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Survey: 72% of Operators Plug ‘Green’ When Marketing Services

CHICAGO — Being “green” or “environmentally friendly” is in vogue, and a sizable portion of laundry operators is marketing its services in this way, according to the results of the latest Wire survey.
Roughly 17% of respondents to American Laundry News’ online poll this month say marketing their operation as being green is their “biggest selling point,” while another 55.2% say they promote that aspect of their business but “place other factors first.”
The remaining 27.6% say they don’t promote their environmental friendliness, but instead emphasize other factors. No one who responded to the survey selected the other possible choice offered: “No, the less customers know, the better.”
Marketing aside, operators were asked to assess their environmental performance. Roughly 10% say their “laundry is among the ‘greenest’ in the country,” 51.7% say they’re “greener” than most operations, and 24.1% say their laundry is no more or less green than others.
Roughly 10% say their laundry “needs to do more environmentally,” and the remaining 3.4% were unsure of where they stand.
Roughly 38% of respondents say their city or state has green legislation strongly encouraging or even mandating resource conservation, or it’s leaning in that direction. Approximately 41% say their local or state government doesn’t have such legislation, and 20.7% are unsure.
Some equipment manufacturers, chemical companies and other suppliers promote their products as being green. Looking at the issue from a customer’s perspective, the environmental stance of a manufacturer or supplier can influence an operator’s decision when making a purchase for their laundry, according to the survey results.
Roughly 14% of respondents say they “purposefully choose products that are environmentally friendly,” and another 72.4% say they “weigh these claims but also consider other factors when choosing what to buy.” Approximately 14% say they’re “only concerned about whether a product can provide what we need.”
Subscribers to American Laundry News’ Wire e-mails — distributed weekly — are invited to participate in an industry survey each month. The survey is conducted online via a partner website. Each survey is developed so it can be completed in 10 minutes or less. Readers are encouraged to participate, as a greater number of responses will help to better define operator opinions and industry trends.
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Have a question or comment? E-mail our editor Matt Poe at [email protected].