Continuum and Communispace Corporation Complete "Colorblind" Study to Explore Consumer Behavior and Perception in Relation to "Green"

New Study Is First to Reveal What "Green" Really Means to Consumers Today
WEST NEWTON, Mass.--(Business Wire)--
Continuum, a design and innovation consultancy and Communispace Corporation, a
leading provider of online customer communities, today unveiled results of a
year-long, cross-industry study of the "green" attitudes and behaviors of
consumers nationwide. Titled "Colorblind," the study goes beyond what consumers
say to get at the heart of what they actually do in their daily lives.
Businesses that struggle with how to design products and services for consumers
in the context of green will draw actionable insights from this study.

Key findings from the study include:

* Consumers care about "their"world more than "the" world. Consumers care most
about people in their lives; themselves, their families and their friends. They
make choices to protect and sustain them.Companies would benefit from making the
link between green offerings and personal benefits.
* Environmental choice feels good. Consumers want to make the "right" choice but
are confused as to what that means.
* Green products and messaging are more effective when they`re practical than
when they`re aspirational. Consumers are generally reluctant to sacrifice
personal convenience, low-cost or comfort in the interests of the environment -
especially when the environmental benefit of doing so is unclear.
* The environment is a place people visit, not a place where they live. People
repeatedly describe it as a forest or a beach, something far way and occasional;
not something that they interact with on a day to day basis. Tangible actions,
ones where consumers can see and control the results (recycling, energy and
water conservation), are embraced.
* Consumers abhor waste; they value "conservation" not so much because it`s
"green" as because it`s frugal. They buy green products and engage in
sustainable practices, but the values driving these actions are a general
abhorrence of waste and prizing of frugality, so companies trying to promote
green products may be better served by speaking to these values.
* "Green" is not black and white; for consumers there are many "shades of
green." People relate to the environment in different ways, and there is great
variety in consumer choices about how to be more environmentally conscious.

"Sustainability touches so many parts of people`s lives, from their health to
their pocketbook to their image. You can`t get to the heart of a topic like this
with just surveys, and that`s what most consumer studies I`ve seen are based
on," noted Continuum`s Kelly Sherman, a strategist on the project. "By spending
time with people in their homes and partnering with Communispace, Continuum was
able to experience first-hand the values of real people, bringing the kind of
depth that`s crucial to truly understanding how this issue resonates."

The study was unique in its approach, incorporating ethnographic research from
20 households and evaluated by the designers and strategists at Continuum. A
combination of quantitative and qualitative research techniques were applied to
nearly 7,000 consumers aged 18 to 65. These consumers are part of private online
communities created and facilitated by Communispace. Qualitative research on
this scale is rare.

"As with many complex social issues, the idea of `going green` has become
polarized in our thinking and dialogue: we tend to think that people are either
`green` or not, or that `greenness` can be described on a single continuum,"
notes Manila Austin, Director of Research at Communispace. "But when members
uploaded pictures and told stories about who and what has influenced them, which
of their own environmental practices they feel guilty about and which they feel
good about, we got a far more nuanced and actionable understanding of the range
of consumer orientations and how to address them."

Kristen Heist, Continuum`s lead strategist on the project added, "It was those
glimpses at the subtleties that may have not been unearthed in other studies
that told us a richer, deeper story."

About Continuum:

Continuum is a design and innovation consultancy that helps turn ideas into
realities. Through exhaustive investigation and user research, Continuum
undertakes a deeply immersive role in a client`s businesses to formulate design
and brand strategies that are both fiscally sound and consumer relevant. Since
1983, Continuum has created meaningful design for companies worldwide including
American Express, Andersen Windows, Procter and Gamble, BMW, Master Lock, Moen,
Samsung, Johnson & Johnson. Continuum has offices in Boston, Los Angeles, Milan
and Seoul.

www.dcontinuum.com

About Communispace

Communispace Corporation is the leader in building, managing and facilitating
private branded communities that deliver the voice of the customer and enable
businesses to generate continuous insights, drive faster innovation, and build
loyalty. Founded in 1999, the company has created more than 300 customer
communities for industry leaders such as Kraft, Hewlett-Packard, Charles Schwab,
Hallmark, Unilever, GlaxoSmithKline and Hilton Hotels. Headquartered in
Watertown, Massachusetts, the company has offices in New York, San Francisco,
London, Chicago, Austin, Atlanta and San Remo, Italy.

www.communispace.com

Editor`s Note: For an executive summary and an in-depth slideshow of key
learnings visit: www.dcontinuum.com/colorblind.

For more information on the 7,000-person research fielded in Communispace
communities: www.communispace.com/colorblind.

Continuum
Kerry Emberley, 617-928-9582
kemberley@dcontinuum.com
or
Greenough Communications
Liz Boal, 617-275-6522
lboal@greenoughcom.com

Copyright Business Wire 2009