LOHAS Green Consumers Biggest Users of Social Media- So What?

A report from the Natural Marketing Institute (NMI) is making the rounds on Twitter today about how a segment of green consumers use social media. As reported in Environmental Leader: LOHAS Consumers are the most likely to use social media.

At first glance this seems like very good news for green companies, and it is. But there are some nuances.

NMI uses psychographics to define the various consumers who buy organic products. And as I discuss here, using psychographics rather than demographics is key to reaching green consumers. The NMI categories, based on psychographics or lifestyle and behavior are defined as:

LOHAS — very progressive on environment and society, looking for ways to do more; not too concerned about price (16%).

Naturalites — primarily concerned about personal health and wellness, and use many natural products; would like to do more to protect the environment (25%).

Conventionals — practical, like to see the results of what they do; interested in green products that make sense (e.g., save money) in the long run (23%).

Drifters — not too concerned about environment, figuring we’ve got time to fix environmental problems; don’t necessarily buy a lot of green products, though may like to “be seen” in Whole Foods to enhance their image (23%).

Unconcerned — have other priorities, not really sure what green products are available, and probably wouldn’t be interested anyway; they buy products strictly on price, value, quality, and convenience (14%).

And so it’s not surprising that the LOHAS or “heavily involved in the green movement” consumer is the most active on social media. At least it’s not to me. I have suspected for awhile that there are close ties between the green movement and social media. Or maybe it’s just that those leaders in the green movement who are on social media have become the mouthpiece for the movement. Or perhaps most likely, leaders in the green movement have figured out how to harness social media to promote their cause.

Either way, as a marketer, what can I do with this new knowledge about LOHAS consumers and social media?

I think that looking at the report as whole, which shows that actually in each of the categories about 30% of consumers are involved in social media, we can come to some conclusions. This ties back into Netpop’s report that concludes that 105 million US broadband consumers use social media.

In other words, LOHAS or very green consumer tends to use social media a bit more than most. This is good news if you have a product that appeals to this segment of consumers. You may find that you have a bit more success with your social media programs than others targeting different segments.

On the other hand, I’m a big believer in social media and no matter what segment you target, social media is likely to prove successful for you, as long as you develop thoughtful, strategic programs, carefully measure results and modify them to meet the needs of this changing medium.