Environment « Brian Junyor

27Apr/081

Green Marketing?

A post by Chris Keating over at The Wiccan Scientist regarding his growing skepticism over the environmental impact of plastic bags reminded me of a Burst Media study from earlier this month. According the the survey, 65.3% of consumers say they "sometimes" believe green claims made in advertisements. 22.7% of consumer say they seldom or never believe green claims made in advertisements. That's a whopping 88% of consumer who are skeptical about products pitched to them as green.

Interestingly, given all the cynicism, 81.9% of the respondents have incorporated some level of green activity in their lives. This indicates to me that most folks want to live in a way that is environmentally conscious, but don't trust corporate america to give them the real skinny on their products.

The internet has given the average citizen access to a vast amount of data to be able to verify the claims advertisers make about their products. In fact, the same study found that 41.6% of respondents frequently or occasionally research the claims made in green advertisements.

Making an emotional connection with your customers has always been important, but in the digital age you'd better make sure that you are telling them the truth. The age of buyer beware is slowly turning into the age of seller beware -- otherwise, you'll be called to task, probably on a forum board, blog, or wikipedia.

And as for my paper or plastic preference, I have to admit that I am a plastic guy who wishes he was a canvas guy.

Image Credit: by aussiegall

Filed under: Environment, marketing 1 Comment

27Apr/081

Gas Prices Part 2

First: I am not advocating the use of fossil fuels. I believe we should continue the search for and development of renewable sources of energy that are economically feasible and environmentally responsible.

Second: I am not an economist. Read at your own risk and seek out alternative sources of data.

Last week, I shared an article from the Ludwig von Mises Institute by Sterling T. Terrell that related the historical price of gasoline compared to today's prices. That article spurred me to do some armchair research on the U.S. price per gallon of gasoline versus U.S. median income.

According to the U.S. Census Bureau the median income in 1950 was $2,570 for men & $1,017 for women. The average price of a gallon of gasoline in 1950 was $0.27. That equates to .011% of total income of males and .028% for females. In 2006, the median income for men $32,265 and $20,014 for women. The current price of gasoline (U.S Average) is $3.50 per gallon. That equates to .011% of total income for males and .017% for females.

So the net-net on gas prices to median income pans out to be flat.

I decided I had better run my data through CPI calculator to adjust for inflation. The median income in 1950 adjusted for inflation was $18,381 for males and $6,816 for females. The price of a gallon of gas in 1950 adjusted for inflation was $2.39. That equates to .013% for men and .035% for females. When adjusted for inflation the net-net shows an ever so slight decrease.

Notes: I couldn't find a reliable source for disposable income numbers from 1950 to present to validate the data against. Also, this data doesn't take into account income gaps, for instance I don't have a handle on the percent of the population at the bottom that have the least amount of disposable income.

Footnotes:

Gas Price: Source: US DOE

Median Income: U.S. Census Bureau

Filed under: Business, Environment 1 Comment

22Apr/080

Economics 101: The Price of Gas

Gas prices are up and oil executives are once again testifying before Congress. Clearly, many politicians, pundits, and consumers lament the rising cost of gas. Before we join them in their chorus, let us take a step back and ask this question: Are gas prices really all that high?

Texas: Wind Energy

Windfarm Did you know that Texas leads the nation in wind energy production? I didn't either, even though USA Today reported on it back in 2006.

According to the American Wind Energy Association®, Texas inches out California by 400 MW.

AWEA's annual rankings provide a standard reference for tracking the growth of wind power in the U.S. The rankings (as of December 31, 2006) are listed below (one megawatt of wind power produces enough electricity on average to serve 250 to 300 homes):

States with most wind energy installed, by capacity (MW)

1. Texas 2,768

2. California 2,361

3. Iowa 936

4. Minnesota 895

5. Washington 818

Texas is firmly established as the leader in wind power development, with over 2,700 MW installed at the end of 2006 and some 1,000 MW currently under construction.

Photo: Some rights reserved. by fieldsbh || Windfarm in Fluvanna with fence