4 tips on using nudging to facilitate climate-friendly choices

Getting climate-friendly information right

So, let’s push ahead with four tips on how you can use nudging to design information in order to facilitate sustainable and climate-friendly choices. This inspiration can be used regardless if you are an external communications professional, an internal change agent or consultant or perhaps a leader eager to foster the green transition in your company.

1. Frame information in a way that makes it attractive for the target group

How we decide to present information is pivotal for how the receiver will think and act. A study showed that more people chose to travel by public transport when they were informed about how much money they would save compared to informing them about protecting the environment by travelling with public transport³.

It is important to adapt messages to the target group and understand what it is that drives change among the target group. Differences in perceptions based on regions, gender, and age, and what they are affected by in their everyday lives can be used as basis for adapting the framing to fit the target group. For example, some individuals are more inclined to take in messages based on health aspects rather than messages based on sustainability aspects⁴.

2. Provide information at the right time – in decision-making situations

There is a bigger chance to influence a decision by providing information at the point when the decision is made. In Ramboll's report, we see that this is something that is being requested by the Swedish inhabitants. For example, one study showed that those who were aware of their water consumption in real time reduced their time in the shower by an average of 22 percent⁵.

In a Norwegian study, consumers were given information about the energy cost of their tumble dryers during their lifetime on labels in store, which contributed to a reduction in energy consumption among the sold products of 4.9 percent⁶.

3. Make the desirable behavior salient

We need to make it easy to identify important information and people tend to focus on information which stands out. Making something stand out could be done by using strong colors or change the actual positioning of the information.

A study showed that more people chose vegetarian lunch in a restaurant when the positioning of the menu and the visibility of the vegetarian option changed. Making the vegetarian option more salient increased the number of vegetarian dishes that were sold by six percentage points⁷.

4. Inform the target group about the norm for the desirable behavior

Humans are herd animals and we would like to act in accordance with the norms of those we identify with. One way to influence our decisions and behavior is to inform people how others act.

As an example, an electricity company in the U.S achieved large energy savings by sending out information which compared their customers energy consumption with that of their neighbor while providing advice on energy saving efforts8. It is important to focus on the behavior we desire to achieve and not on how many people who do not perform such behavior yet.

As an example: ”More and more people choose a vegetarian diet” instead of “Many people continue to consume too much meat”. Making the climate friendly option the default option is another way of signaling a norm.

Test and learn is vital

As always with behavioral science and nudging, test and learn is vital. As the social scientist Peter Lang once said; “All you can do is tickle it and see how it jumps”. Meaning that one never knows how people react or respond to any kind of intervention. So, try it out, be observant and you will see what works and what does not.

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