Energy efficiency becoming key purchase influence

Gfk Technology's latest Ethical Brands survey has revealed that energy efficiency is more important to UK consumers than brand when buying technology products.

The research revealed that 59 per cent of UK consumers cited 'energy efficiency' as one of the most important aspects when choosing what technology product to buy, while 28 per cent cited 'brand or make'.

In addition, 76 per cent said that a product that 'uses less power on standby' would be likely to influence their purchase decision, while 75 per cent said a product that 'comes with a charger that uses less power' would get their vote.

Richard Preedy, research manager at GfK Technology, said: 'We are seeing a real merger of environmental awareness with financial acumen among UK consumers.

'Value for money continues to be the overriding consideration when purchasing new technology, but energy efficiency equals money saved on household bills, as well as the feel-good factor of buying a more environmentally friendly product - 43 per cent of UK adults said that buying an ethical brand made them feel good; that's an increase of seven per cent from last year.

'We are also seeing 22 per cent - that's more than one in five people - agreeing that they would pay up to a 10 per cent premium for an ethical technology product over a conventional one.

'What's particularly striking is that, despite the recession, this figure has risen back to almost the same level we were seeing in March last year (24 per cent), after an initial dip at the end of 2008.

'This suggests that ethical credentials of technology products are a consideration that is here to stay and manufacturers will need to balance that alongside other key purchasing concerns.

The survey also shows that the majority of people (40 per cent) believe that 'manufacturers and companies' should take the lead in supporting ethical business practices, ahead of the government (38 per cent) and individual consumers (22 per cent) - and packaging seems to be a quick-win area.

Almost 58 per cent agreed that they would be more likely to purchase a product that had 'reduced packaging' and 51 per cent agreed the same for 'packaging made from recycled materials'.

Looking at the material of the product itself, 58 per cent of consumers say that their purchasing decision would be favourably influenced towards a product manufactured using 'less harmful materials or chemicals'.

However, this support drops to just below half - 45 per cent - when it comes to products manufactured from recycled material, suggesting that consumers still see recycled material as being inferior quality when it comes to technology products.

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