Too Good to be True
Yesterday I attended the Go Green Expo, which is a trade show for environmental products and services, held (as of right now) in four cities across the country–NYC, LA, Philadelphia, and Atlanta. I met some pretty interesting people, doing pretty interesting stuff–but overall felt as though there was something missing…in any event, I will definitely try to go back next year.
One thing I found particularly interesting was the expo check-in and registration. My friend and I arrived at the check-in, and the woman behind the counter told us: “You can get in free today [the tickets were $10].” Pause. My friend and I look at each other, nodding in agreement and thinking, “Good,” because we each just bought $4 lattes at Starbucks. The woman behind the counter continues: “You can get in free today if you sign up for ConEdison’s Wind Power Program.”
ConEdison Solutions provides options for their residential and business customers to use “green” energy sources for their electricity, including their GREEN and WIND power programs. Their website says that:
WIND Power is composed of electricity exclusively generated from 100% wind power…. WIND Power is an additional 2.5 cents per kilowatt-hour (kWh) more than our standard offer.
Ostensibly the $10 increase in my monthly electric bill from switching to all-wind power would have covered by my waived $10 entrance fee–which, in my opinion is a pretty good deal. But, I’m not one to sign up for things willy-nilly on the street. I’m a little bit too distrustful of things that sound too good to be true….
….which is interesting, because I am in the business of “too good to be true.” A regular issue at my job is convincing small business owners that the services offered by the nonprofit organization I work for are free. However, usually this sounds “too good to be true” and capturing a client-base is difficult without establishing trust. And “trust,” in my experience, means different things to different people; but, as a general rule means not asking for something at the beginning of your relationship. What ConEdison’s WIND team had accomplished by positioning themselves at the registration booth of the Go Green Expo with a deal that sounded really good, is really creative. What a great way to introduce people to your service, and maybe even sign them up to participate. What is a little confusing to me is why I strolled by, unmoved by this proposition, when (a) I do care about the environment and (b) I do offer services that sound “too go to be true” (even though they are true) and understand this dynamic all too well. ConEdison made helping the environment very easy…why didn’t I take the bait? I should be their easiest target, the lowest hanging fruit.
Last week I came across a New York Times article, Seeking to End World Hunger, One Search at a Time, which described the creation of Hoongle. Hoongle.org is “a custom Google search engine that promises to donate 20 grains of rice per search to schools in the developing world.” This sounds very interesting, and very easy. Unlike its predecessors, Hoongle.org is not based on gimmicks (I’m liking it) and you don’t have to pay (liking it even more) or sign up for anything (fine! I’ll take the bait!).
So, in an experiment to convert myself over to a new social venture (since I had at least temporarily bypassed ConEd), I went on Hoongle.org today, only to find that the site is offline due to heavy traffic. Aha! Too good to be true! This fits the expected outcome that things that are “too good to be true” usually are. Consumers expect lower quality service, high payments, traps, contracts that you cannot get out of, and other negative side effects of electing products and services that are “too good to be true.” What does this mean for social enterprises?
Despite some obvious growing pains, people will keep finding creative ways to turn our everyday practices into social ventures. The main issue will be convincing the public (myself included) that things that sound “too good to be true” can still be true. This is a marketing issue.
Plain and simple: people distrust things that sound “too good to be true”. So, social enterprises can either (a) focus on developing relationships with their potential clients or (b) avoid marketing their products/services as ”too good to be true”. Take ConEdison, for example: Firstly, I am already their client, but my relationship with them is paying montly electric bills. We aren’t close friends and I don’t actually like paying bills. I am not going to do something just because ConEdison tells me to. Secondly, the idea of switching from a traditional electrical supply to 100% windpower with only a minimal increase in my bill just sounds “too good to be true” and way too easy to participate in, even if it is.
ConEdison does a good job of changing their public perception by participating in a number of green events and getting their name out to the green community. The Go Green Expo was the second time I’ve been approached by a ConEd WIND Power representative, and I am definitely more likely to sign up this time than I was the first time. However, toning down their ”too good to be true” marketing scheme is probably something they could work on. Green-washed cause marketing is rampant and educated social consumers want to make sure that they are investing in the real deal, even if it isn’t perfect…. yet.