Landor recently conducted a brand survey that shows consumers in China are actually more concerned about green issues than consumers in the United States or Europe. For example, 45 percent of those surveyed in China said they consider it very important that a company is green when thinking about which brands to purchase, compared to 23 percent in the United States.

This video clip could be shown along with the earlier one to try to get a better handle on how green affects consumers.  I have seen other studies which suggest Chinese consumers can be very price conscious — one study we cite in our text books indicated a willingness to pay a premium of only 2% for branded products they purchase regularly (as opposed to unbranded products).  In the U.S. and many other developed countries the premium is typically 20% or more.  There can be many reasons for that of course.

The aricle and video clip raise interesting issues around sustainability, consumer behavior across cultures, and international marketing.

Of course, not all cat owners are quite so jazzed about spooning out cat food and watching their pets munch on it. Friskies did some proprietary consumer research and found a specific segment of cat fanciers they wanted to home in on. Schlueter says the target is “owners who are very involved with their cats, and have a deep relationship with their cats. These are owners who love to get inside and experience the magical world their cats experience.” Thus the lyrics of the ad’s jingle promise that Friskies will help you “excit[e] your cat, day and night, with endless enchantment.” (At the risk of forcing some cat owners to contemplate uncomfortable notions, I will note that this pitch is not unlike that of spam e-mails guaranteeing the ability to “satisfy your partner like never before.”)