Marketing Strategies for Solar Panel and Battery Adoption in Australia

This report analyzes marketing strategies aimed at encouraging Australian households to purchase solar panels and home batteries. The introduction highlights Australia's favorable conditions for solar energy production, public support, and the need to address misconceptions about cost and reliability. The literature review examines consumer behavior, focusing on environmental and personal factors influencing energy choices, including the concept of 'lock-in' and the importance of attitudes. The report applies the self-determination theory to explain consumer behavior, emphasizing the needs for competence, relatedness, and autonomy. Three marketing strategies are discussed: cause marketing, diversity marketing, and relationship marketing, with recommendations for businesses in the green energy industry, particularly favoring relationship marketing for its long-term benefits. The conclusion emphasizes the ripe market in Australia and the need for strong marketing strategies.

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‘TAKE THE POWER BACK’-ENCOURAGING HOUSEHOLDS TO PURCHASE SOLAR PANELS
AND HOME BATTERIES
Name
Student
Institution
Tutor
Course
City/State
Date

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Table of contents
Introduction .........................................................................................................................…..................3
Literature review........................................................................................................................................4
Consumer behavioral theory......................................................................................................................5
Marketing Strategy 1: Cause marketing.....................................................................................................6
Marketing Strategy : Diversity marketing.................................................................................................6
Marketing Strategy 3: Relationship marketing..........................................................................................7
Recommendation and conclusion .............................................................................................................7
List of references........................................................................................................................................9

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Introduction
Australia as a country provides arguably the most conducive conditions for the production of solar
power. Almost half of the country is a desert and the other half enjoys sunshine all year round. In
addition, studies have shown that solar power is Australia's chosen source of energy for the future.
These studies have also calculated that solar power can generate up to 60% of total Australian energy
requirements (Martin & Rice 2015, p. 128). This would very quickly reduce the amounts of greenhouse
gases emitted by the country and the dependence on fossil fuel.
In a recent poll conducted by The Australia Institute, a total of 63% of those interviewed stated that
they would choose solar energy as their first energy source. This greatly opposes the value of fossil
fuels like coal which were ranked as some of the last preferred sources of energy. They ranked as top
three only to as little as 35% of Australian population. These fuels have been called out for their
disastrous environmental impacts. In fact, 60% of all Australians believe that coal and CSG (seams gas)
have a noticeable effect on the landscape (Baer 2016, p. 194). This is as compared to a mere 13 % that
share that belief about solar power.
But even with the environmental factors favouring solar power and all the public support drawn from
it, Australia still generates just average amounts of solar energy (Thyer, Thomas, McClintock & Ridd
2018, p. 147). This can be attributed to the myths and misconceptions that surround the productions of
solar energy. Most people believe that the cost of producing solar energy is expensive and cannot be
afforded by regular citizens. Other critics say that this kind of energy is unreliable. Their main
argument is, when the sun goes down and the wind calms down, then the harnessing of this energy is
also halted. These criticisms have been answered. First the cost. In a study conducted in America, it
was discovered that the cost of producing wind energy had dropped by 62% and the cost of producing
solar energy had sunk by 81%. Meaning, it is currently very cheap to produce renewable energy than it

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is to produce conventional energy (WOOD, THURAISINGHAM, JOSHI, PARISH, KALLO & LE
2015, p. 20). And in regards to the claims of unreliability, latest innovations have improved the storage
capabilities of batteries.
This study is aimed at middle-class Australian households. Most households have embraced the culture
of harnessing their own energy and storing it in homemade batteries. Australians are now installing big
solar panels on their roofs to collect this energy (Simpson 2018, p. 127). This report intends to explore
some of the theories that drive the marketing strategies and how they influence an average Australian to
explore the solar energy installation.
Given the ever-rising prices of electricity throughout the country,many Australians have resorted too
using solar power and other renewable energy sources to produce and store their own power. This is
advantageous in two aspects; first, it eliminates the unreliability of the electric companies and reduces
the cost of power consumption and secondly, it greatly reduces the country's carbon emissions and
therefore helps sustain the environment.
Literature review
This report aims at looking at the consumer behaviour that drives the eruption of homemade solar
production and storage in Australian households. Therefore, the literature will distinguish between the
contextual and personal conditions that affect and help mould an individual's energy traits (Jackson
2005; Lewin, Strutton, and Paswan 2011; Peattie 2010; Stern 2005). As stated by Jackson, the
environmental influences on energy behaviour are social trends, institutional conditions and financial
and legal regulations. These factors influence which kind of energy source an individual will consider.
A common terminology is 'lock-in'. This term is used to describe a situation where the environmental
factors affect a consumer choice for energy so much that they do not have much of a choice in
determining their energy preference. To put it simply, the effects of environmental factors are so

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adverse that they affect even the personal factor that might influence an individual's behaviour (Stern
2005, p. 10786).
But this does not completely rule out personal factors. In fact, for organisational marketers, personal
factors are the only factors left that can be manipulated. These factors include attitude, personal
financial and social abilities and individual behaviour and habit. Attitudes, for example, are considered
as the main influence on energy consumption. The only issue then is that attitude is immensely affected
by social factors like values or habit. These social factors offer a view into how individual perceive
green energy. Attitude, thus, is an essential factor that influences green energy acceptance and the
changes in society in regards to the acceptance of green energy (Prothero, McDonagh, and Dobscha
2010).
Green energy, all things considered, is costly and requires high-level maintenance and engagement. To
the consumer, this means that they have to make some serious considerations and decisions before
engaging in this endeavour (Probst and Lee 2010). This report will pick one consumer behavioural
theory to attempt to explain how it will affect all three marketing strategies since it has been proven
that behavioural theories can help predict consumer tendency and the factors that influence that
tendency better than traditional theories, for example, the theory of planned behaviour ( which seem to
be unable to explain the influences of attitude on behaviour and therefore raises questions about their
credibility and capability to predict intention).
Consumer behavioural theory
The self-determination theory was developed by Edward Deci and Richard Ryan. The theory argues
that there are 3 innate psychological needs which people consider as universal needs. The three needs
include competence, need for relatedness and need for autonomy. This theory perfectly blends with the
social nature of human beings, we need to surround ourselves with other people and are affected by the

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actions of these people (Tam, Le, Zeng, Wang & Illankoon 2017, p. 1). The need to keep up with recent
times and to cooperate and live in harmony with our neighbours drives us to copy and adopt the habits
and norms of those neighbours. For example, if a neighbour buys a new solar panel to harness energy,
then other people around them will be motivated to also buy this product or at the very least will be
interested enough to learn about it. This is where marketing strategies come in.
Marketing Strategy 1: Cause Marketing
This type of marketing strategy links the goods or products of a company to a social issue or problem.
The social problem, in this case, is the green gases emission levels and the exploration of new energy
sources. As earlier stated, social factors influence an individual the most when it comes to the decision
of green energy. In fact, Ha, Y & Janda 2012 in their study classified this as subjective norms where
they stated that the actions of other social members can majorly influence the household power sources
of an individual even if they are well informed of other choices. This report, therefore, aims to claim
that if a company were to adopt this strategy in Australia where the majority of the population has
accepted green energy then it would be successful in the long term.
Marketing strategy 2 : Diversity marketing
This marketing strategy handles a more diversified customer base by releasing many products. The aim
of this is to reach out to many customers by providing many different avenues for green energy
production. Attitudes greatly affect the choice of whether to join the green energy initiative. Most
studies have linked it to an individual's environmental concern. Schultz, Khazian & Zaleski 2008 state
that an acute change in a persons needs to conserve the environment is affected by a small
change/factor. But what most of these studies fail to realise is that even after an individual has decided
to adopt green energy, the choice of particularly which type to adopt is still affected by attitude (Preston
& Orgill 2017, p. 418). It is, therefore, important to offer a variety of choices from which to pick. An

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organisation can then base their marketing strategy on the number of choices they offer and how
diversified they are in order to appeal to more customers.
Marketing strategy 3: Relationship marketing
This type of marketing is based on customer relations. The aim of the business, in this case, is to build
a good relationship with the customer. This usually starts with attesting to their beliefs and ideas. The
beliefs of Australians in regards to green energy are well stated in the introduction. For a company that
wishes to follow this strategy all they have to do is agree with the customer on their need to preserve
the environment. Hartmann & Apaolaza-Ibáñez 2012, concluded that customers today see green energy
as a long-term solution to environmental problems and are more than willing to pay for green energy.
This is all a company should hear before engaging the customer.
All these strategies are based on the consumer's behavior specifically self-determination theory. The
client's autonomy will guide them to form a good relationship with a company that shares in their intent
to preserve the environment; the competence in each individual motivates that person to be a part of the
change that is happening- to be able to control their environment and what happens to them. And
finally, need for relatedness will appeal to the consumers urge to help other people by encouraging
them to follow along to fight for their environment.
Recommendation and Conclusion
This report recommends that business that pursues the green energy industry adopt the relationship
marketing strategy. Its main advantage is that it leads to a long-term relationship based on trust and a
mutually shared goal. This will ensure that the customers are retained and are loyal to the company and
as a bonus, it is a self-creating brand. This kind of branding lasts for a long time. On the other hand, the
main disadvantage is that this marketing strategy takes a very long time to build.
In conclusion, the Australian market is ripe for green energy investment, the public is in support and is

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willing to install these devices in their home. With the ready market, the only thing left is a strong
company with a good enough marking strategy.

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List of References
Wood, R, Thuraisingham, R, Joshi, J, Parish, B, Kallo, B, & Le, M 2015, 'Overview of the U.S. Solar
and Renewable Energy Industry: Identifying the Major Players, Assessing Growth Trends and
Projections', Journal Of Structured Finance, 21, 3, pp. 20-25, Business Source Premier, EBSCOhost,
viewed 24 May 2018.
Martin, N, & Rice, J 2015, 'Improving Australia's renewable energy project policy and planning: A
multiple stakeholder analysis', Energy Policy, 84, pp. 128-141, GreenFILE, EBSCOhost, viewed 24
May 2018.
Thyer, S, Thomas, S, McClintock, C, & Ridd, M 2018, 'Optimising energy use in an existing
commercial building: a case study of Australia's Reef HQ Aquarium', Energy Efficiency (1570646X),
11, 1, pp. 147-168, Academic Search Premier, EBSCOhost, viewed 24 May 2018.
Preston, B, & Orgill, T 2017, 'Adapting to a sustainable energy future: Part 1 -- The localisation of
sustainable energy generation under the New South Wales planning law regime', Environmental &
Planning Law Journal, 34, 5, pp. 418-435, GreenFILE, EBSCOhost, viewed 24 May 2018.
Baer, HA 2016, 'The nexus of the coal industry and the state in Australia: Historical dimensions and
contemporary challenges', Energy Policy, 99, pp. 194-202, GreenFILE, EBSCOhost, viewed 24 May
2018.
Simpson, G 2018, 'Looking beyond incentives: the role of champions in the social acceptance of
residential solar energy in regional Australian communities', Local Environment, 23, 2, pp. 127-143,
Academic Search Premier, EBSCOhost, viewed 24 May 2018.
Tam, V, Le, K, Zeng, S, Wang, X, & Illankoon, I 2017, 'Regenerative practice of using photovoltaic
solar systems for residential dwellings: An empirical study in Australia', Renewable & Sustainable
Energy Reviews, 75, pp. 1-10, GreenFILE, EBSCOhost, viewed 24 May 2018.

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Jackson, Tim 2005, 'Motivating Sustainable Consumption: A Review of Evidence on Consumer
Behaviour and Behavioural Change', Report London, EBSCOhost, viewed 24 May 2018.
Peattie, Kenneth 2010, 'Green Consumption: Behavior and Norms', Annual Review of Environment
and Resources, 35, 1, pp. 195–228, EBSCOhost, viewed 24 May 2018.
Prothero, Andrea, McDonagh, P, & Dobscha S 2010, 'Is Green the New Black? Reflections on a Green
Commodity Discourse,' Journal of Macromarketing, 30, 2, pp. 147– 159, EBSCOhost, viewed 24 May
2018.
Stern, Paul C 2005, 'Individuals’ Environmentally Significant Behaviour', Environmental Law Reporter
News and Analysis, 35, EBSCOhost, viewed 24 May 2018
P.W. Schultz, A. Khazian and A. Zaleski 2008, 'Using normative social influence to promote
conservation among hotel', guests Soc. Influ., 3, pp.4–23, EBSCOhost, viewed 24 May 2018
P. Hartmann, V. Apaolaza-Ibáñez 2012, 'Consumer attitude and purchase intention toward green energy
brands: the roles of psychological benefits and environmental concern', J.Bus.Res, 65, 9, pp.1254–
1263, EBSCOhost, viewed 24 May 2018.
H.-Y. Ha, S. Janda 2012, 'Predicting consumer intentions to purchase energy efficient products', J.
Consum.Mark, 29, 7, pp. 461–469, EBSCOhost, viewed 24 May 2018.
Lewin, Jeffrey E., David Strutton, Audhesh K. Paswan 2011, 'Conflicting Stakeholder Interests and
Natural Gas: A Macromarketing Perspective', Journal of Macromarketing, 31, 4, pp. 340-358,
EBSCOhost, viewed 24 May 2018.