The Level of Awareness Regarding Green Marketing and its impact on Consumer Purchasing Behavior, with A specific focus on Delhi City

The worldwide environmental initiative has experienced significant growth and expansion. In relation to this matter, customers are assuming accountability and engaging in appropriate actions. The marketplace is being influenced by consumer knowledge and motivation, leading to changes, particularly the development of environmentally friendly items. In contrast to customers in industrialized nations, Indian consumers exhibit a far lower level of awareness regarding global warming concerns. The essence of effective marketing lies in the ability to identify prevailing trends and strategically position products, services, and brands to align with consumer intents. In contemporary times, the practice of "Green" marketing has transitioned from a passing fad to a fundamental approach in conducting business. It is imperative for enterprises engaged in selling goods or services to acknowledge the significance of adopting environmentally sustainable practices. Furthermore, it is crucial for these organizations to integrate the green concept into their marketing strategies and effectively communicate this message to their target consumers. The color green is gradually and consistently becoming as the representative hue of environmental awareness in India. The heightened consumer consciousness surrounding the historical origins of items and the escalating concern regarding the impending global environmental crisis have presented marketers with expanded avenues to influence customer behavior. In recent decades, there has been a growing trend among firms to incorporate Green Product Innovations (GPIs) into their development of goods strategies. Studies carried out on the application of green products has revealed that the perception of product performance has a crucial role in hindering their selection. Ottman (2012) demonstrates that certain individuals refrain from purchasing environmentally friendly products due to their perceived lower quality. This assertion is supported by a study conducted by Roper Starch Worldwide (RSW), which examined visible and product-specific information such as the utilization of biodegradable materials and recycling practices. Alston and Prince Roberts (1999) discovered that there existed a propensity among consumers to incur a little higher cost for the purpose of attaining development of new products. Driessen (2005) also studied the strategy of green product innovation, and it is discovered that in order to sustain a competitive edge, it is crucial to determine an optimal level of environmental sustainability that balances innovation performance and greenness. This approach ensures that the company does not solely focus on capturing a niche green market, but also maintains a broader market appeal. In order for the marketplace for environmentally friendly products to achieve widespread adoption, it is critical to look at the factors influencing consumers' decision-making.

The process of defining ecologically friendly products is multifaceted and intricate. From a rigorous standpoint, it is important to acknowledge that the concept of a genuinely sustainable or environmentally friendly product is inherently flawed. This is due to the fact that all items we acquire, possess, utilize, and dispose of in our daily routines inevitably generate adverse environmental consequences at certain points over their life cycles. Nevertheless, it is possible to categorize items based on the magnitude of their impacts, and establish a specific criterion for determining their quality (Cooper, 2000). A product that has minimal negative effects on the environment is considered to be an eco-friendly product. An additional conceptualization of an eco-friendly product, to be examined within the context of this study, pertains to the accessibility of items for purchase, specifically those offered by enterprises recognized for their efforts in minimizing environmental harm throughout the production phase. The main aim of the present study was to examine the level of awareness, social influence, and awareness among customers and how these factors impact their inclination towards green products. The focus was directed at clarifying the notable impact exerted by marketing techniques on changing consumer perceptions and choices within the realm of ecologically sustainable products.

Many businesses today acknowledge that they have an obligation in order to safeguard the environment. Consequently, as a result of the realization that they may lower pollution while simultaneously increasing profitability, more businesses are choosing to "go green" and producing cleaner goods and processes (Hart, 1997). Grant (2008) stated that green marketing offers a unique chance to innovate in meaningful ways while simultaneously achieving financial success. Since business operations have historically and currently society. According to Dutta (2009), green marketing entails creating high-quality products that can satisfy consumer demands and preferences while putting an emphasis on affordability, performance, quality, and accessibility in an environmentally responsible manner. According to Unruh and Ettenson (2010), their company should develop green products, but they must first decide which course of action is the best one. Three main tactics have been presented and explained by the writers for businesses to utilize in order to match their environmental objectives with their capabilities: Accentuate; This strategy emphasizes any latent or present green qualities in your current portfolio. Obtain: This strategy is purchasing the green brand of another person. Architect: The strategy is designing and creating environmentally friendly products from the ground up. According to Peattie (2001), there are three phases in the growth of green marketing. During the "ecological" phase of green marketing, all marketing campaigns addressed environmental problems and provided answers. This phase of the industry was known as "green marketing." The term "Environmental" refers to the second stage of green marketing, which focused more on clean technology, that is, developing innovative new products that solve issues with waste and pollution. The third stage was "sustainable" green marketing.

According to Pickett‐Baker and Ozaki (2008), in analyzing the factors influencing purchase decisions, it is important to take into account the values and beliefs of consumers. Values, which include appreciating the environment, are persistent ideas that a particular behavior is desirable or beneficial. Environmental values are the main factor influencing pro-environmental behavior. Beliefs are influenced by values, which in turn affect personal norms, which in turn influence pro-environmental behavior in consumers (Reser and Bentrupperbaumer, 2005). The post-war generation is gradually shifting its values from materialist to post-materialist ones, according to the Global Environmental Survey (GOES). This movement is expected to lead to an increase in pro-environmental behavior (Bennulf and Holmberg, 1995). Therefore, it is plausible that having pro-environmental principles causes one to act in a pro-environmental manner, even though this is not a guarantee. Nonetheless, a person who cares about the environment need not always act sustainably when making purchases or in other ways. The valuation gap is the term for this. Several frameworks for analysis as well as external and internal variables that encourage pro-environmental

choices. Their conclusion was that there isn't a single, comprehensive model that can explain the discrepancy between environmental awareness and environmentally conscious behavior. According to a recent study, individuals who are conscious of the environment do not always act sustainably. For instance, they may discard trash when the majority of those in their vicinity do, which is a reactive behavior rather than an intentional choice (Ohtomo and Hirose, 2007).

Producers of environmentally friendly items usually don't make any green promises at all in their advertising, the typical consumer has fewer possibilities than that of a mainstream product to develop a viewpoint regarding a green product, until they have taken the extra effort to learn about the green product. General consumption is significantly impacted by associative and aspirational reference groups (Dittmar, 1992). Pooley and O'Connor (2000) stated that spreading knowledge about environmental problems does not always result in people becoming more environmentally conscious. Their findings imply that the emotive domain is crucial to environmental education. It makes sense to believe that utilizing emotive material in green product advertising would be more effective. Customers may not find the information they need to make decisions through internal searches since they frequently begin with a limited information foundation about sustainable consumption. When conducting an external search, a significant amount of work is involved (Hoyer and MacInnis, 2004).

This paper aimed to investigate the- 1. Consumer behavior and views about environmentally friendly items. 2. Customer knowledge of the availability of green products. 3. The impact of marketers' initiatives in relation to customers.

The research was carried out in the urban area of Delhi, employing a suitable random sampling technique to get the data. A structured questionnaire was used to survey 150 people, aged 21-45, who were most receptive to environmentally-oriented marketing. questionnaire comprising the HEP-NEP items, in order to assess consumer general environmental beliefs. The questionnaire offered respondents a range of response options, ranging from strongly agree to entirely disagree. The factors were quantified using a five-point Likert scale approach (4,3,2,1, and 0). The questionnaire utilized in this study was a modified version derived from the cited paper (Maheshvari, 2014). Secondary data obtained through websites, Journal, Books and publications.

The statistical methods utilized in the investigation involved the computation of the Mean, Standard Deviation, and Coefficient of Variation to evaluate the average level of perception among the participants.

Six of the eleven propositions on the General Environmental Belief of Customer have mean scores of three or higher on a likert-5-point scale for propositions 2, 3, 6, 7, 8, and 11. This shows that the majority of participants strongly agree with these propositions, which are also supported by lower values of Coefficient of Variation and relatively less standard deviation. Respondents provided good mean scores for Propositions 4, 5, and 9, indicating that they were generally in agreement with the propositions. These scores ranged from 2.79 to 2.89. Propositions 1 and 10 received average mean respondents' opinions on these propositions vary, which is corroborated by the SD.  Seven items on purchasing behavior in the second section of the questionnaire focused on environmental behavior and were based on general environmental views from the last HEP-NEP survey.

With the exception of the sixth proposition, all respondents to the ―Environmental Awareness of Consumers‖ Questions (EBQ) agreed with the proposition, in the range of 2.79 to 2.89. Respondents' opinions on the sixth proposition, however, varied greatly because Standard Deviation is a proposition with a high Coefficient of Variation.  Within the customer behavior and marketing industry opinion portions of the questionnaire, questions connected to behavior toward green products were explored in the third section on marketing concerns. Contextualizing the answers to the consumer product questions was done once more using the HEP-NEP environmental questions. Moderately disagree, strongly disagree, strongly agree, and moderately agree were the proposed answers.

Among the ten propositions on the Purchase Behavior of Customers, five of the propositions have a mean score of 3 or higher on the Likert-5 scale for propositions 1, 2, 5, 6, and 9. This indicates that the majority of respondents strongly agree with these propositions, which is further supported by relatively lower SD and CV. The respondents' opinions on propositions 3, 4, and 7 were all in agreement, as indicated by their above average mean scores. In contrast, the respondents' opinions on the remaining 8 and 10 propositions were in disagreement, as indicated by their respective proposition SD and CV.  Findings i. Consumer Values/Beliefs and Behavior towards Eco-Friendly Products: The findings indicate that a significant proportion of participants express a high level of agreement in their inclination towards selecting environmentally friendly products. A majority of respondents (79%) were pleased about purchasing environmentally friendly brands. Customers want green brands to work similarly to non-green products. ii. Consumer Awareness: 61% of consumers found it challenging to find environmentally friendly products on store shelves. Most responders cannot name an eco-friendly product or type when asked. This shows consumer ignorance of green brands. iii. Marketing: Marketing is crucial to consumer awareness. According to the feedback, consumers struggle to remember green products or brands and favor environmentally friendly ones. This highlights a lack of marketing effort by green marketers to raise customer awareness. iv. Report on Trust and Product Performance: Environmental perceptions greatly impact green product performance. A huge 87% of respondent‘s express trust in well-known companies and rate green items based on past experience.

Indian consumers may demand eco-labeled products to promote a cleaner environment due to its rapid GDP growth and significant environmental effect. This study provides empirical evidence supporting the existence of an environmental value-action discrepancy between consumers' beliefs and behaviors pertaining to environmental sustainability. This article explores consumer behavior and suggests that marketing can impact their desire for greener products. Products with more exposure sell more. Pro-environmental conduct is more likely

acquiring green products is the uncertainty of their performance. Well-known brands are trusted by consumers, thus green products with effective performance and realistic claims may sell well. To increase customer awareness of global warming, Indian brands must contribute. Indian producers struggle to establish a marketplace for green products, despite low consumer awareness due to weak marketing efforts. However, Indian brands may break the loop by prioritizing green activities and educating consumers. Overall, marketers are underutilizing the Indian market for environmentally friendly goods among pro-environmental consumers. This indicates a rise in the usage of marketing brands to promote environmentally friendly green products.

 To increase the degree of knowledge about Green Marketing, it is recommended that the government should intensify its efforts. This may be achieved by the implementation of various initiatives such as conducting awareness campaigns in rural regions, employing advertisements, organizing seminars and workshops, among other strategies.  The implementation of collaborative awareness campaigns is recommended to foster engagement among many stakeholders, including governmental bodies, non-governmental organizations (NGOs), private sectors, and other relevant entities.

Associate Professor Department of Commerce, Motilal Nehru College University of Delhi, Delhi