Use of MaxDiff method in selecting green packaging attributes that influence purchase decisions in online shops

Abstract

The aim of this research was to investigate how retailers advertise the green packaging of green products offered in online shops and which packaging attributes should be given more attention when advertising products in online shops. For this purpose, we first conducted a preliminary analysis of 31 green products sold in Slovenian online shops. We found that green packaging is generally poorly advertised in online shops, although it could be a competitive advantage for retailers. To prove that there are attributes of green packaging in relation to other attributes when purchasing green products, we conducted a questionnaire using the included MaxDiff method. The questionnaire was answered by 134 Slovenian respondents. Based on the results, we found that less than one-third of the respondents trust the manufacturer's information about green products, two-thirds of the respondents are willing to pay more for green products as they believe that the quality of these products is higher than of comparable non-green products, and that our respondents have trust in the labels “Made in Slovenia” and “Locally grown,” although more than one-third of the respondents buy green products regardless of the country of origin. The results of the MaxDiff analysis showed that three attributes associated with green packaging are more important when buying green products and should be highlighted in the description of a product also in online shops, that is, the material of the packaging, the possibility of its reuse, and ecolabels.