Reading more of the Sustainability Marketing textbook mentioned in my last blog. Here is some of what I've learned this morning.

The life cycle of a product from cradle to grave consists of the following elements:

1. Extraction of raw resources
2. Transportation
3. Manufacturing
4. Distribution
5. Use
6. Disposal

Each of these product stages can be rated with regards to how much energy is consumed, how much water is consumed, how much waste is produced, how the waste is disposed of, how much air pollution is created, and so on.

The process of creating a sustainable product involves analyzing the life cycle of the product and trying to minimize the rated impacts where they are highest or most critical.

Sustainability Marketing would allow you to advertise the benefits of choosing your product over another one by virtue of the reduced impacts and/or positive impacts of your product life cycle on the environment and society (social and environmental consequences).

Sustainable consumer behavior is consumption behavior that is attuned not just to the attributes or features of the product in isolaton, but which is also attuned to life cycle attributes of the product and how it addresses the cradle to grave environmental and social impacts.

The consumer is not expected to be aware of some of these impacts before purchasing the product. It is the job of sustainability marketing to help make consumers aware of these impacts and that they are being reduced or positively affected in the case of this product.