Don’t Copy off Your Neighbor: Examining the Role of Fit and Green Marketing Strategies

Abstract

The evolution of the marketing perspective made it essential for firms wanting to differentiate themselves in the marketplace to offer a unique product. Whereas simply producing a quality made product sufficed in the past, consumers’ are increasingly clamoring for products with social or environmental appeal (Handelman and Arnold 1999). As such, firms are engaging in corporate social responsibility (CSR) strategies at an increasing rate. In particular, sustainability efforts are increasing in order to meet regulatory and consumer standards. Firms are not only producing green products, they are also enacting sustainability-oriented strategies to help “green the firm.” In fact, a recent study by MIT Sloan Management Review and the Boston Consulting Group finds that 70 percent of managers surveyed expect to increase their investments in sustainability efforts in 2011. Although organizations are enacting green1 marketing strategies at a soaring rate, an examination of consumer perceptions of the fit between the strategies enacted, and consumer beliefs regarding those actions, is lacking in the literature.