Guilt Forces a Hungry Man Indoors

In an effort to help me find a topic to write about, a friend confessed to me that he actually puts thought into how long he’ll have to sit in a car while in the drive-thru of some eatery. He told me if there’s more than 3 people in line, he’ll walk inside instead because he would feel guilty for sitting there with his car running the whole time.

I was surprised by his confession for two reasons. First the idea of being conscious of the fuel spent and emissions released while sitting in a drive-thru never occurred to me. Second, when thinking of ways to motivate people into action, I never considered appealing to their guilty conscience, but perhaps it’s a valid way to encourage people to go green. Later that same day I was chatting with my brother-in-law and he mentioned that he keeps a bucket in the shower because he felt guilty about all the wasted water going down the drain while he waits for the water to heat up. I can totally relate.

The thing about using guilt to motivate newb greenies is some people don’t respond to that kind of pressure, even if you are Catholic. They’ll likely bail on you entirely instead of jumping on board. If you treat the opportunity as a way to help promote green ideas instead of giving a green lecture, you’ll have better success. Putting my marketing background to use, here are some different ideas to consider when promoting sustainability.

• Duty/Responsibility - You must tread lightly here. If you tell the aloof or ambivalent person, “it’s your responsibility to take care of the planet”, they’ll either tune you out or blow you off completely. This approach is best reserved for boyscouts, the activists or the former middle-school hall monitors.
• Sense of Authority - Do you know people that are better followers than leaders, or maybe a bit on the submissive side? Avoid asking if they want to participate and straight out tell them how. Be nice, but direct: “You should try doing this…”, or ,”come help me work on that…”, are just a few options.
• Praise - Vanity is universal. Who doesn’t like to fetch compliments about themselves really? If I said to someone, “You’d look hot in those vegan, bamboo sneakers and organic cotton t-shirt”, most would put extra consideration into the purchase. No one’s ego is beyond reproach, just don’t lay it on too thick.
• Efficiency - Ah, the pragmatist, ever on the lookout for the most efficient way to accomplish anything. They want things done with as much quality and as minimal effort as possible. They’re not lazy, just looking for dexterity. Talking about the multiple benefits of energy saving items like compact fluorescents, water heater blankets and low-flow shower heads is exactly what this person wants to hear.
• Money - Not quite as universal as praise, but very close. Most green products have a higher initial cost, but their durability, sustainability and recyclability (recyclableness?) means much less cost down the road. Appeal to these people’s long term financial outlook and you’ll hook ‘em.
• Scarcity -My personal favorite reserved for last. Scarcity is the king of all attractors in the marketing world. Tell someone they’ll miss out if they don’t act right now, and they’ll clamor for the the chance to buy this or do that. If you’ve ever stayed up late watching bad infomercials, you know exactly what I mean. They may suck, but they sell, and so can you, but you have to ACT NOW! Don’t wait, tell your neighbor how they can make improvements their lives today, but they have to get in on the ground floor or the opportunity may be gone.

I use a bit of levity and tongue-in-cheek humor to get my point across, but the truth is you probably use these methods unconsciously when you talk to people anyway. If they didn’t work, marketers wouldn’t use them. The most important factor is knowing which method is going to motivate the person/people you’re working with. Don’t rush into it because you may fall on your face and lose their attention completely.

Take your time, test the waters with their tolerance and when you feel more comfortable, work your plan. Just be ready to back off if you’re sensing adversity. It’s better to retreat to fight another day than to fail badly and lose all future opportunities. Remember, tread lightly.

UPDATE! It turns out Tara Burner wrote a post last week about sitting in drive-thrus and I was neglect to notice. It extends on the first part of this post nicely. Go check it out.

Photo by Matthew Vandenbossche

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