Dentsu Inc.'s cross-functional team "New! Social Design Engine," which plans communications rooted in social issues, conducted the "Ethical Consumption Awareness Survey 2022" targeting 2,500 men and women nationwide aged 10 to 70. An overview of the survey results is reported in this article. This time, we spoke with Dentsu Inc. Kai Inanobe, the person in charge of this survey, about the key points of the findings and the future outlook they reveal.
As interest in "social good" areas, particularly the SDGs, continues to grow, "ethical consumption" has become an important keyword. However, many people are still unfamiliar with the concept of ethical consumption. We hope this article serves as a reference for companies considering how they can contribute to the spread of ethical consumption.
Awareness of "ethical consumption" is steadily growing, but hurdles to actual practice remain
Q. Ms. Inanobe, you were in charge of the "Ethical Consumption Awareness Survey 2022." What led you to start working on the theme of "ethical"?
Inanobe: I joined Dentsu Inc. as a new graduate in 2018. Even then, I believed that "the power of advertising lies in shining a light on high-value products and services that might otherwise go unnoticed in the world." While advertising often carries the image of requiring significant costs, making it seem only accessible to large corporations, I felt that "having money and resources doesn't necessarily mean you can do advertising." My personal challenge was, "Can we spread the value of good things to the world even with limited resources?"
After joining the company, I worked with several client companies. I had the opportunity to be involved in campaigns centered around the SDGs and to participate in product development with a focus on solving social issues. Honestly, though, my impression was that things didn't go as smoothly as I'd hoped. Often, the theme would be prioritized without sufficient facts to back it up, or initiatives that didn't easily translate into short-term sales promotions wouldn't become themes. This led me to realize that, above all else, I needed to acquire the right knowledge and facts myself. Otherwise, I wouldn't be able to fully address the challenges faced by client companies.
That's why I enrolled in the Ethical Concierge Course offered by the Ethical Association, where I learned extensively about the theme of ethics. Coincidentally, a senior colleague from Dentsu Inc. was also taking the same course. Discussing various points with them led me to the realization: "To work effectively on ethical themes, we fundamentally need to grasp basic facts – does society genuinely have interest in ethical themes? How much understanding has progressed?" That's why we first conducted the "Ethical Consumption Awareness Survey 2020" in 2020. Two years later, feeling the need to update the information, we conducted the 2022 edition of the survey and announced the results in June 2022.
Q. You conducted surveys in both 2020 and 2022. What stood out to you most in this latest set of results?
Inanobe: Compared to 2020, awareness of the term "ethical consumption" has increased (2020: 24.0% → 2022: 41.1%). In a sense, this was expected. However, my honest impression is that interest and intention to practice it haven't really expanded much. Looking at society, I do feel that ethical products and brands have increased in number. However, I sense that the number of people showing interest or intent to use them hasn't grown significantly.
However, within this landscape, we did observe some signs of budding change. For example, the percentage of people who say they are "interested" in ethical consumption hasn't increased significantly in the 2022 survey. However, while the 2020 survey showed the highest number of respondents answering "not interested," this time the largest group answered "neither interested nor uninterested." This suggests that as the term "ethical consumption" gradually permeates society, more people are reaching a point where they can't say they're "not interested," but they also don't know how to proceed.
On the other hand, looking at those who expressed an "intention to practice" ethical consumption, efforts seem to be starting in areas like food waste reduction—actions that can be incorporated into daily life with relatively low price barriers. This clearly shows that lowering the barriers to implementation is crucial for expanding ethical consumption.
Understanding the background of what you purchase is crucial. Does that product truly contribute to solving the issue?
Q. What exactly is "ethical consumption"? How do you define it, Ms. Inanobe?
Inanobe: Our research defines it as "consumers engaging in consumption activities while considering solutions to social issues or supporting businesses tackling such issues." Personally, I believe the crucial aspect is "not just consuming, but consuming after understanding the background and context." For example, what about the energy used in the production process? What are the working conditions for the producers involved? How might the future of the land where it's produced change? Isn't it crucial to make an informed decision about whether to buy something produced under these circumstances?
Q. In your work focused on ethical consumption, have you noticed an increase in certain types of inquiries lately?
Inanobe: A while back, we often got requests like "Please explain the situation," essentially just wanting a report. But lately, we're also getting inquiries asking, "Considering the compatibility with our own business or brand and future consumer demand, what kind of initiatives should we take?" It seems many companies are finally getting serious about this. However, I think many companies are struggling with the question, "So, where do we start?" I'm working hard to deepen my own knowledge so I can properly support those people.
There are also significant differences in initiatives across industries. "Food loss countermeasures" is an area where efforts are advancing ahead of others. For example, soy-based meat alternatives have become quite widespread, and the range of options is growing. That's positive in itself, but looking closer, some products contain many additives or have very poor energy efficiency in their production processes. Adding the health perspective, there might be even better choices available.
Interest in renewable energy is also growing considerably. However, price volatility has not yet translated into increased implementation intent. Especially with recent inflation, many consumers cannot choose based solely on ethical consumption being good. I sense the tide is turning, so I want to push harder here. For instance, demonstrating that "environmentally good = high functionality" might help overcome the price barrier. I believe we're in a transitional phase, and polarization is advancing both among companies and among consumers.
Q. What is the one thing you most want to do right now, Mr. Inanobe?
Inanobe: When we first conducted the "Ethical Consumption Awareness Survey" in 2020, our goal was simply to understand the correct facts. At that time, there was no other data on initiatives across various industries, so even that alone was valuable.
Building on that, I now want to actively challenge myself to move beyond facts to action. I want to develop products and services that people with high ethical consumption awareness will genuinely choose. Above all, I want to approach them in a way that enables mutual communication. Not everyone shares the same awareness or interests, so the first step is creating an environment where we can effectively target those with high awareness. Then, I aim to build relationships where we can exchange the information and experiences each party seeks.
The situation where "awareness is growing, but many consumers haven't yet taken concrete action" is precisely what Mr. Inanobe describes as a "transitional phase." In other words, this is also a pivotal moment where society's trajectory could shift dramatically. We need to prepare now to ensure we aren't left behind by societal change.
Furthermore, consumer demand to "understand the background of products and services" is expected to grow significantly. If a company claims to solve social issues but actually creates other problems behind the scenes, it could be fatal. Beyond just considering "whether it will sell," why not re-examine your production activities from the perspective of "whether it poses risks to your company"?
The information published at this time is as follows.
As a member of Dentsu Inc.'s company-wide initiative "New! Social Design Engine," which tackles societal challenges, I conducted the "Ethical Consumption Awareness Survey 2022." Personally, I completed the Ethical Concierge Course hosted by the Ethical Association. As an Ethical Concierge, I engage in small reforms in clothing, food, and housing from an "ethical perspective," as well as pro bono activities (volunteer work that utilizes professional skills and expertise for social or public purposes).
