After making a purchase at the Apple Store this weekend, the helpful girl on the desk asked if I would be happy to have my receipt emailed, rather than printed.
Wow! When even my grandma (she really does) has an email address, and most purchases are made with plastic, paper receipts are an anachronism in a sustainable society.
Thing is, why aren't supermarkets who print larger volumes of receipts than any other retailer, doing this? Sustainable bags made from jute are great, but what about the rest of the buying process? Receipts? Even baskets and trolleys?
Consumers might like a more tangible piece of paper for high involvement purchases, but no receipt = C02 emissions down, toxic inks eliminated and forests preserved. Lets not forget a reduction in costs and an incentive for e-mail data capture.
A super example of making something everyday, sustainable. The helpful girl still insisted on giving me a plastic bag though :-)
Friday 28 September 2007
Music to our ears
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
5 comments:
It can be the little things, though I think that the 'high street' has an ulterior motive for emailling receipts, they now have your email address and can spam you at will.
The other thing is the receipt is probably instantly recyclable while the bag will out live me and my kids.
I dofeel that any green commitments expressed by brands are gimmicks to attract the eco-consumer or sops to the cororate conscience; there seems a lot of empty words and unchanged practice - even though mostly noone needs a carrier bag the shop must have you carry its logo.
Am I a cynic? Probably, keep up the fight, its people like you that may just be able to change the world
Cynics are great! There are a lot of brands 'greenwashing' which I think consumers are starting to see through.
In this instance, the retailer does have a responsibility. Although how about the card companies too?
How about a card where with every purchase, instead of a reciept you get an email?
I agree with Luke that this is a fantastic idea. Why are more retailers not providing the same service. How often do you buy your lunch or any small purchase and get given an annoying receipt which you clearly do not want and through away at the earliest opportunity. The Co-op have already changed their processes as you have to ask to get a receipt, I love it. Lets hope that other retailers catch on soon.
Other great examples of green promotions which drive acquisiton are:
Autos: Volkswagen of America announced its “Carbon Neutral Project”, a campaign that offers to offset the carbon emissions for one year. This promotional benefit is being offered on a trial basis and expires on January 2, 2008.
Banking: Several banks offer discounts on auto and home-equity loans that pay for environmentally-friendly goods. One of the most generous is the Carolina Postal Credit Union, which serves US Postal Employees and Federal Employees in North Carolina, which offers a 1% discount on auto loans when purchasing a hybrid.
Credit cards: Today, it is common for credit card companies to offer one-time bonus miles for signing up for an airline affinity card. The latest entrant into the green card market, Metabank, puts a different spin on this promotional benefit: bonus carbon credits. Every new applicant receives the equivalent of 10,000 lbs of CO2 offsets - the average annual CO2 emission of a car in the US – when they sign up for their green card.
Real Estate: NY-based Moss Real Estate Group offers both buyers and sellers in a completed transaction offsets for their carbon emissions for one year.
Telecommunications: San Francisco-based wireless carrier Working Assets announced that it offers new subscriber a “carbon neutral phone” (a $55 value) to offset average CO2 emissions caused by phone use over the next year.
It's an interesting technique yet if a brand chooses to acquire a customer with a green promo, and that consumer is sucked into the brand portfolio as a result, it's probably best if across the long-term relationship with that consumer, other green initiatives and method of rewarding loyalty are prevalent throughout.
Thoughts anyone?
Post a Comment