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WESTLAKE VILLAGE, Calif.: 23 September 2008 —Based on analysis of 40 million blog posts collected during the past six months, Whole Foods received the highest levels of volume and positive mentions regarding environmental sustainability among retail brands, according to the J.D. Power and Associates 2008 Environmental Sustainability Report released today.
J. D. Power and Associates Web Intelligence Division (formerly Umbria, Inc.), which specializes in blog research and consumer generated media research for market insight, has released its first comprehensive look at consumer conversations about environmental sustainability, global warming, purchase trends and user demographics captured from online blogosphere conversations. The report is designed to provide executives in the retail and consumer packaged goods industries with ongoing measures of the extent of consumer engagement on the topic of sustainability, and how that engagement is influencing the buying habits and preferences of their customers and other consumers within their targeted demographics.
The inaugural report details discussions about the sustainability topic in general and classifies brands based on both volume (measured by the number of new mentions per week, on average) and percentage of positive mentions. Brands that are discussed are then categorized into one of four quadrants: pacesetters (higher-than-average volume and higher-than-average positive sentiment); contenders (lower-than-average volume but higher-than-average positive sentiment); emerging (higher-than-average volume and lower positive sentiment); or challenged (lower-than-average volume and lower positive sentiment). Those brands that receive less than 1 percent of the total number of retail online social media mentions about sustainability are designated as dormant.
Home Depot received the second highest percentage of positive mentions following Whole Foods. Home Depot, along with Amazon and Target, fall within in the contender category. Wal-Mart, which initiated the big move in the retail space with a commitment to “go green”, generated the second-highest amount of total volume of mentions, but had lower-than-average positive sentiment, placing the brand in the emerging quadrant. However, when viewed against the total discussion of Wal-Mart in general, sustainability discussions represented just 2 percent of its total volume of blog discussions. EBay was also in the emerging quadrant.
“Although Whole Foods surpassed other retail brands in terms of the volume of positive mentions it received from bloggers, each of the eight retailers included in the report received similarly high proportions of positive or neutral mentions in sustainability discussions taking place in the blogosphere,” said Janet Eden-Harris, vice president of the Web Intelligence Division at J.D. Power and Associates. “The good news for retailers is that they are being recognized by consumers for their environmentally friendly actions.”
Among other major retail brands, Safeway and Costco generated more than 1 percent of total sustainability discussions, but had lower-than-average volume and a lower-than-average proportion of positive sentiment when compared to other brands in the industry, placing them in the challenged quadrant. No other retailer was discussed in significant volume relative to sustainability.
The report finds that consumers expect retailers to not only stock eco-friendly products, but also to follow policies and procedures that support environmental sustainability.
Findings Regarding Consumer Packaged Goods
The report also examines online consumer sentiment among bloggers related to consumer packaged goods (CPG), particularly among household products and food and beverages. A predominant theme in the consumer packaged goods market is consumer desire to make conscious choices that both impact the environment and enable personal efficiency. However, consumers expressed concerns about the cost and feasibility of making large-scale changes, and most indicated that they were prepared only to make incremental changes to their daily routines.
With the proliferation of brands, product categories, manufacturers and food types in the food and beverage category, no single brand received more than 1 percent of food and beverage-related conversations regarding sustainability.
Among household product brands, Seventh Generation and Method generated higher-than-average proportions of positive discussion about sustainability in the cleaning products category, placing the brands in the pacesetters category. Clorox received a large amount of overall discussion volume, with a slightly lower-than-average percentage of positive sentiment, placing the brand in the emerging quadrant. Dr. Bronners and Ecover were the only other cleaning products that generated more than 1 percent of total cleaning product conversations about sustainability.
“As consumers grapple with ways to improve personal efficiency and minimize waste, they are discussing ways to make modest lifestyle changes, such as reducing their use of lighting and appliances, selecting cleaning products that are non-toxic and choosing food items that are grown locally and packaged efficiently,” said Chance Parker, vice president and general manager of the Web Intelligence Division at J.D. Power and Associates. “However, there is confusion among consumers about which products and actions will make the greatest impact in reducing their carbon footprints, which means that there is an opportunity for manufacturers to educate customers and help them make informed purchase decisions and provide much-needed how-to advice.”
The report findings also include the following insights:
- Food prices were a key theme of discussion among bloggers during the first six months of 2008.
- Unique to the food and beverage industry is the focus on making conscious choices about food as a way to not only impact the environment, but also to improve health and reduce illness.
- Eight in 10 mentions involving food and beverage companies and organic products were positive.
- Most consumers expressed disdain for diverting corn and other food products into biofuel production.
The J.D. Power and Associates Web Intelligence Division is unique in its ability to assess both what is being said, and who is doing the speaking in the online world. Its patent-pending technology enables the classification of posts and ability to estimate gender and age of the speaker, as well as rapid identification and elimination of spam posts. The Web Intelligence Division analyzes voices of the online community by using proprietary Natural Language Processing and machine learning algorithms to dissect the who, what and why of online opinion, offering in-depth insights for some of the world’s leading brands. For more information about environmental sustainability industry trends, visit http://www.jdpower.com/corporate.
About J.D. Power and Associates
Headquartered in Westlake Village, Calif., J.D. Power and Associates is a global marketing information services firm operating in key business sectors including market research, forecasting, performance improvement, training and customer satisfaction. The firm’s quality and satisfaction measurements are based on responses from millions of consumers annually. For more information on boat ratings, car reviews and ratings, car insurance, health insurance, cell phone ratings, and more, please visit JDPower.com. J.D. Power and Associates is a business unit of The McGraw-Hill Companies.
About The McGraw-Hill Companies
Founded in 1888, The McGraw-Hill Companies (NYSE: MHP) is a leading global information services provider meeting worldwide needs in the financial services, education and business information markets through leading brands such as Standard & Poor’s, McGraw-Hill Education, BusinessWeek and J.D. Power and Associates. The Corporation has more than 280 offices in 40 countries. Sales in 2007 were $6.8 billion. Additional information is available at http://www.mcgraw-hill.com/.
J.D. Power and Associates Web Intelligence Division
J.D. Power's Web Intelligence Division is unique in its ability to assess both what is being said, and who is doing the speaking in the online world. Umbria’s patent-pending technology enables the company to classify posts and estimate gender and age of the speaker, as well as rapidly identify and eliminate bogus spam posts. J.D. Power analyzes voices of the online community by using proprietary Natural Language Processing and machine learning algorithms to dissect the who, what and why of online opinion, offering in-depth insights for some of the world’s leading brands. For more information on Umbria, please visit www.umbrialistens.com.
No advertising or other promotional use can be made of the information in this release without the express prior written consent of J.D. Power and Associates. www.jdpower.com/corporate
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