Sustainable Marketing - Toys and Games Industry - Essay Example

Sustainable Marketing Green Marketing Table of Contents Part 3 1 Introduction 3 2 Critical Understanding of Green Marketing 3 3 Understanding of the Toys and Games Industry 4 1.4 Critical Evaluation of the impact of Green Marketing on the Toys and Games Industry 5 1.5 Recommendation 7 1.6 Conclusion 7 Part 2 8 2.1 Personal Reflection 8 References 9 Bibliography 12 Part 1 1.1 Introduction In the ever changing global atmosphere, society can be seen to becoming more concerned and aware regarding the significance of protecting the natural environment. The changing behaviour and attitude of the society have urged the business to alter their actions in an endeavour to address the changing need of the society. Green marketing is the outcome of the changing requirements and concerns of the people towards the wellbeing of the society and nature. Green marketing is the lately evolved concept of marketing in which the products are assumed to be ecologically safe for the people (Choudhary & Gokarn, 2013; Grant, 2009). Thus, green marketing follows several policies and procedures which include the activities of product modification, methods of processing, and changes in way of packaging along with the advertisement. Green marketing is considered to be the part of corporate strategy which reflects the manipulation of the traditional marketing mix along with the understanding of the public policy process (Singh & Pandey, 2012). In this context it is observed that the toys and games industry is gaining momentum towards diversifying their marketing activities to green marketing to achieve a sustainable business and new global heights. Green marketing adds value to the products and favourably influences the purchasing behaviour of the people. Thus, this report intends to evaluate the impact of the green and sustainability marketing in the toys and games industry. 1.2 Critical Understanding of Green Marketing Green marketing refers to the focus of the industry towards the corporate social responsibility (CSR) of the organisation and sustainability efforts. The modern consumers are environmentally conscious and seek for the toys which are eco-friendly and safe for them. Green marketing refers to the marketing of the products which are assumed to be environmentally safe which implies free from hazardous chemicals. From the environmental aspect green marketing is the effort taken by the toys and games industry to produce, package and advertise the products which will be receptive to the ecological concern. Thus, it can be stated that green marketing is also known as sustainable marketing which consists of the activities designed to satisfy the people as per their needs by having minimum negative effect on the natural environment (Kinoti, 2011; Ottman, 2011). Green marketing has three phases which includes ecological, environmental and sustainable which makes it prominent in the global market of today. The new perception for green marketing is arising because of the increasing awareness of the people. This has a positive impact on the marketing as the products are recyclable in nature, which helps in reducing the waste, associated cost with pollution and ‘price value relationship of environmentalism’ (Das & et.al., 2012). This marketing approach has great influence on the organisations and the environment in order to take proactive strategies. Green marketing is of importance for various reasons as it aid in creating a competitive edge over the others and have sustainable growth, while reducing the carbon emission. Thus, to be sustainable it is important to follow green marketing concept. The sustainability can be achieved by fulfilling the human need by creating minimal effect on the environment. However, the challenges critically faced in green marketing are to avoid the short-sightedness of green marketing along with green washing. Various green products failed in the market because the focuses of the organisations were on ‘greenness’ of the product rather than actually providing environmental friendly products (Polonsky, 2010). 1.3 Understanding of the Toys and Games Industry Toys and games industry is one of the rapidly growing and competitive businesses in the global market. This industry faces various challenges in its marketing strategies from various global competitors. The manufactures within the toys and games industry are not only engaged in the production and marketing of electronic products but non electronic toys also occupies a major slice. The leading market players of the toys and games industry are Sony, Microsoft, Lego, Mattel, Namco Bandai and Hasbro. The toys and games industry has several strong players competing throughout the world due to which intense competition can be seen within the concern industry. The toys and the games industry have different target audience as per demographic differences. The age group of children till the age of 12 years are mostly inclined towards toys and hence increasing the demand for the toys. However, the demand for the electronic gaming console is mostly driven by the young generation as they value product innovation and high technology. It can be argued like any other business sector, the profitability and sustainability of the companies dealing with toys and games industry depends on effective marketing strategies and the precision in understanding the changing trend of the market and the user’s preferences (Hoovers Inc, 2014). With the growing market, it is observed that the large scale industry have wide range of products and thus have various benefits in the areas of purchasing, distributing, manufacturing and selling of the products in the market by responding to the change in effective way. This industry has huge impact on economy of the country and environment at large. It is observed that the toy industry requires material which might have a negative effect on the industry and hence it is of importance for the industry to have a strong corporate strategy and marketing in order to maintain the sustainability in the market. The toys and games industry have various product lines as per the requirement of the users and the changing consumer awareness regarding the global environment. The product line includes electronic products such as the video games, electronic vehicles for the children and non-electronic such as the dolls, cars and stuffed toys of teddy bear among others (DG Enterprise and Industry, 2013). 1.4 Critical Evaluation of the impact of Green Marketing on the Toys and Games Industry Green marketing has positive impacts on the society and the manufacturing companies as it helps in reducing the carbon emission. Global warming is one of the most severe issues that are being faced by the world today and the concept of green marketing is believed to reduce its effect to a conceivable extent. The implementation of green marketing as a strategy would enable the toy industry to gain more market in the global platform and earn profitability by manufacturing the eco-friendly products (Sarkar, 2012). Today with the increasing awareness among the people purchasing decision is based on the sustainability trend and green shopping. With the increase in the number of the green shoppers the companies are adapting green marketing concept in their corporate strategy for high market share and performance (Edwards, 2010). In the recent scenario the shoppers are becoming more aware regarding the environment and the eco-friendly products which have resulted in growing demand for products that have minimum effect on the natural environment as well as health of the people. The knowledge and understanding of the people and the organisation is giving rise to the importance of green marketing and creating an impact on the toys and games industry to have sustainable operational policy (Hoffman, 2012; Deloitte Development LLC, 2009). Green marketing and the increasing awareness of the people regarding its benefit and effect on the environment have necessitated the need for the toys and games industry to follow the new marketing strategy in order to increase the market share globally. It is observed that companies adopting the green marketing are successful in drawing the attention of large customers towards their products than other companies using conventional marketing channels. Green marketing is important for the business as it provides bottom line incentives and growth possibility for the top line. Although the start-up cost for the manufacturing of the green products are high but it intends to save money in the long run (Mohajan, 2011). The toys and games industry is also experiencing the impact of green marketing as parents and youngster are becoming knowledgeable and careful in selecting their products. The pressure is felt by the toys and games industry as well. Correspondingly, they are trying hard to be competitive and minimise the effect of global warming. The leading toy industries such as the Lego and Hasbro have started producing products which are recyclable and the packaging have less impact on the environment. Lego due to the promising impact of the green marketing and Greenpeace in the various business sectors have started using packaging material from the certified Forest Stewardship Council (FSC). Moreover, Lego due to the green marketing effect have decided to reduce the use of packaging material and use only recyclable product to minimise pollution in the community of its operation. For those products which cannot be recycled, Lego have decided to use FSC certified fibres. This alteration of Lego by producing recyclable products and packaging helped the company to gain high market share (FSC Forest Stewardship Council, 2014). Likewise, Mattel also have changed its focus to the green marketing influenced by the strategy of Greenpeace to stop deforestation wherein Greenpeace implemented a banner wherein Toy Ken states “Barbie, it’s over. I don’t date girls that are into deforestation.” This strategy was successful and in response to this Mattel then changed its supply chain policy and created a sustainable policy for procurement. Thus, the effects of green marketing have been effective in the toy industry to ensure the safety of the kids and their health (Telegraph Media Group Limited, 2011). Due to the new marketing approach the toys and games industry are emphasising on the toys which are more sustainable, natural along with greener. Thus, toys and games companies are offering natural renewable raw material manufactured ecologically for the long term sustainability. The toys and games companies are more focused upon the use of the eco-friendly materials production process, recyclable products and also the quality of the product (Spielwarenmesse, 2011). The toys and games companies are trying to reduce the level of pollution and support the green concept by incorporating local supplier in their supply chain to reduce the pollution and increase sustainability (The British Library Board, 2013; Sanchez-Rodrigues. 2006). 1.5 Recommendation The toys and games industry can be recommended to have a core value regarding sustainability and CSR. The companies dealing with toys and games industry should not avert the notion of green washing to attract the customers instead they should reveal their strong commitments towards their CSR. The companies should value customer safety and their health thus implements green marketing. This will help in reducing the waste and keep the environment clean. The corporate strategy must be clear and a strong sustainable supply chain should be followed. It is recommended that the toy manufacturers start designing process by selecting environmentally preferable material, work close to the supplier to minimise pollution and have local supplier to maintain sustainability. 1.6 Conclusion Green marketing intends to promote the concept of eco-friendly product in order to have positive impact on the health of the people and nature. Green marketing has direct impact on the sustainable development of the environment and the toy industry. Green marketing is acting as the differentiator for the companies to be successful in the competitive market. The toys and games industry is also experiencing positive change due to the application of green marketing concept. The toys and games industry in order to be responsive to the nature are seen to be implementing green marketing in the supply chain and packaging. This will help in increasing the market share of the company in the global market. Part 2 2.1 Personal Reflection While conducting this particular research I have come across various new aspects of green marketing which were not known to me. This knowledge gained during the process of the research will help in my future activities. I have come across the fact that it is important for the toys and games industry to use green marketing as it is associated with the children from the age group of 0-12. This concept of marketing has great impact on the health and safety of the people. Besides, I learnt that green marketing is a wide concept which has a direct impact on the environment and the market share. Before initiating this research I was not sure about the real meaning of the word green marketing and the impacts it has on the people and the organisation. I have learnt the difference between green marketing and green washing. For better understanding I used several journals and articles in my report so that I have a clear idea regarding the impact of green marketing over the toys and games industry. I have realised that the use of recyclable products will have a better impact on the society and the environment as a whole. Truly speaking, this project has imparted considerable knowledge regarding the green marketing and its impact on the toys and games industry. References Choudhary, A. & Gokarn, S., 2013. Green Marketing: A Means for Sustainable Development. International Refereed Research Journal, Vol. 4, Issue 3(3), pp. 26-32. Das, S.M. & et.al., 2012. Green Marketing Strategies for Sustainable Business Growth. Journal of Business Management & Social Sciences Research, Vol. 1, No. 1, pp. 82-87. DG Enterprise and Industry, 2013. Study on the Competitiveness of the Toy Industry. Final Report, pp. 7-93. Deloitte Development LLC, 2009. Sustainability Trends and New Shopper Insights. Research and Report, pp. 2-24. Edwards, S., 2010. Green Toys Inc. Striving to Make Sustainable Products. Case Study, pp. 3-11. FSC Forest Stewardship Council, 2014. Newsroom. FSC. [Online] Available at: https://ic.fsc.org/newsroom.9.htm [Accessed April 24, 2014]. Grant, J., 2009. The Green Marketing Manifesto. John Wiley & Sons. Hoovers Inc, 2014. Toy & Game Manufacturing Report Summary. Overview. [Online] Available at: http://www.hoovers.com/industry-facts.toy-game-manufacturing.1207.html [Accessed April 24, 2014]. Hoffman, C., 2012. External Analysis. Uploads, pp. 2-10. Kinoti, M.W., 2011. Green Marketing Intervention Strategies and Sustainable Development: A Conceptual Paper. International Journal of Business and Social Science, Vol. 2, No. 23, pp. 263-273. Mohajan, H., 2011. Green Marketing Is A Sustainable Marketing System In The Twenty First Century. International Journal of Management and Transformation, Vol. 6, Issue 2, pp. 23-39. Ottman, J.A., 2011. The New Rules of Green Marketing: Strategies, Tools, and Inspiration for Sustainable Branding. Berrett-Koehler Publishers. Polonsky, M.J., 2010. An Introduction to Green Marketing. Electronic Green Journal, Vol.1, pp. 1-10. Singh, P.B. & Pandey, K.K., 2012. Green Marketing: Policies and Practices for Sustainable Development. A Journal of Management, Vol. 5, No. 1, pp. 22-30. Sanchez-Rodrigues, V., 2006. Supply Chain Management, Transport and the Environment-A Review. Green Logistics Consortium Working Paper, pp. 1-57. Spielwarenmesse, 2011. Toys Go Green. Media, pp. 3-19. Sarkar, A., 2012. Green Marketing and Sustainable Development- Challenges And Opportunities. International Journal of Marketing, Financial Services & Management Research, Vol. 1, Issue 9, pp. 120-134. The British Library Board, 2013. Toys, Games and Gambling Industry Guide. Business & IP Centre, pp. 1-8. Telegraph Media Group Limited, 2011. Ken Abseils Down Mattels Headquarters to Protest at Barbie Packaging. News. 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