Recycling as an Advertisement Strategy in Business Today

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 CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background
Business organisations operate in highly competitive environments. The marketplace has
become especially more competitive in the age of technology and social media due to the ease of
access to information by consumers (Liu and Lopez, 2016). Consumers use the Internet to access
and share information that influence their purchasing decisions and those of others (De los
Santos, 2018). As a result of the ever-changing consumer needs and preferences driven by
increased access to information, business organisations must create marketing strategies that
result in sustainable competitive advantages to achieve long-term success in the marketplace.
One of the key changes that has occurred in the business environment is an increased
preference by consumers for products and services that are produced through sustainable
practices (Evans et al., 2017). Increased global warming has driven many consumers to prefer
engaging with organisations that center their production practices on sustainability objectives.
Firms that implement sustainability strategies are, therefore, likely to gain a competitive
advantage in the marketplace (Schaltegger and Burritt, 2018). A major benefit of engaging in
sustainable practices in the business environment and developing sustainability objectives is
improved corporate reputation (Svensson and Wagner, 2015). Firms that implement social and
environmental sustainability strategies benefit from a good reputation in the business
environment which, in turn, enhances their competitive advantages in the business environment.
The need for firms to engage in environmentally sustainable practices has seen many
organisations shift toward green packaging to demonstrate that they are concerned about the
impacts of their activities on the environment. At the same time, some companies have resorted
to eco-labels to inform consumers that their products have been manufactured through
environmentally sustainable practices. The use of eco-labels is an advertising strategy aimed at
increasing sales among consumers that prefer green products (Testa et al., 2015). Some firms
have also resorted to recycling as a strategy to demonstrate their concern for the environment.
Such companies either ask customers to drop used products at a collection point for recycling or
they use recycled materials to manufacture new products (Martinho et al., 2015). Environmental
sustainability as a marketing strategy is also ideal in a business environment that is defined by
stiff competition because it enables firms to compete through differentiation without necessarily
lowering their prices. A low-pricing strategy can erode the bottom line of a company hence the
need to develop competitive strategies such as differentiation that do not negatively affect the
profitability of a firm.
Given the importance of environmental sustainability in the contemporary marketplace,
there is a need to examine whether business organisations can use environmental sustainability
as a marketing strategy to gain a competitive advantage in the business environment. The study
specifically explores whether business organisations in the current marketplace can use recycling
as an advertising strategy to positively influence consumer purchase decisions and achieve
profitability objectives.
1.2 Research Problem
Advertising mainly focuses on human psychology to influence consumer purchase
decisions (Venkatraman et al., 2015). The implication of the association between advertising and
consumer psychology means that organisations must understand the needs and preferences of
their target market to develop effective advertising strategies. Firms must know the types of
appeals to use to ensure that advertising messages appeal to consumers. Increased preference for
green products among consumers presents an opportunity for business organisations to exploit
and increase their competitive advantage in the business environment (Testa et al., 2015).
However, in spite of growing consumer concerns regarding the sustainability practices of
business organisations, firms must understand how they can use various appeals to enhance the
efficacy of advertising messages and positively influence consumer purchase decisions. Thus
while recycling is an environmentally sustainable practice, organisations must understand how
they can use it in advertising to positively influence consumer purchase decisions because
customers do not look for only one feature in a product. The key issue, therefore, is whether
organisations can successfully use recycling as advertisement to influence consumers to purchase
their products.
 References
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