I read Joel Makower‘s Strategies for the Green Economy a while ago, and since I’ve been returning to it every now and then, I might as well write a review.
After a great historic overview of the green movement, Makower takes a look at the green consumer. That consumers say one thing – we want green – and do another – they’re not buying green – should come as no surprise. Makower wants to know why that is, aside from human nature and flawed research methods. Relevance seems to be the key issue.
Businesses get more attention. Once you know your customers, determine where you stand: what you know, what you’re doing, and what you’re saying. Then you can chart your path to sustainability, learning from a ton of examples here.
Though the mostly short chapters all connect into a coherent whole, while covering a lot of ground, they seem like longish blog posts compiled into print. Nothing wrong with that, of course – I’m trying to achieve the same – other than that it provides for a breezy read, despite the abundance of data and facts. And I still can’t decide whether that’s fine business writing or non-sticky business class fare.
For a sustainable marketer the most actionable part of the book is Cara Pike’s appendix, which reports on Earthjustice market research about consumers’ environmental worldviews. Though I’m not a big fan of segmentation, preferring instead to understand target audiences through personas or stories, the breakdown into ten categories offered valuable insights into the American consumer’s mind.
The subtitle captures best the book’s content. Speaking from experience, Makower covers the range of challenges and opportunities in the world of green. As for strategies, you the reader must make your own conclusions from among the possibilities offered. While that may seem like a disappointment, any book that leaves you with more questions than answers should be applauded.
We have not reached a tipping point in green business, Makower says. Overviews like this one help get us a step closer.
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Joel Makower and Cara Pike, Strategies for the Green Economy: Opportunities and Challenges in the New World of Business, New York: McGraw Hill, 2009.
