2011

Prepared By: - GROUP 6

Arpita Baxi (104)

Nitisha Goyal (108)

Siddhesh Trivedi (121)

Harbir Singh Banga (302)

Harsh Gupta (308)

Ankit Ketan Shah (317)

Research Methodology Proposal: - Analyzing the Feasibility of Green Marketing in Indian

Automobile Industry

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

We acknowledge our gratitude to all the people who participated whole heartedly in our

surveys and contributed their valuable time in gathering very important data. We would also

like to give our gratitude to Prof. Dr. Jinu Kurian who gave us the knowledge and insight in

conducting a research and opportunity to conduct the same.

We also acknowledge our gratitude to all our class mates who helped us in preparing the

survey and at the same time responding to it.

The research has given us great insight in the subject of Research Methodology and has

also given us good encouragement to write research paper in a systematic manner.

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Green marketing is relatively new focus in business endeavors increased, leading to a

higher level of awareness of environmental issues in the business domain and many corporations

being required to consider the issues in their strategic planning in order to meet stricter

environmental standards. The past decade has shown that harnessing consumer power to effect

stricter environmental change is far easier said than done.

In recent era the automobile sector has been one of the major reasons behind global

warming due to its high carbon emissions. So it has become necessary to introduce green

technology vehicles in Indian market to reduce its effects on environment.

The development of green marketing strategy to a company is complex. Hence this

research covers the different aspects on feasibility of green marketing in automobile sector in

India.

The research studies the importance of different initiatives and strategies which can be

implemented by the automobile companies. Further various other factors has been taken into

consideration like the acceptance of green cars, the reasons behind the same which includes

factors like fuel efficiency, eco friendly, and economically viable fuel.

Also other aspects like affordability and status symbol may become a barrier to

acceptance.

INDEX

Chapter No. Topic Pg. No.

Title of the Research Proposal

Acknowledgements i

Executive Summary ii

1 INTRODUCTION 1

1.1 Introduction 1

1.2 Significance and need for study 2

1.3 Objectives of the study 2

2 LITERATURE REVIEW 5

2.1 Why Green Marketing? 6

2.2 Green Products and its Characteristics 7

2.3 Golden Rules in Green Marketing 8

2.4 Present Trend in Green Marketing in India 12

3 METHODOLOGY AND DATA SOURCES 14

3.1 Type of Method 14

3.2 Type of Research 14

3.3 Population and Sampling 15

3.4 Instruments 15

3.5 Unit of Analysis 16

3.6 Validity 16

4 RESEARCH FRAMEWORK OF THE STUDY 17

4.1 Proposed Framework 17

4.2 Theoretical Framework 18

4.3 Variables 19

4.4 Rationale of Framework 19

4.5 Hypothesis 20

5 DATA ANALYSIS AND INFERENCE 21

5.1 Research Question 21

5.2 Statistical Analysis & Inference 21

6 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS 25

6.1 Scope and Recommendations 25

6.2 Limitation of the study 26

7 REFERENCES 27

8 APPENDIX 28

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1. INTRODUCTION

1.1 Introduction

Environmental issues have gained importance in business as well as in public life

throughout the world. It is not like that a few leaders of different countries or few big renowned

business houses are concerned about the day to day deterioration of oxygen level in our

atmosphere but every common citizen of our country and the world is concerned about this

common threat of global warming. So in this scenario of global concern, corporate houses have

taken green-marketing as a part of their strategy to promote products by employing

environmental claims either about their attributes or about the systems, policies and processes of

the firms that manufacture or sell them. Clearly green marketing is part and parcel of all

corporate strategy; along with manipulating the traditional marketing mix (product, price,

promotion and place), it requires an understanding of public policy process. Smart business

houses have accepted green marketing as a part of their strategy.

This proposal will attempt to introduce – the terms and concept of green-marketing;

about the importance of green marketing; why firms use green marketing, it also highlights some

problems that organization may face to implement green marketing. What is the idea of green

marketing? Green marketing is basically marketing of products that are environmental

friendly/safe. Green marketing is not only about promotion of products in an environment

friendly manner. This concept is beyond just that and includes activities like product

modification, change of production process, packaging changes and modified advertising.

The idea behind green marketing is sustainable development i.e. meeting “the needs of

the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own need”.

Green marketing is associated with terms like recyclable, reusable, refillable, phosphate free,

ozone friendly, environment friendly, etc. It may extend from star ratings of electronic

equipment to measure energy efficiency to carbon points earned by a company to carbon

emissions by a car or its fuel economy or the use of CNG/LPG/Hybrid instead of fuel oil. Green

marketing is present everywhere around us and showcases and creating awareness among us the

green products compelling us to consume them instead of the conventional products and make a

difference without compromising on the needs.

Green marketing has 3 phases:

Ecological green marketing,

Environmental green marketing

Sustainable green marketing.

Green marketing products in the automotive industry can vary from electric cars/buses,

CNG/LPG driven vehicles, hybrid cars, low CO2 emission cars, bio diesel vehicles, hydrogen

powered cars, segways for personal transportation and many others. Technology is paving the to

save the environment and the oil reserves for the future generations to come and green marketing

is helping it along the way compelling people to look for other options. This study deals with

automobile sector and the green marketing involved in the industry.

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1.2 Significance and Need for the study

Green marketing is being adopted by companies across continents. Black carbon

emission along with other emissions like SO2, NOx, etc. is increasing day by day due to the

increasing addition of vehicles on the road each year causing health issues as well. Greenhouse

effect is one of the rises global concerns and needs to be addressed immediately and the

greenhouse gas emissions are to be controlled as soon as possible. Developed nations like

Germany, US etc. have controlled these emissions through technology but developing countries

like India are still nowhere near because of the expensive technology. The transport sector has an

overwhelming dependence on fossil fuels – oil alone accounts for 81 per cent of its energy use –

and of the total CO2 emissions from an average car, 76 per cent are from fuel usage. The

automobile‟s greenhouse gas burden is also evident from the fact that it is the second largest

contributor to global warming emissions from the transport sector (after road freight). This extent

of CO2 emissions from automobiles has transformed transport in general, and cars in particular,

from a local to a global issue.

1.3 Objectives of the study

Need for green marketing in automobile industry

Automobile sector growth in India was 21.6% in 2006 vs 2005

Urban air pollution: Productivity loss, human health effects and economic damage

from traffic congestion and air pollution are well documented (see Gorman 2002) and

have received wide media coverage. As a result, public policies to address these

problems are in place in most countries, but no city has been able to satisfactorily

contain them.

Source: World Bank World Development Indicators (WDI), 2006.

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Based on World Bank

(2006)

Global CO2 emissions: Carbon dioxide, particularly from transport and industry, is a

major greenhouse gas that contributes to global warming and thereby climate change.

Due to human activities such as the combustion of fossil fuels, deforestation, and the

increased release of CO2 from the oceans (due to the increase in the earth's

temperature), the concentration of atmospheric carbon dioxide has increased by about

35 per cent since the era of industrialization began. The world's total annual CO2

emissions from various sources are about 24-27 billion metric tons equivalent (UNSD

2008 and WRI 2008

Depleting natural resources: Indian imports are largest for fuel oil and world

reserves of oil are fast depleting. It is essential to come up with innovation in

technology to cope up with the rise in oil demand and shortage of supply which is

causing rise in prices year on year.

Barriers in introducing green marketing in India

Technological support to create green marketing does not exist to that extend and

automobile companies haven‟t invested towards it. But whatever technology is

present is too expensive to be introduced in the Indian market.

Already existing fuel cars network can‟t be replaced overnight.

Awareness amongst people towards emissions, its causes, health effects, economic

damage etc. is very limited in developing countries like India.

Lack of a comprehensive strategy to encourage the development of a green transport

sector.

Lack of understanding of the policy tools that can be used to influence behavioural

change, e.g., the role of (a) taxation or subsidies and (b) other regulatory, economic or

persuasive measures appealing to economic interests and moral/ethical

considerations.

Failure to realize the full potential of technological changes or innovations leading to

cleaner fuels and greener vehicles.

Lack of appreciation of the role of and need for public investment in infrastructure,

e.g., pedestrian and bicycle ways, light rail, good bus service and other forms of mass

transit.

No green fuel network or innovation present.

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Initiatives and strategies to be taken by automobile companies in India

Investment in green products like CNG/LPG kits in the cars for other source of fuel.

Hybrid cars developed and marketed by companies like Toyota and Honda with other

catching up

Electric cars are creating a buzz and are supposed to be the future with the lithium ion

batteries put in them.

Also government policies are in favor of the green products promoting them such as

strict laws for emissions by cars e.g. euro IV and bharat IV.

Gasoline prices rising up to make people buy CNG and other variants. Also greener

fuel are used now i.e. shift from leaded to unleaded fuel.

Delhi CNG program transformed public transportation and controlled air pollution

Technological advancement in I.C. engines and fuel economy e.g. a shift from 2-

stroke engines to 4-stroke.

Vehicles emission control switches are installed in automobiles to control emissions

and keep a check on it.

Measures can be taken to influence travel behavior amongst public:

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2. LITERATURE REVIEW

GREEN MARKETING: - it is the marketing of products that are presumed to be

environmentally safe. Thus green marketing incorporates a broad range of activities, including

product modification, changes to the production process, packaging changes, as well as

modifying advertising. Yet defining green marketing is not a simple task where several meanings

intersect and contradict each other; an example of this will be the existence of varying social,

environmental and retail definitions attached to this term. Other similar terms used

are Environmental Marketing and Ecological Marketing.

Environmental and eco-marketing are part of the new marketing approaches which do not just

refocus, adjust or enhance existing marketing thinking and practice, but seek to challenge those

approaches and provide a substantially different perspective. In more detail green, environmental

and eco-marketing belong to the group of approaches which seek to address the lack of fit

between marketing as it is currently practiced and the ecological and social realities of the wider

marketing environment.

Green marketing refers to the process of selling products and/or services based on their

environmental benefits. Such a product or service may be environmentally friendly in itself or

produced and/or packaged in an environmentally friendly way.

The obvious assumption of green marketing is that potential consumers will view a product or

service's "greenness" as a benefit and base their buying decision accordingly. The not-so-obvious

assumption of green marketing is that consumers will be willing to pay more for green products

than they would for a less-green comparable alternative product - an assumption that, in my

opinion, has not been proven conclusively.

While green marketing is growing greatly as increasing numbers of consumers are willing to

back their environmental consciousnesses with their dollars, it can be dangerous. The public

tends to be skeptical of green claims to begin with and companies can seriously damage their

brands and their sales if a green claim is discovered to be false or contradicted by a company's

other products or practices. Presenting a product or service as green when it's not is called green-

washing.

Green marketing can be a very powerful marketing strategy though when it's done right. Show

potential customers that you follow green business practices and you could reap more green on

your bottom line. Green marketing isn't just a catchphrase; it's a marketing strategy that can help

you get more customers and make more money. But only if you do it right.

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According to the American Marketing Association, Green marketing is the marketing of

products that are presumed to be environmentally safe. Thus green marketing incorporates a

broad range of activities, including product modification, changes to the production process,

packaging changes, as well as modifying advertising. Yet defining green marketing is not a

simple task where several meanings intersect and contradict each other; an example of this will

be the existence of varying social, environmental and retail definitions attached to this term.

Other similar terms used are Environmental Marketing and Ecological Marketing.

Thus "Green Marketing" refers to holistic marketing concept wherein the production, marketing

consumption an disposal of products and services happen in a manner that is less detrimental to

the environment with growing awareness about the implications of global warming, non-

biodegradable solid waste, harmful impact of pollutants etc., both marketers and consumers are

becoming increasingly sensitive to the need for switch in to green products and services. While

the shift to "green" may appear to be expensive in the short term, it will definitely prove to be

indispensable and advantageous, cost-wise too, in the long run.

Pride and Ferrell (1993) Green marketing, also alternatively known as environmental marketing

and sustainable marketing, refers to an organization's efforts at designing, promoting, pricing and

distributing products that will not harm the environment Polonsky (1994) defines green

marketing as .all activities designed to generate and facilitate any exchanges intended to satisfy

human needs or wants, such that the satisfaction of these needs and wants occurs, with minimal

detrimental impact on the natural environment. Elkington (1994: 93) defines green consumer as

one who avoids products that are likely to endanger the health of the consumer or others; cause

significant damage to the environment during manufacture, use or disposal; consume a

disproportionate amount of energy; cause unnecessary waste; use materials derived from

threatened species or environments; involve unnecessary use of, or cruelty to animals; adversely

affect other countries.

2.1 Why Green Marketing?

It is really scary to read these pieces of information as reported in the Times recently: "Air

pollution damage to people, crops and wildlife in US. Total tens of billions of dollars each year".

"More than 12 other studies in the US, Brazil Europe, Mexico, South Korea and Taiwan have

established links between air pollutants and low birth weight premature birth still birth and infant

death". As resources are limited and human wants are unlimited, it is important for the marketers

to utilize the resources efficiently without waste as well as to achieve the organization's

objective. So green marketing is inevitable. There is growing interest among the consumers all

over the world regarding protection of environment. Worldwide evidence indicates people are

concerned about the environment and are changing their behavior. As a result of this, green

marketing has emerged which speaks for growing market for sustainable and socially responsible

products and services.

Thus the growing awareness among the consumers all over the world regarding protection of the

environment in which they live, People do want to bequeath a clean earth to their offspring.

Various studies by environmentalists indicate that people are concerned about the environment

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and are changing their behavior pattern so as to be less hostile towards it. Now we see that most

of the consumers, both individual and industrial, are becoming more concerned about

environment friendly products.

Green marketing was given prominence in the late 1980s and 1990s after the proceedings of the

first workshop on Ecological marketing held in Austin, Texas (US), in 1975. Several books on

green marketing began to be published thereafter. According to the Joel makeover (a writer,

speaker and strategist on clean technology and green marketing), green marketing faces a lot of

challenges because of lack of standards and public consensus to what constitutes "Green".

The green marketing has evolved over a period of time. According to Peattie (2001), the

evolution of green marketing has three phases. First phase was termed as "Ecological" green

marketing, and during this period all marketing activities were concerned to help environment

problems and provide remedies for environmental problems. Second phase was "Environmental"

green marketing and the focus shifted on clean technology that involved designing of innovative

new products, which take care of pollution and waste issues. Third phase was "Sustainable"

green marketing. It came into prominence in the late 1990s and early 2000.

2.2 Green Products and its Characteristics

The products those are manufactured through green technology and that caused no

environmental hazards are called green products. Promotion of green technology and green

products is necessary for conservation of natural resources and sustainable development. We can

define green products by following measures:

i. Products those are originally grown,

ii. Products those are recyclable, reusable and biodegradable,

iii. Products with natural ingredients,

iv. Products containing recycled contents, non-toxic chemical,

v. Products contents under approved chemical,

vi. Products that do not harm or pollute the environment,

vii. Products that will not be tested on animals,

viii. Products that have eco-friendly packaging i.e. reusable, refillable containers etc.

CHALLENGES IN GREEN MARKETING

Need for Standardization

It is found that only 5% of the marketing messages from “Green” campaigns are entirely true and

there is a lack of standardization to authenticate these claims. There is no standardization to

authenticate these claims. There is no standardization currently in place to certify a product as

organic. Unless some regulatory bodies are involved in providing the certifications there will not

be any verifiable means. A standard quality control board needs to be in place for such labeling

and licensing.

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New Concept

Indian literate and urban consumer is getting more aware about the merits of Green products. But

it is still a new concept for the masses. The consumer needs to be educated and made aware of

the environmental threats. The new green movements need to reach the masses and that will take

a lot of time and effort. By India's ayurvedic heritage, Indian consumers do appreciate the

importance of using natural and herbal beauty products. Indian consumer is exposed to healthy

living lifestyles such as yoga and natural food consumption. In those aspects the consumer is

already aware and will be inclined to accept the green products.

Patience and Perseverance

The investors and corporate need to view the environment as a major long-term investment

opportunity, the marketers need to look at the long-term benefits from this new green movement.

It will require a lot of patience and no immediate results. Since it is a new concept and idea, it

will have its own acceptance period.

Avoiding Green Myopia

The first rule of green marketing is focusing on customer benefits i.e. the primary reason why

consumers buy certain products in the first place. Do this right, and motivate consumers to

switch brands or even pay a premium for the greener alternative. It is not going to help if a

product is developed which is absolutely green in various aspects but does not pass the customer

satisfaction criteria. This will lead to green myopia. Also if the green products are priced very

high then again it will lose its market acceptability.

2.3 Golden Rules of Green Marketing

I. Know you're Customer:

Make sure that the consumer is aware of and concerned about the issues that your product

attempts to address, (Whirlpool learned the hard way that consumers wouldn't pay a premium for

a CFC-free refrigerator because consumers dint know what CFCs were.).

II. Educating your customers:

Isn't just a matter of letting people know you're doing whatever you're doing to protect the

environment, but also a matter of letting them know why it matter. Otherwise, for a significant

portion of your target market, it's a case of "So what?" and your green marketing campaign goes

nowhere.

III. Being Genuine & Transparent:

Means that

a) You are actually doing what you claim to be doing in your green marketing campaign &

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b) The rest of your business policies are consistent with whatever you are doing that's

environmentally friendly. Both these conditions have to be met for your business to

establish the kind of environmental credentials that will allow a green marketing

campaign to succeed.

IV. Reassure the Buyer:

Consumers must be made to believe that the product performs the job it's supposed to do-they

won't forego product quality in the name of the environment.

V. Consider Your Pricing:

If you're charging a premium for your product-and many environmentally preferable products

cost more due to economies of scale and use of higher-quality ingredients-make sure those

consumers can afford the premium and feel it's worth it.

VI. Giving your customers an opportunity to participate:

Means personalizing the benefits of your environmentally friendly actions, normally through

letting the customer take part in positive environmental action.

VII. Thus leading brands should recognize that consumer expectations have changed:

It is not enough for a company to green its products; consumers expect the products that they

purchase pocket friendly and also to help reduce the environmental impact in their own lives too.

GREEN MARKETING – ADOPTS BY THE FIRMS

Green marketing has been widely adopted by the firms worldwide and the following are the

possible reasons cited for this wide adoption:

I. Opportunities - As demand changes, many firms see these changes as an opportunity to

exploit and have a competitive advantage over firms marketing non-environmentally

responsible alternatives. Some examples of firms who have strived to become more

environmentally responsible, in an attempt to better satisfy their consumer needs are:

McDonald's replaced its clam shell packaging with waxed paper because of increased

consumer concern relating to polystyrene production and Ozone depletion.

Tuna manufacturers modified their fishing techniques because of the increased

concern over driftnet fishing, and the resulting death of dolphins.

Xerox introduced a "high quality" recycled photocopier paper in an attempt to satisfy

the demands of firms for less environmentally harmful products.

II. Government Pressure - As with all marketing related activities, governments want to

"protect" consumer and society; this protection has significant green marketing

implications. Government regulations relating to environmental marketing are designed

to protect consumers in several ways,

Reduce production of harmful goods or by-products Modify consumer and industry's

use and/or consumption of harmful goods

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Ensure that all types of consumers have the ability to evaluate the environmental

composition of goods. Government establishes regulations designed to control the

amount of hazardous wastes produced by firms.

III. Competitive Pressure - Another major force in the environmental marketing area has

been firms' desire to maintain their competitive position. In many cases firms observe

competitors promoting their environmental behaviors and attempt to emulate this

behavior. In some instances this competitive pressure has caused an entire industry to

modify and thus reduce its detrimental environmental behavior. For example when one

tuna manufacture stopped using driftnets the others followed suit.

IV. Social Responsibility - Many firms are beginning to realize that they are members of the

wider community and therefore must behave in an environmentally responsible fashion.

This translates into firms that believe they must achieve environmental objectives as well

as profit related objectives. This results in environmental issues being integrated into the

firm's corporate culture. There are examples of firms adopting both strategies.

An example of a firm that does not promote its environmental initiative is Coca-Cola.

They have invested large sums of money in various recycling activities, as well as having

modified their packaging to minimize its environmental impact. While being concerned

about the environment, Coke has not used this concern as a marketing tool. Thus many

consumers may not realize that Coke is a very environmentally committed organization.

Another firm who is very environmentally responsible but does not promote this fact, at

least outside the organization, is Walt Disney World (WDW). WDW has an extensive

waste management program and infrastructure in place, yet these facilities are not

highlighted in their general tourist promotional activities.

V. Cost of Profit Issues - Firms may also use green marketing in an attempt to address cost

or profit related issues. Disposing of environmentally harmful byproducts, such as

polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) contaminated oil are becoming increasingly costly and in

some cases difficult. Therefore firms that can reduce harmful wastes may incur

substantial cost savings. When attempting to minimize waste, firms are often forced to re-

examine their production processes. In these cases they often develop more effective

production processes that not only reduce waste, but reduce the need for some raw

materials. This serves as a double cost savings, since both waste and raw material are

reduced. In other cases firms attempt to find end - of - pipe solutions, instead of

minimizing waste. In these situations firms try to find markets or uses for their waste

materials, where one firm's waste becomes another firm's input of production.

One Australian example of this is a firm who produces acidic waste water as a by-product

of production and sells it to a firm involved in neutralizing base materials.

SOME CASES

Interestingly, green marketing continues to be an issue of global interest. In fact, Google Trends

reports that, on a relative basis, more searches for “green marketing” originated from India than

from any other country.

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Many companies are adopting green for capturing market opportunity of green marketing some

cases

EXAMPLE: Indian Oil's Green Agenda Green Initiatives

Indian Oil is fully geared to meet the target of reaching EURO-III compliant fuels to all parts of

the country by the year 2010; major cities will upgrade to Euro-IV compliant fuels by that time.

Indian Oil has invested about Rs. 7,000 crore so far in green fuel projects at its refineries;

ongoing projects account for a further Rs. 5,000 crore.

Motor Spirit Quality Improvement Unit commissioned at Mathura Refinery; similar units

are coming up at three more refineries.

Diesel quality improvement facilities in place at all seven Indian Oil refineries, several

more green fuel projects are under implementation or on the anvil.

The R&D Centre of Indian Oil is engaged in the formulations of eco-friendly

biodegradable lube formulations.

The Centre has been certified under ISO-14000:1996 for environment management

systems.

GREEN FUEL ALTERNATIVES

In the country's pursuit of alternative sources of energy, Indian Oil is focusing on CNG

(compressed natural gas), Auto gas (LPG), ethanol blended petrol, bio-diesel, and Hydrogen

energy.

EXAMPLE: Eco-friendly Rickshaws before CWG

Chief minister Shiela Dikshit launched on Tuesday a batteryoperated rickshaw, “E-rick”,

sponsored by a cellular services provider, to promote eco-friendly transportation in the city ahead

of the Commonwealth Games.

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2.4 Present Trend in Green Marketing in India

Organizations are Perceive Environmental marketing as an Opportunity to achieve its objectives.

Firms have realized that consumers prefer products that do not harm the natural environment as

also the human health. Firms marketing such green products are preferred over the others not

doing so and thus develop a competitive advantage, simultaneously meeting their business

objectives.

Organizations believe they have a moral obligation to be more socially responsible. This is in

keeping with the philosophy of CSR which has been successfully adopted by many business

houses to improve their corporate image. Firms in this situation can take two approaches:

Use the fact that they are environmentally responsible as a marketing tool.

Become responsible without prompting this fact.

Governmental Bodies are forcing Firms to Become More Responsible. In most cases the

government forces the firm to adopt policy which protects the interests of the consumers. It does

so in following ways:

Reduce production of harmful goods or by products

Modify consumer and industry's use and /or consumption of harmful goods; or

Ensure that all types of consumers have the ability to evaluate the environmental

composition of goods.

Competitors' Environmental Activities Pressure Firms to change their Environmental Marketing

Activities. In order to get even with competitors claim to being environmentally friendly, firms

change over to green marketing. Result is green marketing percolates entire industry.

Cost Factors Associated With Waste Disposal or Reductions in Material Usage Forces Firms to

Modify their Behavior. With cost cutting becoming part of the strategy of the firms it adopts

green marketing in relation to these activities. It may pursue these as follows:

A Firm develops a technology for reducing waste and sells it to other firms.

A waste recycling or removal industry develops.

THE FUTURE OF GREEN MARKETING

There are many lessons to be learned to be learned to avoid green marketing myopia, the short

version of all this is that effective green marketing requires applying good marketing principles

to make green products desirable for consumers. The question that remains, however, is, what is

green marketing's future? Business scholars have viewed it as a “fringe” topic, given that

environmentalism's acceptance of limits and conservation does not mesh well with marketing's

traditional axioms of “give customer what they want” and “sell as much as you can”.Evidence

indicates that successful green products have avoided green marketing myopia by Following

three important principles:

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CONSUMER VALUE POSITIONING

Design environmental products to perform as well as (or better than) alternatives.

Promote and deliver the consumer desired value of environmental products and target

relevant consumer market segments.

Broaden mainstream appeal by bundling consumer desired value into environmental

products.

CALIBRATION OF CONSUMER KNOWLEDGE

Educate consumers with marketing messages that connect environmental attributes with

desired consumer value.

Frame environmental product attributes as “solutions” for consumer needs.

Create engaging and educational internet sites about environmental products desired

consumer value.

CREDIBILITY OF PRODUCT CLAIM

Employ environmental product and consumer benefit claims that are specific and

meaningful.

Procure product endorsements or eco-certifications from trustworthy third parties and

educate consumers about the meaning behind those endorsements and eco-certifications.

Encourage consumer evangelism via consumers social and internet communication

network with compelling, interesting and entertaining information about environmental

products.

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3. METHODOLOGY AND DATA SOURCES

The basic research plan and the data sources are the most important parts for any successful

research. This section depicts the basic research plan and the data sources used. This section of

the research proposal states the following points:

1. Type of Method: Method to be used for the research.

2. Type of Research: Research to be done.

3. Population and Sampling: This involves the sample for the research and the population

involved. The data collection sources have also been specified.

4. Instruments: Includes the instrument used to collect the data.

5. Units of analysis: Includes the scales used for the survey.

6. Validity: Checking the correctness of the data.

The basic research paradigm is:

1. Define the population

2. Draw a representative sample from the defined population

3. Do the research on the sample

4. Infer results from the sample

3.1 Type of Method

There could be a qualitative or a quantitative approach to be used for the research.

Qualitative study is chosen in our study because of its flexible structure. The aim of the research

was to study the social phenomena.

A qualitative study is a method which is used to deeply recognize certain facts. This type

of analysis is based on words, on the views of participants and a structural approach that differs

from a quantitative study.

This type of study indeed gave a deeper understanding of the subject. This methodology

is apt for this study as it was the best way to discover exactly the scope of green automobiles in

Indian market. The preference of green automobiles over regular automobiles was effectively

studied.

3.2 Type of Research

Exploratory research is used for the research. An exploratory research should be used

when looking for insights about a specific issue. This kind of research is particularly efficient

when there is little preceding knowledge.

In this case, since there was little prior information about the subject, that kind of

research was considered as the more suitable solution. The aim was to increase the experience

with the problem and fulfil the purpose of the research.

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3.3 Population and Sampling

As our research includes the use of a survey, sampling becomes a very important issue.

The value of survey research findings depends heavily on the quality of the research sample.

When you wish to measure attitudes from a large population, sampling is called for because it is

too expensive to collect input from all members of the population. But the sample must

accurately represent the population, or else the research findings are of questionable value.

Hence in our case we have selected a sample size between 100 to 150 respondents. The

population for the entire survey will be students and working employees above the age of 20

years. We have chosen this as the sample considering the fact that these are the major target

people who will be using the green cars.

The procedure which we have adopted for our analysis is:

1. Primary data collection- Primary data is used for analyzing the demand and feasibility of

green cars in Indian market. Basically, the behaviour of consumers can be studied in regard to

the green cars. The survey helps to identify the respondents “likelihood to buy” the products. The

primary data for the proposal is obtained from the surveys.

2. Secondary data collection- Secondary data is used for analyzing the strategies to implement

green products in India and barriers associated with it. An insight to the earlier green products

can be obtained from the secondary data. The secondary data for the proposal is obtained from

the literature review.

3.4 Instruments

Primary data is basically obtained from the surveys which were carried out on social

networking sites, mails and blogs. This included people from various areas aged above 20 years.

We selected this bunch as these are the main people involved in buying the green cars or taking

decisions about the green cars.

The parameters for the study are:

1. Do you think India needs green cars?

2. Would you prefer a green car for yourself?

3. Why would you prefer a green car because it is?

4. Which company, according to you, should adopt green marketing in their products?

5. How much are you willing to pay for a green car?

6. Would you prefer Toyota Prius of Rs.25Lakh over a Mercedes C-Class of Rs. 26Lakh?

The data was used to analyse the demand and feasibility of green products in Indian market.

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3.5 Unit of Analysis

In the survey that was conducted by us, there was no specific scaling technique that was

used. There were options given for the various questions and the demand of the green cars was

analysed accordingly. The options did not include any rating scale. They simply had options

which the customer was aware of. For example:

1. Why would you prefer a green car because it is ?

a. Environment Friendly

b. Fuel-Efficient

c. Less Noise

d. Economically viable fuel

e. Others

The above question gave various options to the consumer for selecting their choice. Hence

our survey consists of closed-end questions as these are the most preferred type of questions.

The survey also consisted of the Nominal scale since we have employed Yes/NO options

in our survey. These were mainly designed for analyzing the consumers‟ preferences.

3.6 Validity

The purpose of the survey is to measure what is the objective of the research thereby fulfilling

the purpose of the research. The data has to be validated then. Validation means the degree to

which the research reflects the given problem.

1. Population Validity: The sample that we have considered represents the population to a great

extent. We have targeted our sample on the social networking sites, mails and blogs. So

anyone was free to fill the survey. Hence, the sample represents the population and validates

our research method.

2. Content Validity: This is to validate that the survey logically appears to accurately measure

what it is intended to measure. The options provided in the survey were the most probable

answers that the respondents will give. The questionnaire was also designed in such a way

that the respondents were aware of the issues raised in the survey. Hence the content was

validated.

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4. RESEARCH FRAMEWORK OF THE STUDY

4.1 Proposed Framework

The study of feasibility of green marketing is done by analyzing the need in the market,

the barriers, the initiatives taken for green marketing and the strategies adopted. Green

Marketing is understood as a promotion of environmentally safe products. This research suggests

different parameters which should be considered for analyzing the feasibility. The willingness

and need for the eco-friendly cars is one of the most important factors in the feasibility. There

may be many barriers to the introduction of green cars but initiatives taken by companies to

make vehicles environment friendly will help the introduction in India. For making green cars a

success, the companies need to apply different strategies which can be adopted for green

marketing of cars.

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4.2 Theoretical Framework

Independent Moderating Variables Intervening Variables Dependent

Variable Variable

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4.3 Variables

1. Feasibility:

The research is concerned about the green marketing feasibility in automobile industry in

India so it is made the dependent variable for the framework.

2. Need :

The need or willingness to buy of the customers for the green product is important to be

known for studying the scope of green marketing. As it directly affects the feasibility it is

considered to be the dependent variable.

3. Barriers:

The different factors for making a new technology convenient in terms of fuel availability

and acceptance of the product are some of the barriers that may affect the feasibility.

4. Initiative :

Companies need to take initiatives to spread awareness among people about the green

products; this will make the products more feasible for them.

5. Strategies:

Green Marketing can be implemented by using different strategies which can increase the

awareness and make people more inclined towards buying green products.

6. Preference:

People may prefer a normal car over an eco-friendly car, hence it can act as a barrier to

the feasibility of green marketing.

7. Affordability:

Due to implementation of new technologies, the product may be costly and people may

not be able to afford those cars.

8. Adoption of new technologies:

A new technology should be marketed well for proper adoption and its requirements

should be noted for increasing the feasibility.

9. Status Barrier:

As the cost barrier may affect people to go for options which show their status rather than

adapting to a new green car.

4.4 Rationale of framework

According to previous researches done in India as well as other countries and the

literature obtained from surveys, the above mentioned variables have only been chosen for study

and analysis. Some other variables such as Fuel availability, Maintenance and repair availability,

customer liking of the product, speed of the vehicle and promotion of green vehicles have not

been considered here since their significance as variables in the study of feasibility of green

marketing has been proved to be of low significance, and so only the most important variables

that is have only been considered.

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4.5 Hypothesis

Green marketing is increasing due to the awareness about the damage caused to the

environment people look forward to decrease the harm done to the environment by them. Green

Marketing has not entered the Indian market largely but its introduction in specially automobile

industry may create new openings for companies.

We hypothesize as:

Hypothesis 1:

People find the need for green cars based on new technologies which have a minimal impact on

environment in India.

Hypothesis 2:

People are ready to buy green cars because it is eco-friendly and fuel efficient.

Hypothesis 3:

Green Marketing will be adopted by different automobile companies with a view of reducing the

impact on environment.

Hypothesis 4:

People would prefer a green car over status symbol signifying their concern to environment.

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5. DATA ANALYSIS AND INFERENCE

5.1 Research Question

What are the different factors affecting the feasibility of

green marketing in the automobile industry of India?

5.2 Statistical Analysis and Inference

Acceptance in Indian market

According to the results of survey we can see that maximum people have opted for a green car

i.e. 95% of people think that India needs a green car which is environment friendly and also fuel

efficient whereas only 5 % would not like to go for an eco friendly car.

The reason why such high number of people would like to go for a green car is that India has

largest number of carbon emissions in the world and the largest contribution is by the vehicles

and people are more and more being aware about the global warming issues. Also coping with

the ever rising fuel prices is becoming more and more difficult now a days and also due to other

health reasons more and more people want to opt for eco friendly cars.

95%

5%

Acceptance of green car

Rejection of green car

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Preference of green car

Now after learning the acceptance in Indian market the next thing which came was

whether they would prefer an eco friendly car for themselves and as per the results we came to

know that 90% would like to buy a green car whereas 10% did not like the idea of buying a

green car, one of the reasons behind less preference is the price factor.

Reasons behind acceptance of green car

Further analysis were carried out to find out the reasons for acceptance among the people

and 81 % said that they would like to buy the car as it is eco friendly, 70% said that they would

prefer as it is fuel efficient, 38% said that it has less noise compared to other vehicles, and 71%

said it has economically viable fuel.

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Preferred car manufacturer

As we can see maximum percent of people around 74% prefer Toyota as people trust the

brand and its quality and also it has one of the best technology in the world, on the second

number comes Tata which has preference of 44% because of the image of Ratan Tata who has a

good symbolic image and also Tata has always taken good care of the environment in all its

products, similarly Maruti is preferred around 34% and Mahindra around 12%.

Affordability

As seen above few of them did not prefer green cars, one of the main reason was its price

as the hybrid cars range for more than 20 lakhs. When asked if a green technology car is

available for just around 10- 15 lakhs around 77% of people said that they won‟t mind going for

it but if its more than 20 lakh they would prefer another better car as discussed further.

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Status symbol

As seen in the previous case people would go for some another car if its its price is more

than 25 lakhs, as given in this question which asks if they would prefer a Toyota prius which is

an hybrid car for around 25 lakh or a Mercedes C class which is of around same price. Around

60 % of people said that they would want to buy a Mercedes car over Toyota prius and when

reason asked they said that it would be a better status symbol.

Hence as per the findings it seems that most of the people would accept the green technology car

but only major barriers are price affordability and status symbol.

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6. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS

The aim of the research was to study the demand of green products among the people in

Indian market. Indian people are aware of the green products. This fact was assumed in the

survey. The survey helped to analyse that there is a huge demand for green products in the Indian

market. People care for the environment and prefer green automobiles over other regular

automobiles. Most people believe that the country needs green cars to reduce population as well

as to reduce large fuel consumption by the regular automobiles. The people prefer green cars

because of various reasons. The green cars are environment friendly and fuel-efficient. These

cars run on battery and hence there is economically viable fuel used in the green cars. Green cars

are also known to make less noise. Hence, the various people prefer green cars because of the

different reasons which are of importance to the people.

The survey also suggests that people prefer green automobiles by the company that they

like or the company they think will be the most efficient in making green cars. The economic

conditions of people also play a very important role in deciding their preference for the green

cars. People mostly prefer a cheap green car lying within the range of 15-20Lakhs. However, if

the price is increased the demand for the car will be falling down.

6.1 Scope and Recommendations

As we saw it in this survey and other researches, the environmental issues have become a

real preoccupation for the society. The second biggest source of CO2 emissions is the transport

sector and more specifically the automotive sector which is responsible of 10% of the total

amount of CO2 emissions in the world. So far, it has been really important to first have a better

idea of how the marketing could deal with and improve the environment. Secondly it was

important to have a look at and analyze the behavior of the automotive sector since it was one of

the most pollutants and was for sure deeply concerned by the environmental issues.

Moreover, it appears that if sometimes the use of some measures supposed to reduce the

CO2 emission was established by the Governments, the consumers have become more interested

in environmental-friendly products. It is the reason why it was important to develop a model that

allows an analysis of the green marketing involvement of the automotive industries but also

gives the opportunity to compare them together.

While reaching the end of this thesis, the analysis done makes possible to retain some

remarks. First of all, it was clear that nowadays the automotive sector is really concerned about

the environment. The investments in research and development are huge and the cars industry

has really understood that the respect of the environment by their product is really a key to catch

the consumers.

In conclusion we can notice that the environment has become a big concern and that the

automotive industries feel more concerned about this phenomenon. It is certitude that this

phenomenon is still new at the moment but will be a key in the future. Indeed, the whole society

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would take care about the environment in order to protect the planet and a company without

ecological involvement will become singular or will probably struggle to survive.

6.2 Limitations of the study

This research focuses only on the main product proposed by the study research: the

„everyday‟ cars. The study eventually decided to leave aside the other activities or products

delivered by the brands, such as the motorbikes, the trucks, the racing cars, or even the engines...

This research focuses only on some specific factors which are considered to be important

and not every factor affecting the green marketing.

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7. REFERENCES

[1] Business Research Methods: William G. Zikmund

[2] Integration of Green Marketing within the automotive industry - DE CRAECKER François

and DE WULF Loïc

[3] Consumer Responses to Green Products: The Influence of Psychological Collectivism - Anna

Helm,

[4] J.A Ottman,. et al, "Avoiding Green Marketing Myopia", Environment, Vol-48, June-2006

[5] www.greenmarketing.net/stratergic.html

[6] www.epa.qld.gov.au/sustainable_ industries

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8. APPENDIX

Survey Questionnaire

This survey is conducted for a project of RM based on “Analyzing the feasibility of green cars in

Indian market”. Kindly donate some time and fill this Survey Questionnaire. We assure you

complete confidentiality of data.

1. Do you think India needs green cars?

a. Yes

b. No

2. Would you prefer a green car for yourself?

a. Yes

b. No

3. Why would you prefer a green car because it is?

a. Environment Friendly

b. Fuel-Efficient

c. Less Noise

d. Economically Viable fuel

4. Which company, according to you, should adopt green marketing in their products?

a. Tata

b. Toyota

c. Mahindra

d. Maruti

e. Other

5. How much are you willing to pay for a green car?

a. 10-15Lakhs

b. 15-20Lakhs

c. 20-25Lakhs

d. 25-30Lakhs

6. Would you prefer Toyota Prius (hybrid green car) of Rs.25Lakh over a Mercedes C-Class

of Rs. 28Lakh?

a. Yes

b. No