(WEB HOST INDUSTRY REVIEW) — According to research data published by web hosting provider 1&1 Internet (www.1and1.co.uk), more than half of online shoppers look for “green” credentials while choosing a retailer, with one in four customers expecting retailers to use green energy and services.
With its results published on Monday, the “Greener Shopping” took the holiday season (a period of major activity for retailers, online and otherwise) as a cue to examine shoppers feelings about the environmental efforts of online retailers, and to compare them to feelings about traditional brick-and-mortar stores , in certain cases.
The company surveyed 1,500 consumers, finding that 59 percent of those were more likely to buy if the retailer uses employs green practices like recycling, along with services like renewable energy. One in four customers reported that they now “expect retailers to use eco-friendly services across their operations.”
The “Greener Shopping” survey shows that the use of renewable energy to power a company’s website is now considered as important as using less polluting vehicles. According to 1&1, 37 percent of Britons expect online retailers to be reducing their environmental impact to the same degree as high-street stores.
The “green” movement is an oft-cited motivating factor among businesses these days, with retail stores taking pains to promote and explain their green policies. The hosting business has been pursuing similar ends for several years now, with hosting providers promoting a wide variety of tactics for making their services greener.
According to 1&1’s survey, the environmentally responsible practices consumers expect of online stores now include recycled packaging, reduced packaging, eco friendly vehicles and renewable electricity. 20 percent of shoppers consider renewable energy to be as important as recycled packaging.
“As more of us think about our personal impact on the environment, there has been a surge in demand for greener practices in retail,” says Oliver Mauss, CEO of 1&1, quoted in the press release. “ A significant proportion of British consumers now expect all types of retailer to power their operations with renewable energy, and for online stores that should start with their website.”
