LEVERAGING THE POWER OF BRANDING AND MESSAGING TO INFLUENCE CONSUMERS TO BUY AND CONSUME LESS TECH PRODUCTS
Social Enterprise
The Envision Coalition
DEMOCRATIZING ANTIESTABLISHMENT CAMPAIGNS
Shruthi Thyagarajan
Saniya Mittal
Advocacy
Setting the Stage
E-waste is causing significant, negative impact
“Why I’m fighting so hard for a right to repair is that nobody is telling me I can’t sew a button. Nobody is refusing to sell me a needle and thread. Where that’s exactly what’s happening with technology. It shouldn’t happen. That level of control should not be their level.”
Anti-Establishment Views
Consumer
“I like the idea that some old, white guy in Cupertino is cursing me when I get extra use out of tech.”
Negative Connotations Regarding "Refurbished" Items
Employee, Backmarket
“Tech companies like Apple and Samsung have made refurbished a dirty word.”
E-waste comprises of 70% of overall toxic waste
Sources:
“The World Counts.” n.d. Theworldcounts.com. Accessed November 17, 2022. https://www.theworldcounts.com/stories/electronic-waste-facts. https://www.vox.com/the-goods/23529587/consumer-goods-quality-fast-fashion-technology
23 interviews with 13 tech product consumers and 10 “experts” within the consumer tech and consumer behavior spaces
Mental Models Around Economic Behavior
Consumer
"Buying a new generation phone made more economic sense than an old generation phone due to 'durability.'"
E-Waste 70% Other Toxic Waste 70%
The Problem Statement
The Original Problem Statement
How can we encourage more thoughtful decisionmaking in the use and disposal of consumer tech products?
The Reframed Problem Statement
How can we enable consumers, most especially conscientious consumers, to match their behavior to their values with regards to their technology usage?
There are many consumers that display conscientious behavior in different contexts, whether it be it in reducing their plastic consumption and finding ethical disposal methods, limiting their fast fashion purchases, or opting for alternative transportation options (vs. car usage). However, these same consumers don't necessarily display the same logic to their behavior when it comes to their technology usage.
01
What causes a conscientious consumer within one context, to be a more or less conscientious consumer in another context?
02
Can we create solutions that prompt these individuals to alter and/or change their mindsets and behaviors as it relates to their tech consumption, usage and disposal?
Our Initial Goals
Create greater awareness around how humans are using, consuming and living with their tech products
Foster a sense of urgency and provide insight into how humans can prolong the usage of their tech
Our Journey
The Envision Coalition
Promoting antiestablishment campaigns to amplify social issues
Anti-Marketing Marketing
Using anti-influence tactics to change consumer behavior
"Gamifying" Awareness
E-Waste Management
Use and disposal of consumer tech products
Consumer Behavior
Make conscientious consumers align their values with their behaviors
Using elements of "play" to help consumers "unlearn"
The Envision Coalition
DEMOCRATIZING ANTIESTABLISHMENT CAMPAIGNS
Who We Are Our Mission
We are an agency that promotes antiestablishment campaigns to amplify social issues. We democratize our creation process to find innovative ways to break through the clutter. Our organization's name, logo, and credo are directly inspired by The Black Panther Party's Rainbow Coalition.
Our mission is to tap into our audience's intrinsic values and motivations to drive individual and societal change. By collaborating with individuals who want to engage with less-talked about and taboo issues, we create campaigns that are easy to understand, fun to engage with and offer a judgment-free perspective.
The Envision Coalition
DEMOCRATIZING ANTIESTABLISHMENT CAMPAIGNS
What We Do Our Target Audience
Identify social issues that need a bigger spotlight
Create a space for artists, designers, activists, enthusiasts, etc., to collaborate
Connect the right influencers and marketers with the right campaign(s)
Tailor each campaign to user sensibilities and needs
Identify new and innovative ways to break through "the clutter" of the modern era Craft holistic campaigns that leave a lasting impression
Individuals with sustainable practices
Individuals with conscientious attitudes
Individuals who seek information
Every consumer has the potential to engage with our solution. We made the strategic choice to primarily tap into the attitudes and motivations of individuals who are already working towards being more thoughtful consumers and human beings.
Case Study: Consumer Tech Education - Co-Creating
Topic: Chosen Upfront
Themes: Collaboration and Consensus
Artifact: Co-create and Test
Humanizing Tech Consumer Power/ Activism AntiConsumerism Parallel with Fast Fashion 1 4 3 2
2 3 1 Consumer Tech Education
Case Study: Consumer Tech Education - Democratization
"This [the purple poster] is absolutely something I'd give a copy of to my niece, and ask her to write an essay on for me."
"Tech-no-logic. Shopaholic. Why does that remind me of a song?"
"What if you made a poster, or some kind of content, that focuses on how hard it is to update your phone properly for the sake of an upgrade?"
"Can there be mediums other than posters?
Sometimes messages are more effective through other forms of content."
"You guys should append this messaging onto an Apple commercial and just see what happens."
Our Personal Ties - Changed Mindsets
An unintended consequence o project was a shift in Shruthi's m regarding her Airpods breaking a fell onto the street, and were run car.
Shruthi made the conscientious to go back to using her wired hea until their demise, before even t about purchasing new listening
After reflecting on the Airpods s she also decided to not get a rep student ID (after her wallet was s an effort to not require the usage single-use plastic.
An unintended consequence of this project was a shift in Saniya's mindset regarding the need to buy a new phone because it was 3+ years old and it was considered "broken."
The lines on the phone became almost "trendy," with multiple people commenting on how the lines made the phone "look cool" and "added character" (Kintsugi style!)
Saniya is still using the phone and will only replace it (with a second-hand phone) when it becomes completely unusable.
"You're exactly the kind of person who probably needs this [to work on you]."
Ask individuals to spread the word about our first campaign, and provide us iterative feedback
Ask individuals what else they'd need to "trust" that we can play an effective role in today's social movement context
Expand campaign ideas in the vein of other social issues
Establish our first wave of strategic partnerships with like-minded individuals and organizations: Adbusters, #BuyNothing
Project, Jameela
Jamil, mattxiv, and SaintHoax
Explore the scalability of the co-creation model to include users, partners and competitors
What's Next for The Envision Coalition?
Get In Touch! Shruthi Thyagarajan Saniya Mittal hello@theenvisioncoalition.com
