When considering what product to buy, consumers consider a number of attributes: price, quality, availability—and, increasingly, sustainability. The green movement has already gained momentum, thanks to growing consciousness of global warming, greenhouse gas emissions, and the consequences for our planet, our species, and our individual well-being. Green ways of thinking and purchasing continue to become more and more mainstream. The largest group is younger consumers who are aware of their imperiled future should climate change continue to go unaddressed.
The market forces of competitive advantage
The market forces of competitive advantage already favor environmental responsibility. Those who are ahead of the curve in reducing their carbon footprint will have a competitive edge. Additionally, those who are able to achieve carbon neutrality will have the greatest competitive advantage. However, until now, the carbon footprint of a product has not been easy to determine, especially for a consumer trying to make a decision on the spot in a store or shopping online.
ICEMAN and CFI label
ICEMAN can change all of that. With a CFI label, a consumer will be able to evaluate the carbon footprint of a product at a moment’s glance. The consumer will know for a fact that the product’s “greenness” is verified through a mathematically based method. With ICEMAN, carbon neutrality can be an attribute for consumers to consider the same way they do attributes like price, quality, and availability. If there are two products that are more or less equivalent in terms of quality and price, a consumer may choose one over the other based on which has the smaller carbon footprint. It’s common sense that someone would want to pick the product that would have less of a negative impact on the environment. Moreover, consumers will choose a product that has no negative impact on the environment over all others.
“Green” attributes
Consumers already prefer to purchase green products and services over those that are not. Thus, embracing products with sustainable or “green” attributes. Corporations, businesses, manufacturers, and all producers of goods and services already seek a competitive advantage by promoting the “green” attributes of their products or operations. When a company can objectively prove its carbon neutrality, its competitive advantage will go through the roof.
The competitive advantage
As consumers continue to embrace green products, a company that can deliver accurate, understandable, and reliable information will have a competitive advantage in the marketplace. If a company does not include its carbon footprint, as simply displayed with a CFI label on a product, consumers will be less likely to consider it. Thus, the company will lose market share.
When consumers are educated on comparing the carbon footprints of different products, they are going to choose the product that is better for the environment. Therefore, with ICEMAN, carbon neutrality can become one of the most powerful competitive advantages available.