When you target consumers, it aids to understand if they’re “dark green”, “light green” or “basic brown” in their attitudes, but, with lots of green troubles, products, and labels on the market, it might be much more relevant for your branding and communications to know their green interests.

Ask: To which environmental organizations do members of our target audience belong (The Appalachian Mountain Club or Greenpeace)? Which kinds of vacations do they take (hiking or the beach)? Which environmental magazines and internet websites do they read or go to? (Sierra or Animal Fair?) Which sorts of merchandise do they acquire? (green fashions or energy-sipping light bulbs)? Which eco-labels do they seek out (“USDA Organic” or “Energy Star”)?

In observing green buyers over the past twenty years my colleagues and I’ve discovered that asking inquiries like these makes it possible for companies to distinguish among 4 subsegments, which we’ve dubbed “Resource …