Product Category: Connected Home
Price: $995
Release Date: Q3 2008
Authors: Michael Greeson, Sarah Crisman
Pages: 43
Figures: 7
Tables: 38

 
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Summary

How important will environmental and energy concerns be when it comes to purchasing a new PC? If judged by the rapid proliferation of ‘green’-oriented CE products, one would think that ‘green’ positioning is a sure thing.

Despite this widespread perception, however, when it comes to buying new PCs, ‘green’ considerations remain less important than traditional purchase drivers such as functionality, brand, and price.

If recent history tells us anything, it is that American consumers tend to look after their own pocketbooks before considering the welfare of the planet. However, other considerations such as gender, age, income, tech-adopter status and political affiliation certainly affect the response to ‘green’ This report (a) discusses the extent to which green considerations will impact pending PC purchase decisions when compared with traditional purchase drivers, and (b) offers PC vendors a concrete means of determining the extent to which ‘green’ messaging is appropriate for different consumers.


Key Findings From the Report:

• Functionality is without a doubt the most important attribute to consumers when considering a new PC purchase while environmental friendliness is without a doubt the least important.
  
  
• In general, energy efficiency is now of equal importance to price: approximately 72% of consumers rank the both attributes as important in their next PC purchase.
  
  
• Energy- and eco-friendliness figure into most PC purchase decisions only if functionality, brand and price are relatively equal among the PCs under consideration.

From the Report

Though less important than some other attributes, Energy Efficiency is not unimportant when it comes to PC purchasing. However, as will become evident, it is less important than more traditional considerations such as Price, Brand, and Functionality, meaning that advertising campaigns focused solely on ‘green’ considerations will likely fail to capture a sizeable audience in-and-of-itself. The PC first must still be compelling when it comes to these more traditional attributes.  

Table of Contents
    Executive Summary
    1.0    Opening Comments
                1.1    Project Rationale
                1.2    Research Methodology
    2.0    Importance of Various PC Purchase Attributes
                2.1    Brand
                2.2    Price
                2.3    Functionality
                2.4    Energy Efficiency
                2.5    Environmental Friendliness
                2.6    Comparison of Importance Rankings
                2.7    Impact of Key Demographic and Behavioral Attributes
                            2.7.1    Gender
                            2.7.2    Age
                            2.7.3    Annual Household Income
                            2.7.4    Ethnicity
                            2.7.5    Education
                            2.7.6    Tech Adopter Status
    3.0    Final Thoughts


List of Figures
    Figure 1    Importance of Brand in Next PC Purchase
    Figure 2    Importance of Price in Next PC Purchase
    Figure 3    Importance of Functionality in Next PC Purchase
    Figure 4    Importance of Energy Efficiency in Next PC Purchase
    Figure 5    Importance of Environmental Friendliness in Next PC Purchase
    Figure 6    Percentage of Green PC Optimals versus Non-Optimals
    Figure 7    Political Disposition among Green PC Optimals


List of Tables
    Table 1      Comparison of Attribute Importance: Average, Total Interest,
                        and Top 2 
    Table 2      Comparison of Attribute Importance: Mean, Top 2, and
                        Power Rankings™
    Table 3      Importance of Brand in Next PC Purchase by Gender
    Table 4      Importance of Price in Next PC Purchase by Gender
    Table 5      Importance of Functionality in Next PC Purchase by Gender
    Table 6      Importance of Energy Efficiency in Next PC Purchase by
                        Gender 
    Table 7      Importance of Environmental Friendliness in Next PC Purchase
                        by Gender
    Table 8      Summary of Gender and Top 2 Rankings
    Table 9      Factors in Next PC Purchase by Age: 18-24 Year Olds
    Table 10    Factors in Next PC Purchase by Age: 25-34 Year Olds
    Table 11    Factors in Next PC Purchase by Age: 35-49 Year Olds
    Table 12    Factors in Next PC Purchase by Age: 50-65 Year Olds
    Table 13    Factors in Next PC Purchase by Age: 65 and Above
    Table 14    Summary of Age and Top 2 Rankings
    Table 15    Importance of Brand in Next PC Purchase by Income
    Table 16    Importance of Price in Next PC Purchase by Income
    Table 17    Importance of Functionality in Next PC Purchase by Income
    Table 18    Importance of Energy Efficiency in Next PC Purchase
                        by Income
    Table 19    Importance of Environmental Friendliness in Next PC Purchase
                        by Income
    Table 20    Summary of Household Income and Top 2 Rankings
    Table 21    Importance of Brand in Next PC Purchase by Ethnicity
    Table 22    Importance of Price in Next PC Purchase by Ethnicity
    Table 23    Importance of Functionality in Next PC Purchase by Ethnicity
    Table 24    Importance of Energy Efficiency in Next PC Purchase by Ethnicity
    Table 25    Importance of Environmental Friendliness in Next PC Purchase
                        by Ethnicity
    Table 26    Summary of Ethnicity and Top 2 Rankings
    Table 27    Importance of Brand in Next PC Purchase by Education
    Table 28    Importance of Price in Next PC Purchase by Education
    Table 29    Importance of Functionality in Next PC Purchase by Education
    Table 30    Importance of Energy Efficiency in Next PC Purchase by Education
    Table 31    Importance of Environmental Friendliness in Next PC Purchase
                        by Education
    Table 32    Summary of Education and Top 2 Rankings
    Table 33    Importance of Brand in Next PC Purchase by Tech Adopter Status
    Table 34    Importance of Price in Next PC Purchase by Tech Adopter Status
    Table 35    Importance of Functionality in Next PC Purchase by Tech Adopter Status
    Table 36    Importance of Energy Efficiency in Next PC Purchase by Adopter Status
    Table 37    Importance of Environmental Friendliness by Adopter Status
    Table 38    Summary of Tech Adopter Status and Top 2 Rankings