Majority of IT Buyers Interesting in Going "Green" - if the Price is Right
Do "green" products and marketing matter in the enterprise technology industry? According to GreenFactor, - a global "green" enterprise IT study released by Strategic Oxygen, GCI Group and Cohn & Wolfe, "green" products are not only highly important for the environment, they are potentially profitable: More than 70 percent of the global respondents said they "probably" or "definitely" would increase their preference for a brand's "green" products if they were convinced of the positive impact on the environment and business. Almost 60 percent said they would expect to pay a premium for "green" products.
While there are significant "green" IT opportunities, GreenFactor also highlights some major challenges, according to Michael Gale, CEO, Strategic Oxygen. "There are statistically significant differences between countries, so many of the 'green global campaigns' being implemented by IT brands today will not be successful. Plus, the C-suites and their IT groups are not in-synch and really don't believe there is a 'return on green'"
"The bottom line is that 'green' IT marketers are going to have to be really smart about how they go to market," added Paul Walker, president, GCI Group. "They need to target the right countries and the right 'green advocates' in the C-suite with credible value propositions. We're excited about GreenFactor because it provides a strategic roadmap for getting it right."
Green "Leaders" and "Laggards"
Despite varying degrees of "green" products, programs and marketing initiatives, there is no one clear "green" IT brand leader globally. However, when IT decision-makers and IT influencers were asked which brands they most associated with "green" technology, a handful of companies consistently came out on top:
- Apple
- HP
- Microsoft
- IBM
- Intel
- Sony
- Dell
Those companies that did not fare as well on "green" perception were:
- SAP
- Alcatel-Lucent
- Nortel
- EMC
Globally, Microsoft and Google have a statistically significant higher perception of being "green" than all other software and Internet companies included in the study.
"It's interesting that Google, a company that does not produce tangible hardware or software, but consumes a significant amount of resources appears so highly on this list," said Mr. Gale. "They've clearly done a good job of demonstrating they are working hard to innovate new, more power efficient solutions."
Green Countries
India emerges as the study's leader in "green" IT potential, as a higher percentage of respondents in that country expect to pay at least a five percent premium on "green" IT or "definitely would" increase their preference for "green" IT with proven ROI - or both.
The remaining countries fall progressively further behind India due to a tendency to lean strongly toward either an expectation to pay at least five percent more or stating they would definitely prefer "green" with proven ROI - but rarely both.
In fact, buyers in some of the largest economies and B-to-B markets for technology are not convinced they would prefer "green" even if its ROI could be proven, notably Japan and Canada. Conversely, IT buyers in Mexico are more likely to prefer "green" if the ROI is proven, but are unlikely to pay a premium.
When the data is cut to view respondents that satisfy both conditions -- expect to pay at least a five percent premium on "green" IT and "definitely would" increase their preference for it with proven ROI - India remains the leader in "green" IT potential by a wide margin:
"Initially, it seems counter-intuitive that India would be 'number one,'" said Mr. Walker, "but this is a country experiencing a high-rate of IT investment and datacenter growth - coupled with 'brown outs.' It makes sense that IT decision makers there would be more sensitive to environmental challenges and increasingly supportive of growing their "green" IT solutions."
Green Premiums
The GreenFactor survey also sought specific information on how much more or less respondents would expect to pay for "green" technology, including desktops, laptops, servers, storage or networking hardware. The results show that "green" IT premiums are expected more in some countries than others.
Nearly two-thirds of all respondents in Mexico (63%) and more than half of respondents in Italy (58%) and Brazil (57%) expect to pay the "same" or "less" for "green" IT. On the other hand, about two-thirds of all respondents in Japan (71%), the US (66%) and India (66%) expect to pay some level of premium.
Green Barriers
When asked "What are the biggest barriers to adopting a 'green' approach when purchasing technology-related hardware for your organization?" IT decision-makers and IT influencers were allowed to choose what they perceived as the top two barriers.
Not surprisingly, "Price" was the top barrier in nine out of the 11 countries. The exceptions were Mexico, where "brands not promoting the importance of green" was the top barrier, and Italy where "disagreement internally/political" reasons were the top barrier.
Although price is seen as the highest barrier among all job titles surveyed, CXOs chose "price" as a barrier with lower frequency (only 33%) than Line of Business Managers (40%), CIOs (39%) and IT Managers (38%).
Conducted in the first quarter of 2008, GreenFactor surveyed more than 3,500 enterprise IT decision makers - including CXOs, CIOs, IT Managers and Line of Business Managers - in 11 countries. The study looked at 26 enterprise technology brands to determine decision makers' perceptions of "green" IT, products and marketing.
Posted to the site on 9th July 2008
