmental impact of products.

To reward genuine initiatives by companies to reduce adverse impact of environmental

Impact of products.

To assist consumers to become environmentally responsible in their daily lives by

providing them information to take account of environmental factors in their daily lives.

To encourage citizens to purchase products which have less environmental impact.

ECO-LABELLING SCHEMES IN INDIA

The Ministry of environment and forest of government of India has prescribed the following

Criteria for products:

That they cause substantially less pollution than comparable products in production, usage and

disposal,

• That they are recycled and/or recyclable whereas comparable products are not.

• That they contribute to a reduction on adverse environmental health consequences.

• That they comply with laws, standards and regulations pertaining to the environment.

• That their price is not exorbitantly higher than comparable products.

ECO-MARK IN INDIA

Under the concept, products which are less harmful to the environment or have benign impact on

environment through the various stages of development-manufacture, packaging, distribution,

use and disposal or recycling may be awarded the Eco-Mark.

An earthen pot has been chosen as the logo for Eco-Mark scheme in India. The familiar earthen

pot has renewable resource like earth, does not produce hazardous waste and consume little

energy in making. As a symbol it puts across its environmental message. Its image has the ability

to reach people and help to promote a greater awareness of the need to be kind to the

environment. The logo Eco-Mark scheme signifies that the product which carries it does least

damage to the environment.

Indian and green marketing

Starting with ONGC, Reliance, Tata Group other such as ICICI, Idea Cellular,

Vodafone, Videocon, Carrier, Nokia etc have joined the bandwagon. Indian is the world leader

in green IT. Wipro Green is the first Indian Company to launch ECO-friendly range of desktop.

Same way HUL is trying to reduce its carbon foot print using modified machines in their

production unit.

Hyderabad Airport, ITC-Welcome Group, Infosys, TCS, Agilent, HP, IBM all claim to be

going green. It adds to the feel good about the fact they will contribute something to the

environment by buying this product.

New Delhi, the capital of India was being polluted at a very fast pace until the Supreme

Court of India forced a change to alternative fuels. In 2002, a directive was issued to completely

adopt CNG in all public transport systems to curb pollution.

According to Global enterprise survey, Indian respondents scored over respondents from

10 other countries in expecting to pay 5% or more for green technology if the benefits for the

environment and return on investment (ROI) is proven.

A newly released survey by WPP, conducted in seven countries-the United States , the

United Kingdom, CHINA, Brazil, India ,Germany and France-indicates that while many

environment beliefs and behaviors are shared across different consumer cultures, other vary

widely..Generally consumers in the US, UK, Germany and France tend to align in their

attitudes ,while consumers in Brazil, India and China have divergent views and particularly

inclined to seek green products and to favor companies they consider green. China ,India and

Brazil showed significant support for additional spend:73%of Chinese consumers say they will

spend more ,78%of Indians say they’ll spend more ,and 73%of Brazilians plan to increase their

green spend. The percentage of respondents who indicate willingness to spend 30% or more on

green ranges from 8%(UK) to 38% (Brazil).The study finds similar global agreement when

consumers are asked about how important it is that companies be “green “.At least 77% of

consumers in all countries say it’s somewhat or very important; in India and China the number

are significantly higher: 87 and98%, respectively, say that the corporate reputation is an

important purchase consideration .Consumers from all seven countries also agreed that the most

important step a company can take to demonstrate its ”green-ness” is to reduce amount of toxic

or other dangerous substances in its products and business processes. At the same time they are

seeking more information about green products .So this indicates that future of green marketing

and green product is very bright.

Top 10 green Indian companiesSuzlon Energy: The world’s fourth largest wind-turbine maker is among the

greenest and best Indian companies in India. Tulsi Tanti, the visionary behind

Suzlon, convinced the world that wind is the energy of the future and built his

factory in Pondicherry to run entirely on wind power. Suzlon’s corporate

building is the most energy-efficient building ever built in India.Suzlon One Earth Global Headquarters in Pune - India’s greenest building

ITC Limited :ITC strengthened their commitment to green technologies by

introducing ‘ozone-treated elemental chlorine free’ bleaching technology for

the first time in India. The result is an entire new range of top green products

and solutions: the environmentally friendly multi-purpose paper that is less

polluting than its traditional counterpart.

Tata Metaliks Limited (TML) :Every day is Environment

Day at TML, one of the top green firms in India. A

practical example that made everyone sit up and take

notice is the company’s policy to discourage working on

Saturdays at the corporate office. Lights are also switched

off during the day with the entire office depending on

sunlight.

Tamil Nadu Newsprint and Papers Limited (TNPL)

Adjudged the best performer in the 2009-2010 Green Business Survey, TNPL

was awarded the Green Business Leadership Award in the Pulp and Paper

Sector. The initiatives undertaken by this top green firm in India includes two

Clean Development Mechanism projects and a wind farm project that helped

generate 2,30,323 Carbon Emission Reductions earning Rs. 17.40 Crore.

ITC Papekraft’s premium range of eco-friendly business paper

“Everybody is motivated to do something about reducing carbon footprints”, says Harsh Jha, Managing Director – TML

Aerial view of TNPL

Wipro Technologies: The list of top 10 green Indian companies is never complete without Wipro which climbed to the top five brand league in Green peace’s 'Guide to Greener Electronics' ranking. Despite the global financial crisis, Wipro held fast to its commitment towards energy efficiency and was lauded for launching energy star compliant products in the market.

HCL Technologies: This IT major may be considered as the icon of Indian green initiatives, thanks to the “go green” steps taken in solving the problem of toxics and e-waste in the electronics industry. HCL is committed to phasing out the hazardous vinyl plastic and Brominated Flame Retardants from its products and has called for a Restriction on Hazardous Substances (RoHS) legislation in India.

Oil and Natural Gas Company (ONGC): India’s

largest oil producer, ONGC, is all set to lead the list

of top 10 green Indian companies with energy-

efficient, green crematoriums that will soon replace

the traditional wooden pyre across the country.

ONGC’s Mokshada Green Cremation initiative will

save 60 to 70% of

wood and a fourth of the burning time per cremation.

IndusInd Bank: Green banking has been catching up

as among the top Indian green initiatives ever since IndusInd

opened the country’s first solar-powered ATM and pioneered

an eco-savvy change in the Indian banking sector. The bank is

planning for more such initiatives in addressing the challenges

of climate change.

Wipro broadens its green IT initiatives through its participation in "The Green Grid"

The HCL Green Bag campaign that aimed at tackling e-waste

ONGC’s green projects contribute to increased environmental awareness among local communinities

IndusInd’s solar-powered ATM expects to save around 1,980 Kw of energy annually

IDEA Cellular: One of the best Indian companies, IDEA, paints India green

with its national ‘Use Mobile, Save Paper’ campaign. The company had

organized Green Pledge campaigns at Indian cities where thousands came

forward and pledged to save paper and trees. IDEA has also set up bus shelters

with potted plants and tendril climbers to convey the green

message.

Hero Honda Motors: Hero Honda is one of the largest two-wheeler

manufacturers in India and an equally responsible top green firm in India. The

company’s philosophy of continuous innovation in green products and

solutions has played a key role in striking the right balance between business,

mankind and nature.

Other 15Big companies that going with Green

1. Ceres

While not technically a business itself, Ceres has advised some of the nation’s biggest

corporations and investors on the environmental impact of their operations. disclose the

IDEA’s green bus shelter in Mumbai

Hero Honda Green Ambassadors: winners of the international inter-school environment quiz competition

environmental aspects of their business practices to investors and shareholders. Major

achievements thus far include persuading Dell Computer to support national product “take

back” legislation and convincing Bank of America to spend $20 billion on the growth of eco-

friendly business practices.

2. General Electric

General Electric’s presence on this list might surprise you, but the steps they have taken toward

green operations are undeniable. Since 2006, the company has sold over $12 billion of its

Ecomagination products (including solar panels). For those who are still upset at GE’s polluting

of the Hudson River with polychlorinated biphenyls, the company is also making headway on an

ambitious cleanup of that area.

3. McDonalds

Time was not long ago when McDonalds wouldn’t have come within striking distance of making

this list. However, the increasing public shift toward greener living has sent a clear signal to the

powers that be at the popular fast-food chain. Instead of ravaging the natural habitats of

animals, McDonalds now works in close collaboration with PETA on systematically reforming

its business practices to be more humane and friendly to the environment in which they operate.

4. Pratt & Whitney

Pratt & Whitney offers another inspiring story of how much raw materials can be saved – and

pollution avoided – with a little old-fashioned, hard-nosed ingenuity. As “Natural Capitalism”

explains, Pratt & Whitney used to scrap 90 percent of its ingots (that’s right, almost all) in the

process of manufacturing jet engine blades. This massive waste continued unabated until

someone at Pratt & Whitney had the bright idea to have the supplier simply cast the ingots into

ready-made blade-like shapes. This one seemingly small change proved to be transformative,

and has lowered the amount of wasted ingots and factory emissions a great deal.

5. Starbucks

Starbucks has green advocates smiling about its “bean-to-cup” approach, which stresses top

efficiency at each link of its global supply chain. By all measures the program appears to be a

great success, with the company’s decision to use coffee cup sleeves made of recycled paper

saving roughly 78,000 trees per year since 2006.

6. Coca-Cola

Coca-Cola has narrowed down 3 environmental goals on which to focus their efforts: water

stewardship, sustainable packaging, and climate & energy protection. Coca-Cola has already

gotten itself involved in community recycling programs and a complete, sustainability-focused

overhaul of its packaging designs.

7. Enterprise Rent-A-Car

Since January 2008, Enterprise has boasted the world’s largest fleet of fuel-efficient vehicles,

over 440,000 of which offer drivers 28MPG or better for highway travel. Roughly 5,000 of those

vehicles are gas/electric hybrids, while another 73,000 have the option of being powered on E85

ethanol. In addition to these efforts, Enterprise has promised to plant fifty million trees across

America’s forests.

8. Dell

Computer equipment has historically been one of the most difficult and costly products to safely

dispose of. Fortunately, one of the major leaders in that field has stepped forward to make the

task less daunting. Through its “no computer should go to waste” recycling program, Dell

allows customers to return any Dell-branded product back to the company – for free. The

company has even gone so far as to establish programs that accept computers, monitors, or

printers from other companies for safe disposal, as well.

9. Honda

According to a CNN Money’s “10 Green Giants” piece, Honda has gone above and beyond in

its environmental duties. Going so far as to call Honda “the most fuel-efficient auto company in

the US”, CNN tells the story of how Honda is hard at work on the hydrogen fuel cell powered

“FCX.” Honda is apparently also taking steps to create an entire infrastructure for hydrogen,

looking forward to a day when – hopefully – more cars will be powered by that instead of

gasoline. In addition to all of this, Honda has pledged to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions by

5% between 2005-10, and that’s not including that 5% it already achieved from 2000-2005.

10. Continental Airlines

Continental Airlines has spent over $16 billion in the last decade to replace its entire fleet of

airplanes with more fuel-efficient ones, in addition to installing fuel-saving “winglets” that cut

emissions 5% on its 737 model aircraft. Beyond that, nitrogen oxide emissions from

Continental’s busy Houston hub have been sliced by an astounding 75% since the year 2000.

Continental might also be the only company with 12 full time “staff environmentalists” on the

payroll who are constantly pairing up with engine manufacturers to design greener, more

efficient processes into company operations. And is if this weren’t enough, the company makes a

point of sorting all of its trash to see what can be recycled.

11. Hewlett-Packard

Another computing company staking its claim to greener pastures is Hewlett Packard. The

company has gotten out in front of the computer disposal issue by owning and operating

enormous “e-waste” recycling plants that shred discarded, obsolete computer products into raw

materials that can be recycled into the industrial food chain. HP has also agreed to take back

computer equipment of all brands, and taken steps to ensure that its own products are 100%

recyclable in the manner discussed above. Furthermore, the company has promised to lower its

energy consumption a full 20% by the year 2010.

Some Cases

Steps McDonald's restaurant's napkins, bags are made of recycled paper.

Coca-Cola pumped syrup directly from tank instead of plastic which saved 68 million

pound/year.

Badarpur Thermal Power station of NTPC in Delhi is devising ways to utilize coal-ash

that has been a major source of air and water pollution.

Barauni refinery of IOC is taken for restricting air and water pollutants.

* Maruthi : Greening of Supply Chain

The company has remained ahead of regulatory requirements in pursuit of environment

protection and energy conservation at its manufacturing facilities, and in development of

products that use fewer natural resources and are environment friendly.

The company credited the 'Just-in-Time' philosophy adopted and internalized by the employees

as the prime reason that helped to excel in this direction.

The company has been promoting 3R since its inception. As a result the company has not only

been able to recycle 100% of treated waste water but also reduced fresh water consumption. The

company has implemented rain water harvesting to recharge the aquifers. Also, recyclable

packing for bought out components is being actively promoted.

The company has been facilitating implementation of Environment Management System (EMS)

at its suppliers' end. Regular training programs are conducted for all the suppliers on EMS.

Surveys are conducted to assess the vendors who need more guidance. The systems and the

environmental performance of suppliers are audited.

The green co-efficient of this system is much better than the conventional system

* HCL's Environment Management Policy under HCL ecoSafe

In building a system to identify, develop and sustain the maintenance of an environment

management system at corporate level we have formulated a program that we proudly refer as

HCL's ecosafe. The aim is to encapsulate knowledge, awareness, and key developments on all

environmental issues faced by today's world and to incorporate these in HCL's operations

assuring our commitment in delivering quality products, solutions and services

The key objective under HCL ecoSafe is targeted at integrating environmental management

procedures into its business processes thereby protecting the environment, health, and safety of

all its stakeholders. HCL commits to manufacture products that are environment friendly in all

respects and are free from hazardous chemicals.

Public Opinion on Green Marketing:

* Shoppers are thinking green, but not always buying that way, according to a new study

released by the Grocery Manufacturers Association (GMA) and Deloitte. The study found that

while 54 percent of shoppers indicate that environmental sustainability in a factor in their

purchasing decisions, they actually bought green products on just 22 percent of their shopping

trips. The survey is the basis of the GMA-Deloitte report titled Finding the Green in Today's

Shoppers: Sustainability Trends and New Shopper Insights and was based on interviews with

over 6,400 shoppers.

* Now eco packaging is poised to become the next low-hanging fruit of the clean tech world.

Investors and entrepreneurs this week at Europe's most important annual clean tech conference

reported unprecedented interest in reducing the use of raw materials while finding superior

protection for food and other products.

* Consumers are increasingly putting plastic shopping bags and non-green wrapping items on

their naughty list, according to Deloitte's 2008 Annual Holiday Survey. Nearly half of the 13,000

consumers polled said they'd be willing to pay more for green gifts. This was up from 17 percent

last year.

* Consumers perceive themselves as being environmentally responsible. Successful green

marketing requires matching a company's brand attributes with its customers' identity as

"green." An article suggested examining green marketing from the perspective of the 4 P's of

marketing -- product, price, placement and promotion -- plus a 5th P, "prove it."

* Americans are quick to identify polluting companies as "socially irresponsible" and make their

purchasing decisions accordingly, says a new survey. The poll also found that American

consumers between the ages of 18-29 are more likely to spend more on organic, environmentally

preferable or fair trade products than other age groups.

PRESENT TRENDS IN GREEN MARKETING IN INDIA

➢ Organizations Perceive Environmental marketing to be an Opportunity that can be used

to achieve its objectives.

Firms have realized that consumers prefer products that do not harm the natural environment as

also the human health. Firms marketing such green products are preferred over the others not

doing so and thus develop a competitive advantage, simultaneously meeting their business

objectives.

➢ Organizations believe they have a moral obligation to be more socially responsible . This is

in keeping with the philosophy of CSR which has been successfully adopted by many business

houses to improve their corporate image.

Firms in this situation can take two approaches:

• Use the fact that they are environmentally responsible as a marketing tool.

• Become responsible without prompting this fact.

➢ Governmental Bodies are forcing Firms to Become More Responsible

In most cases the government forces the firm to adopt policy which protects the interests of the

consumers. It does so in following ways:

• Reduce production of harmful goods or by –products

• Modify consumer and industry’s use and /or consumption of harmful goods; or

• Ensure that all types of consumers have the ability to evaluate the environmental composition

of goods

➢ Competitors’ Environmental Activities Pressure Firms to change their Environmental

Marketing Activities

In order to get even with competitors claim to being environmentally friendly, firms change over

to green marketing. Result is green marketing percolates entire industry.

➢ Cost Factors Associated With Waste Disposal or Reductions in Material Usage

Forces Firms to Modify their Behavior

With cost cutting becoming part of the strategy of the firms it adopts green marketing in relation

to these activities. It may pursue these as follows:

• A Firm develops a technology for reducing waste and sells it to other firms.

• A waste recycling or removal industry develops.

4s of green marketing

Safety of product

Satisfaction of customer

Social acceptability of a product

Sustainability of the product

Green Strategy Formulation

As in formulation of green strategy, a firm may evolve it from a SWOT analysis or

Environmental Audit.

SWOT ANALYSIS

STRENGTHS

1. Marketers get access to new markets and gain an advantage over competitors that are not

focusing on “greenness.”

2. Marketers can charge a premium on products that are seen as more eco-responsible.

3. Organizations that adopt green marketing are perceived to be more socially responsible.

4. Green marketing builds brand equity and wins brand loyalty among customers.

E.g. research and development capabilities for clean processes and green products and human

resources committed to environmental protection.

WEAKNESS

1. Most customers choose to satisfy their personal needs before caring for environment.

2. Overemphasizing greenness rather than customer needs can prove devastating for a

product.

3. Many customers keep away from products labeled “Green” because they see such labeling as

a marketing gimmick, and they may lose trust in an organization that suddenly claims to be

green.

E.g. products cannot be recycled, and hazardous wastes) of a company.

OPPORTUNITIES

1. Marketing to segment which are becoming more environmentally aware and concerned.

These consumers are demanding products that conform to these new attitudes.

2. Organizations perceive green marketing to be a competitive advantage, relative to the

competitors. Firms, therefore, strive to improve upon their societal awareness. This complements

the increase in consumers’ socially conscious behavior and will therefore give them an

advantage over competitors who do not address these issues.

E.g. offering an environmental friendly product and saving resources, and relating them to

internal strengths.

EXTERNAL THREATS

1. Uncertainty as to the environmental impact of present activities, including that is perceived to

be less environmentally harmful.

2. Uncertainty as to which green marketing activities are acceptable from a government

perspective.

3. The possibility of a backlash from consumers or government based on existing green

marketing claims, threat one and two above may cause backlash to arise.

E.g. competitors gain market shares with green products and increased environmental

regulations).

Strategies

The marketing strategies for green marketing include: -

Marketing Audit (including internal and external situation analysis)

Develop a marketing plan outlining strategies with regard to 4 P's

Implement marketing strategies

Plan results evaluation

The life stage of product would include the following:

Stage- I

Development stage: traditionally characterized as the acquisition of

raw materials, component parts, and subassemblies. The alternative

approach advocated here encourage manufacturer to check the

environmental programs of suppliers, to require minimal packaging

of inputs, and to consider sources of materials that could be easily

replenished or are recyclable.

Stage-II

Production stage: manufacturing companies are encourage to

reduce emission, toxicity and waste, and to conserve water and

energy. They are also encourage to seek and develop alternative

uses for waste products, to revise the manufacturing process, to

minimize waste generation, to minimize energy use or to attempt to

find alternative sources of energy.

Stage-III

Consumption stage: minimization of packaging, conservation of

energy and minimization of waste from product maintenance and

service are strongly urged.

Stage-IV

The final stage of a product is its disposal, green marketing

introduce the concepts of reuse and recyclability, in addition to the

concept of waste reduction.

Table-I

Thus the mammoth like challenge of green marketing is to meet the unlimited wants of

consumers within the constraint of limited resources by introducing modern management

tools like TQM, 6-Sigma, 4Rs(Reduce, Reuse, Recycle, Recovery) principles in

production processes of companies. Currently our concern is with the total yield of

production and product marketing processes including waste and pollution.

Managerial/ Strategic Implication of Green Marketing:

Green marketing subsumes green products as well as greening firms. Managers need to identify

what ought to be green: systems, processes or products? A research model has been developed

for the purpose of this study. This consists of five major sets of variables, namely Antecedents,

Mediators, Strategy, Outcomes and Moderators.

Antecedent are all those factors affecting firm’s environmental orientation, which

Subsequently shapes marketing strategy. According to political economy paradigm, there

are four groups of antecedent factors, namely external polity i.e. socio-political and

regulatory system in which the firm operates, external economy i.e prevailing and

prospective economic environment surrounding the firm, internal polity i.e. the way

power, authority are handle within the firm and internal economy i.e. the way existing

resources are allocated to produce sufficient and satisfactory out-put. The antecedents

have an impact on firms values, belief and attitude towards environmentalism and related

aspects, which acts as a media to r on environmental marketing strategy. Enviro-marketing

Strategy provides the central construct of the model, comprising environmental

adjustments of the traditional marketing mix elements( product, price, promotion &place) to a

specific target market setting. Enviro-marketing strategy implementation will

have certain financial, market, customers and competitive outcomes for the organization

with regard to its marketing performance. Finally the effect of strategic factors on

marketing performance is controlled by a number of moderators, which can be found

FUTURE:

Companies are likely, either due to regulation or voluntary action; to provide their

customers with more and more information about their products environmental impact

so that they will be able to decide for themselves if a product suits their needs.

Environmental marketing presents important opportunities for industry. Taking

advantage of them requires creativity, foresight and environmental commitment. It

means redefining the roles of business and products and working co-operatively with

governments, consumer groups and NGO's. It may also mean a more visible role of

CEOs. Products can certainly increase the 'quality of life', but their environmentally

destructive impacts must be amended if we are to move towards sustainability.

Conclusion

Green marketing should not neglect the economic aspect of marketing. Marketers need to

understand the implications of green marketing. If we think customers are not concerned about

environmental issues or will not pay a premium for products that are more eco-responsible,

think again. We must find an opportunity to enhance our product's performance and strengthen

your customer's loyalty and command a higher price.

So, if today's successful marketing is about appealing to personal values and delivering

consumer empowerment, then surely the time is right to inject sustainable development into the

marketing mix to help address some of the gritty issues currently facing our planet .Green

marketing methods produce highly effective results. They apply all of the steps you need to cut

costs, raise response rates and increase growth in the most important marketing metric we are

all held accountable for—the bottom line.

Bibliography