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Discovery Studios Develops original content for Planet Green and other Discovery media
Discovery Studios Discovery Studios is the recently-created division of Discovery Communications charged with developing and producing original series, specials, theatrical documentaries and short form content for Discovery’s television networks. Veteran television executive Nancy Daniels has been named Vice President of Development and Production for Discovery Studios. Based in Burbank, Calif., Daniels will oversee all West Coast production and development activities for Discovery Studios. Projects now under her supervision include programs for TLC, Travel Channel, Planet Green, Discovery Health Channel and others. About Discovery StudiosDiscovery Studios is devoted to the creation of original television series and specials, theatrical films and short-form content within Discovery Communications, the number-one nonfiction media company reaching more than 1.5 billion cumulative subscribers in over 170 countries.Through TV and digital media, Discovery's 100-plus worldwide networks include Discovery Channel, TLC, Animal Planet, The Science Channel, Discovery Health and Discovery HD Theater. Discovery Communications is owned by Discovery Holding Co. (NASDAQ: DISCA, DISCB), Advance/Newhouse Communications and John S. Hendricks, Discovery's founder and chairman. For more information about Discovery Communciations visit www.discoverycommunications.com. For more information about Planet Green visit planetgreen.discovery.com For more information about SUBMISSIONS visit submissions.discovery.com |
Discovery is introducing Planet Green, a cable brand promoted as the first 24-hour channel dedicated to eco-friendly living. The 24-hour eco-oriented lifestyle network will launch with 50 million cable homes. It is the highest-profile cable channel introduction of the year, and an equally risky one. By wrapping itself in the planet, Discovery is betting that “eco-tainment” will appeal to viewers.
The channel’s programming is studded with celebrities such as
- Chef Emeril Lagasse hosting a cooking show featuring organic and locally grown foods, and "Entourage" star Adrian Grenier living a green life.
- "Greensburg," a 13-episode documentary series, follows the story of a small Kansas community coming together after being hit by a 5-rated tornado in May 2007. The series is produced by Leonardo DiCaprio's production company, Appian Way, along with Craig Piligian's Pilgrim Films & Television.
- "Hollywood Green," a weekly entertainment magazine, will showcase earth-conscious celebrities.
- "G Word," a daily series hosted by two news correspondents
- "Wrecklamation," billed as recycling on steroids.
The channel has almost all original programming — partly because there was not an available vault of entertaining environmental programming to tap into. Part of their challenge has been educating the production community that may have had certain expectations of what green content is.
Planet Green's Target Audiences
Planet Green will speak to people who want to understand green living and to those who truly want to make a difference by providing tools and information to meet the critical challenge of protecting our environment. Planet Green's platforms include leading eco-lifestyle website TreeHugger.com and the recently launched solutions-oriented PlanetGreen.com.Discovery is also launching Discovery Education Green, a K-12 service that hosts dynamic media content correlated to state standards. Discovery Education Green will help teachers integrate Green lessons into their curriculum and empowers students to make more environmentally conscious decisions.
Planet Green's Promotion
Timed to the switch from Discovery Home to Planet Green, Discovery marketers are conducting “Random Acts of Greenness.” At the Indianapolis 500 last month, they handed out T-shirts and beach balls to consumers who exemplified green living, and sponsored the cleanup day after the race. The giveaways will continue in New York, Milwaukee; Washington; and San Diego, San Francisco and Oakland, Calif.On launch day, Wednesday, June 11, 2008. Mr. Zaslav will throw out the first pitch in Washington, and the stadium’s JumboTron will count down to the channel’s 6 p.m. debut. Also that day, all the Discovery cable networks will show green logos.
The New York Post is going green on Wednesday, too: the newspaper will turn its flag green that day and feature advertisements for the channel all week. The newspaper will also give away 250 bicycles with Planet Green branding.
“This is a new genre,” Ms. O’Neill said. “People don’t have any set expectations of what green media is, and we’re defining it — as really funny, engaging, entertaining and definitely credible.”
Planet Green: planetgreen.discovery.com
Discovery Studios: www.discoverystudios.com
MARYLAND
1 Discovery Place
Silver Spring, MD 20910
Tel: +1 (240) 662-2000
LOS ANGELES
2600 West Olive Avenue
5th Floor
Burbank, CA 91505
Tel: +1 (818) 333-5255
The findings from the nationwide survey conducted among more than 3,000 women reveal key insights on the female psyche across topics including health and well-being:
When it comes to health, women are more concerned about
diet/weight (56%) and eating right (36%)
than they are about
cancer
(23%), cardiovascular/heart health (20%), and diabetes (18%)
- Many women are skipping important medical examinations, including annual physicals and cancer screenings
- Less than two-thirds (59%) of all women get an annual physical, even lower among Gen Y women (44%).
- Nearly one-third of Boomer women are not getting their important annual mammograms, cholesterol checks or physicals.
- 62% of women regularly give themselves a breast self-examination, while only 14% of all women get a skin cancer screening at least once a year.
Four in 10 women report that they are more than 20 pounds overweight
- Gen Y women are more likely than Gen X and Boomer women to say they are at their ideal weight (29% vs. 9%, 7% respectively).
- Relatively few (4%) overweight women say they would consider surgery as a weight reduction strategy; a substantial number say they would consider exercise (76%) and improving their diet (75%) to lose weight.
Still, when it comes to achieving a healthy lifestyle, more women
opt for simple strategies like “drinking more water” and “eating more
fruits and vegetables” than more disciplined approaches like
“exercising three times a week”, “lowering calorie intake”, “watching
their sugar intake” and “using portion control”
- Not surprisingly, women are sensitive about their own weight, with 4 in 10 (40%) who say it’s wrong for a man to tell a woman that she’s overweight
- However, relatively fewer women think it’s wrong for a woman to tell a man he’s overweight (32%) or a parent to tell a child he or she is overweight (26%).
Most women think the battle of the bulge starts at the schools at an early age; the majority of moms claim that while their child(ren) eat junk food, it’s “not when I’m around”
Top 10 Health Concerns (across all generations)
1. Diet/weight control (56%)
2. Eating well/nutrition (36%)
3. Allergies (27%)
4. Aging process (26%)
5. Mental health (25%)
6. Arthritis (24%)
7. Cancer (23%)
8. Cardiovascular/heart health (20%)
9. Diabetes (18%)
10. Menopause (18%)
Medical check-ups:
- Less than two-thirds (59%) of all women get an annual physical, while more than two-thirds get an annual blood pressure check-up (67%) and visit the dentist at least once a year (66%).
- Only 44% of Gen Y women get an annual physical, compared to 69% of Baby Boomer women.
- 62% of women regularly give themselves a breast self-examination, while only 14% of all women get a skin cancer screening at least once a year.
- Nearly one-third of Boomer women are not getting their important annual mammograms, cholesterol checks or physicals.
Non-traditional approaches to health & wellness:
To improve health and well-being, some women have taken the following
non-traditional approaches: natural herbs and supplements (26%),
bought/adopted a pet (25%), meditation (11%), acupuncture (4%), visited
a hypnotist (1%).
What Women Want: To Look and Feel Good
Dissatisfaction with physical appearance/energy levels:
While most women like who they are inside and are satisfied with
their “identity and development as an individual” (68%), only 4 in 10
women say they are satisfied with their physical appearance (40%)
and/or energy levels (37%).
Professionals Women Would Want to Hire*
1. Personal Trainer (47%)
2. Personal Chef (34%)
3. Financial Advisor (31%)
4. Live-In Housekeeper (31%)
5. Professional Masseuse (29%)
6. Nutritionist (28%)
7. Professional Organizer to de-clutter your living space or office (24%)
8. Stylist (19%)
9. Interior Decorator (15%)
10. Career Counselor (13%)
*allowed up to 5 choices
Women’s Lifestyles:
Most women don’t want to work too hard to achieve a healthy
lifestyle, opting for simple solutions like drinking more water or
eating more fruits and vegetables over the more disciplined approaches
like exercising regularly, counting calories, and using portion control
(see chart below)
What Women Do to Maintain a Healthy Lifestyle*
- Drink more water (80%)
- Eat more fruits and vegetables (70%)Read nutritional labels (49%)
- Avoid foods that are high in fat (47%)
- Make a conscious effort to lower calorie intake (44%)
- Watch my sugar intake (44%)
- Exercise at least three times a week (43%)
• Women with children are especially likely to say that “it is difficult for me to find time to take care of my physical appearance” (28% vs. 22% total women).
Overweight Women:
- The vast majority of American women (84%) feel they are overweight.
- 13% of women feel that they are the ideal weight, while 23% feel they are 21-50 pounds overweight and 16% report being more than 50 pounds overweight.
- Older women are more likely than younger women to report they are overweight and to join weight management programs
- More Gen Y women (29%) feel they are the ideal weight, compared to Gen X women (9%) and Baby Boomer women (7%).
- Gen X women (22%) and Baby Boomer women (20%) are more likely to get involved in weight management programs to improve their health and well-being than Gen Y women (14%).
- On the other hand, Gen Y women (24%) are more likely to do yoga or Pilates to improve their health and well-being than their Gen X (18%) and Boomer (8%) counterparts.
Among women who feel they are overweight, exercise (76%) and improving diet (75%) are the top two strategies for weight reduction, while taking medications and/or dietary supplements (17%) and undergoing surgery (4%) are less popular methods.
READ MORE"It is particularly important for marketers in the health and wellness category to have a clear understanding of women's behaviors, motivations and thoughts so that the messaging they create will resonate and have enhanced impact," said Debbie Reichig, Senior Vice President, Market Development, NBC Universal. “We are thrilled to be able to make this information available to them.”
These new sites compile EPA multilingual publications and materials in Korean and Vietnamese on a variety of environmental issues such as children?s health, indoor air quality in nail salons and dry cleaners, asthma, fish consumption, proper pesticide usage, among others.
These sites also serve as valuable tools in delivering important health and environmental information to the Vietnamese and Korean communities in the United States and worldwide. This initiative promotes environmental protection in local communities as well as the global environment regardless of language.
The launch of these Web sites coincides with the celebration in the United States of Asian/Pacific American Heritage Month during May. According to the U.S. Census, over 14.9 million U.S. residents trace their roots to Asian countries.
Visit EPA's multilingual Web sites at:
http://www.epa.gov/vietnamese/
http://www.epa.gov/korean/
http://www.epa.gov/chinese/
http://www.epa.gov/chinese/simple/
http://www.epa.gov/espanol/
TIP ONE for marketers: Look at tips for consumers, and reverse engineer the themes and messages that appeal to consumers...for your retail and community clients. For instance:
Sustainable tourism covers a variety of criteria, from low environmental impact and energy use to respect for the culture and well-being of the local population.
There is more than one way to travel green. Eco-Friendly travel (ecotravel) is tourism that promotes a sustainable environment. By its nature, travel can be both an opportunity for people to experience the environment they visit and at the same time is a threat to it. Destination Villas offers the seven sustainable travel tips.
- Travel less and stay longer. Air travel leaves the largest carbon footprint than any other form of travel. If you must fly, do it fewer times per year and stay longer, or travel closer to home.
- Don’t fly at night. Dr. Piers Forster from Leeds University has discovered that trails of condensation from aircraft - contrails - have a greater warming effect at night, trapping heat but without reflecting any of the sun's rays back into the atmosphere as they do during the day.
- Leave no trace. Enjoy the beautiful places on the plant but be mindful that your very presence damage it. Do not pick flowers, take rocks or break coral. Don’t liter. Be familiar with cultural mores prior to arrival be respectful of cultural practices.
- All transportation requires the combustion of fuel, so the greenest thing you can do is use public transporation. When possible, try taking the train or bus instead of flying. If you're driving, try to get as many people in the car as possible, instead of taking multiple vehicles. Always rent a hybrid vehicle.
- Visit eco-friendly destinations that use renewable energy sources: visit Burlington, Vermont, Dry Tortugas National Park or Vail, Colorado.
- Choose eco-friendly lodging. There is a wide variety of eco-friendly lodging these days. Start with the Green Hotel Association and EnvironmentallyFriendlyHotels.com or DestinationVillas.com.
- Shop local: Head to local markets, where you can purchase fresh
food from local vendors. This benefits the community by increasing
their economy, and you will get fresh fruits and veggies and maybe even
some handmade souvenirs. Never buy products made from endangered
species.
Source of Eco-travel tips: Destination Villas
Penguin Classics set up a blog where anybody can post a review of one of their books. Well, not exactly anybody. The selection process is random because they have a limited number of books. But if you win their lottery, type away about how you feel about Virginia Woolf.
ABC.com hopes to generate as much ad revenue as it does from its on-air programming. To keep viewers interested in ads ABC has found that ads should be created specifically for the Internet and not repurposed commercials from broadcast TV. ABC research that revealed better results for ads that promoted interactivity like casual gaming.
Slide.com layers social content applications on top of Facebook, Orkut, Friendster and more. Slide enables you to make a slide show onliine, personalize your pics with stickers and graffiti, have a personal Guestbook, frame your YouTube videos with snazzy borders, upload your images, and get screensavers. All designed for "engagement" so that you'll use their website and drive up their community engagement for advertisers who want comsumer eyeball time.
My question is...what do green consumers want? Do they want to spend more time on their computers, just like their not-so-green siblings? Do they want to belong to a virtual community with similar values? What do YOU want from your green online media?
Seriously, I'd love to hear from you. Send an email or call me. I'm an approachable editor searching for common sense ways to share green solutions around the digital campfire. Carolyn Allen: 310-827-2510 or email at CAROLYN (at) CaliforniaGreenSolutions.com
... or add your questions, suggestions, observations in our COMMENTS. Let's talk!
The April 26, 2008 letter, signed by 94 law professors from schools stretching from the Carolinas to California, is addressed to key congressional leaders and conveys the authors’ “profound disappointment” in the six-page EPA report on library restoration submitted to Congress on March 26, 2008, including –
- Political Control. “We view with alarm the absence of any EPA commitment to have all aspects of its library plans subject to review by qualified, non-governmental library professionals”;
- Only Partial Restoration. “We are troubled by the Report’s…failure to explain why and how EPA’s libraries will vary in size, target audience, subject focus and depth of collection….We also decry the Agency’s failure to explain its plan to allow some EPA libraries to be open to the public on an ‘appointment only’ basis.”; and
- Vague Commitments. “EPA’s Report is woefully lacking in detail, unresponsive to many of the criticisms that were appropriately included in GAO’s February, 2008 reports on the Agency’s library mismanagement, and entirely devoid of a needed commitment to restore EPA’s shuttered libraries to the levels of service provided to the public and EPA’s staff prior to their closure.
The law professors’ concerns echo those raised by PEER, the agency’s librarians, employee unions (which are pursuing unfair labor practice charges), and agency specialists, including its enforcement attorneys.
“EPA simply needs to put back everything they dismantled; why is
that so hard?” asked PEER Associate Director Carol Goldberg. “The
political appointees at EPA should not be deciding, as they are now,
who gets access to what material.”
EPA had eliminated
access to agency libraries in 23 states, shut technical collections and
reduced hours and access in other libraries. This December, Congress
ordered EPA to re-open closed libraries. In its March report, the
agency indicated that it would complete a partial restoration by this
October.
Meanwhile, EPA has launched a series of meetings with media, industry, environmental organizations and “other stakeholder groups” as part of “a National Dialogue…to help EPA document the information needs of various sectors …under the leadership of the Chief Information Officer Molly O’Neill”, in the words of an invitation sent to PEER. This National Dialogue will continue until the end of June.
SOURCE: Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility
April 28, 2008
Contact: Carol Goldberg (202) 265-7337
Re: the April 18 article "Viewers, critics irate over ABC's handling of Dem debate."The flap over the last televised debate suggests to me that we need a debate where the candidates question the news people. That might be more revealing.Theo WarmbrandTucson
My husband was a radio news director and I even spent a brief period in radio community news casting (that was before the radio infrastructure would allow women's voices on the air "because they were too high".) I know a little about the pressures news people work with. And the personal prejudices that can enter into a story. And that NO STORY is devoid of emotional values. We're all human, and emotions are part of making judgments, asking questions and how we treat people based on how they treat us.
Newscasters are just human. And as such, in a democracy (or sort of a "republic") it would behoove us to ask our news casters how and why and when we should trust their messages...or "stories".
Carolyn
About 18 months ago, the Pew Internet & American Life Project issued a report on podcasting and found that just 12% of Internet users had ever downloaded a podcast, but just 1% said they downloaded podcasts on a typical day.
This compares to Pew survey data released last summer that found 57% of Internet users have ever watched online video and 19% download or watch video from the Internet on a typical day.
This disparity between podcasting and online video says a lot about
the appeal of podcast programming and the user experience. Tens of
millions of people in this country have iPods or other gadgets which
can play digital audio files, yet the primary application is playing
music -- files that have been ripped from a CD collection or downloaded
from the Internet. Music appeals to nearly everyone, and the processes
required to transfer music from the 'Net or a CD collection to a
digital music player are relatively simple.
Podcast programming is a
different story. Most people are unfamiliar with podcasts (with the
exception of repurposed radio programs) and downloading, updating, and
subscribing to programming involve additional steps. Compared to radio
programming, most podcasts sound amateurish and slow-paced, and the
ability to find interesting programs is severely limited
by the directories, rating systems, and search functions found on
iTunes and other podcatchers and podcast-oriented sites. No wonder
relatively few people have tried downloading podcasts, and fewer still
listen to them on a regular basis.
Source: TheStandard.comWhat also needs to happen is to recognize that, unlike terrestrial radio, podcasts are much like "appointment radio". As we know, the average time spent listening, in radio, is measured in 15 minute segments. But my listeners tell me they listen to our entire two-hour show, cover to cover... This is a throw-back to the way people consumed radio before the advent of television. Perhaps success in podcasting will come from returning to those roots... everything old is new again!
Cheers!
robin
... and from Stephen:Your piece does shine some retrospective light on the gap between the hype and hyperbole and that often accompanies new technical developments and the reality of the marketplace a few years later. I was an early critic of podcasting hype, but I think you've undervalued two of the most important characteristics of the podcast stage of the digital media revolution.
First, podcasting really has helped to democratize media by eliminating the program inventory and bandwidth limitations of conventional broadcasting. This allows not only amateurs but disenfranchised professionals to distribute their programs, and allows service to previously unserved niches.... Thus it makes more sense to evaluate many of these programs from a public service perspective, like public broadcasting.
Second, the quality standards and practices of professional mass media do not necessarily apply to small audience niche programming. A more professional sounding and better produced program like Leo Laporte's TWiT may achieve a higher audience share, along with whatever benefits that delivers to the producer, but there are already podcasts that achieve their objectives with limited quality and audiences of less than a thousand. These have to be counted as different criteria of "success."
Finally, along with many others I believe that podcasting, i.e. distribution of audio media media via RSS subscription downloads, will be largely replaced as a service model by streaming as wireless internet connectivity evolves. In a truly "always on" world, only a link to a given bit of content is needed and it can be delivered to the user on-demand in real time.
...and from P.G. Holyfield:If you are looking at podcasting solely from a monetization point of view, I would agree that most feel that podcasting should be further along the lifecycle than it is today. But from an end user perspective, as one of the 1%? that download podcasts on a daily basis, I feel that podcasting is a greatly successful application of .rss, and with the growth of video podcasting, hardware such as the iTV, and the emergence of internal corporate podcasts as a medium of communication, podcasting is becoming more mainstream on a daily basis.
Podcasting allows an audience to find audio/video content on the topics they love, and allows a podcaster to find an audience that shares their love of a particular topic or genre, unlike anything ever seen before. The time-shifted nature of podcasting allows for content to be viewed/listened to on our schedule, and just as television is just beginning to comprehend how DVRs and online content is affecting their 'world,' all forms of broadcasting are beginning to understand the power of subscribable, sustainable content.
Due to podcasting I have reconnected with my favorite radio show (The Tony Kornheiser show). Podcasting has given computer gaming magazine writers I love a voice that I can now associate to their writing. Due to podcasting, I have made friends and acquaintances all around the world. I have discovered authors that I love (and have gotten to know personally). And on an even more personal note, nearly 5,000 people have given my own writing a try... so I consider podcasting a success.
Commercial success is a matter of perspective. For writers using podcasting as a marketing and audience building tool, the success stories are just beginning to emerge. As Joe mentioned above, Scott Sigler would certainly consider podcasting a success. Seth Harwood and J.C. Hutchins would certainly consider podcasting a success. How successful? Only time will tell. I hope the funeral dirge won't be sung before we have a chance to find out.
... and J. Daniel Sawyer:
But podcasting is not radio, nor should it be. Although it does work as an excellent way to time-shift radio programs, it does something far more useful and important: It provides a platform for a variety of formats and format experimentation, from underground music programming to the miraculous resurrection of the once-dead-in-the-U.S. radio drama, to the innovative loss-leader distribution of fiction innovated by Mark Jeffrey, Tee Morris, and Scott Sigler. There have also been a number of other formats tried with various degrees of success - audio blogging, a'la "Tag in the Seam," business tutorials, a'la The Survivor's Guide to Writing Fantasy and Answers for Freelancers, and, of course, there are a lot of formats and podcasts that simply don't work. The low barrier to entry means many - perhaps most - podcasts will never make it past a few episodes, or attract more than a couple dozen listeners.
In visiting with a green manufacturer recently, he hopefully asked, "How much more will people pay for green products?"
My answer, "Not much. They pay for additional VALUE, not GREEN."
This is the same challenge conscientious, conservation business people are facing: how do we translate the green benefits into VALUE propositions that people can get instant gratification from?
Some are taking the tact of "glamor". Others, prestige and innovator status with bragging rights among the in-crowd. Others are selling the concept of savings from energy use.
Others are waiting.
Waiting for what? For compliance to kick in. For carbon trading to kick in. For carbon tariffs. For carbon taxes. For prices of oil to rise.
Watching and planning and waiting is what constitutes a "chasm".
This marketing term was coined by Geoffrey Moore who wrote the book "Crossing the Chasm" in 1999 to illustrate how high technology's early bell-curve product life cycle was broken with hesitancy at a predictable point.
2007-2008 is that "Chasm" for many green business-to-business applications.
The Chasm |
The early adopters have been corporations who have bought "test" units and they are testing them. They are communities who have instant savings from long term energy glut applications such as street lights or potential litigation from health impacts such as schoolbuses.
They bought. They're testing and sharing the results with the rest of us. We're waiting for the rules of the game to become clear before we buy more.
But some things are different between the green revolution and the technology revolution in the desktop computer era. We ARE living in challenging times.
Early Market |
Consumers Are Ahead of Business
Recent research showed that consumers are ahead of business in adapting green solutions. They are recycling. Changing light bulbs. Buying organic. Walking and biking. Buying hybrid vehicles. Buying Energy Star applicances.Businesses aren't putting systems into place for purchasing greener products. They aren't collecting used paper. They aren't replacing paper plates with permanent servicewater. They aren't buying hybrid cars. They aren't retrofitting HVAC systems.
Businesses are waiting for legislation that will affect their tax credits and their compliance behaviors.
Businesses are going to seminars and searching for case studies and testing demo equipment. And waiting.
That's the chasm.
The questions that must be answered is "Then what happens...?"
After the Chasm
Employees are learning about green solutions at home. They are replacing faucets, recyling their trash, measuring their electrical usage, locating biofuel fueling stations.These innovators will be the leaders in the workplace when it breaks loose...and then, Katie bar the door!
They will be ready. Will you be ready?
The Bowling Alley
The Bowling Alley |
The specific solutions in the green market include hybrid vehicles, PV solar energy and organic food, among others. Very specific solutions that are well defined with immediate results that can be demonstrated.
Other green and sustainable solutions, such as water conservation, zero waste, and green retrofits for buildings are harder, provide longer term or less obvious results -- and they will thrive in later stages of the technology life cycle.
Knowing which of your products can be attached to SPECIFIC market applications can help you tailor your marketing and your message to these "bowling alley" buyers.
The Tornado
The Tornado |
Green building and development (NEW buildings) is a good example of one segment of the green space that has reached The Tornado stage.
Supported by the USGBC and other green certification and training programs, new green building technology has
- An infrastructure with deployable methods
- Is supported by architects and builders who provide third party endorsement and services
- Is supported by governments who mandate and will buy into the marketplace
New green building has crossed the chasm, has been applied to specific applications such as schools and colleges and state office buildings... and is now an accepted part of the architectural field with training, employment opportunities and materials suppliers all lined up for the ride back up to the bell curve apex.
Cities are strengthening the mandates across the entire development sector that all new buildings must meet tighter building codes that meet green building and sustainable community goals.
Translating "Computer Tech" into "Green Tech"
Times have changed. The challenge is different. Compliance issues are different. And the economic mix has changed. But the chasm concept is partly an observation about how people and how groups work when faced with new technology and CHANGE. And that doesn't change a lot over a few short years.We will be bringing you more information about how green marketing fits this product lifecycle timeline in future articles and learning platforms.
Resources
The Chasm Companion by Paul Wiefels with a Foreward by Geoffrey A. Moore provides implementation guidance to "Crossing the Chasm" and "Inside the Tornado".But in health care -- or any essential product or service -- transparency is about having 100% accountability. And the buyer of the product needs to rely on the system put in place to provide that security. After all, aren't reliable results what they pay extra for? And medicine today certainly charges that "extra" amount that high performance is supposedly offered.
This brings to mind the change in consumer perceptions about health care. And it ties directly into attitudes about "greening".
It's about cures vs. prevention.
Preventative health care has always struggled. Eating less and better just isn't attractive when restaurants place huge helpings in front of you loaded with sugar and fat for tastes that explode on your taste buds. Exercise is just plain hard work and sweat still isn't very glamorous. But a diet pill is easy. Even if it costs $3 a pill. Even if it's made in China?
Consumers so far haven't been willing to pay that extra amount
for green products because they don't offer an instant cure.
Green is preventative:
- Green prevents future increases in your electric bill
- Green prevents future health care crises
- Green prevents water supply shortages
- Green prevents obesity
- Green prevents getting a cold from your co-workers.
But Americans don't like prevention!
They are addicted to instant cures even more than they are addicted to oil! The question facing us is whether we can change that orientation in OURSELVES first, and in our families and offices next.
