G.J.C.M.P.,Vol.3(2):33-38 (March–April,2014) ISSN: 2319 – 7285 33 THE CONCEPT OF GREEN MARKETING AND GREEN PRODUCT DEVELOPMENT ON CONSUMER BUYING APPROACH Yeow Kar Yan 1 & Rashad Yazdanifard 2 1 Center for Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) Programs,HELP College of Art and Technology, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. 2 Center for Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) Programs, HELP College of Art and Technology, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Abstract As the ecological issues are getting worse, the consumers’ concerns about the environmental protection have led to the diversification in consumer buying approach towards a green lifestyle. Therefore, firms are taking action to develop potential ecological approaches in the green market industry. Green marketing and green product development are useful techniques that are used by firms to increase competitive advantages and stand a chance of gaining the satisfaction of consumers in order to achieve the firm’s mission and vision. Green marketing and green product development have various benefits to firms in terms of increasing the sustainable environmental benefits and to increase the awareness of brand image of the firm. This study focuses on the concept of green marketing and green product development, the different consumer consumption in regards to green marketing and green product development, and lastly examines the problems that firms have faced when they have failed to implement green marketing and green product development. Keywords: Green marketing, green product development, consumption, environmental benefits. 1. Introduction According to Yakup and Sevil (2011), from the beginning of the 1980s, there have been ecological issues such as global warming, the greenhouse effect, pollution, and climate changes which are directly related to industrial manufacturing and this will continue to affect human’s activities. Due to the increase of environmentalism which has dominated the world, there has been a raise in consumer concern with regards to environmental protection and great demand for green products. Hence, most firms have begun to use the green marketing and green product development strategies that can preserve the environment while satisfying consumers’ preferences in order to make long term profits in businesses. Before such ideas came in to use, many firms were using green marketing as a sub form of their marketing structure as well as trying to develop green products that could help with the growing environmental problems. There are organizations implementing strategies which aim to solve ecological issues and build up the long term interest toward consumers. The advantages of green marketing and green product development, the relationship between green marketing and green product development towards the consumers buying approach and the problems are included in this research paper. 2. Green Marketing Different authors provided different meaning of green marketing. According to Chaudhary, Tripathi, and Monga (2011) the term of “green marketing” first revealed in the late 1970s. American Marketing Association (AMA) defined it as “ecological marketing”. Green marketing consists of a wide range of business activities which intends to satisfy customers’ needs and wants, as well as diminish the negative impacts on the natural environment (Tiwari, Tripathi, Srivastava, & Yadav, 2011). Green marketing also refers to an organization that puts its efforts in to promoting, pricing, and distributing products with eco-concerns (Sarkar, 2012). American Marketing Association (AMA) stated that the green marketing approach is the marketing of products that are mainly focused on environmental safety; it incorporates business activities which consist of packaging modification, production process, and green advertising (Yazdanifard & Mercy, 2011). Green marketing is also described as any promotional activity which highlights the environmental ethics as business fundamentals and it can perceive an advantage of switching consumer behavior towards a brand (Peattie & Charter, 2003). In general, the main objectives of green marketing were to minimize the environmental hazards which are caused by the industrial manufacturing and to strengthen corporate eco-centric image in the consumers’ perception. 3. Green Product Development The efficient green product development played an important role in the green marketing strategy. It can help the firms and economies move swiftly towards a sustainable environment. Green product development emphasizes “end of pipe technology” where the firms are aware of ecological issues through process of production and product des ign (Chen, 1994). In particular, Chen (2001) discovered that the product designed to minimize the use of non-renewable resource, avoiding toxic materials, and renewable resource during its whole life-cycle would be the most effective manner to display green technological development. Most firms acknowledged integrating environmental laws and regulations such as Registration, Evaluation and Limitation of chemical substances into the process of green product development; hence it can reduce the hazardous risk to the environment while satisfying the consumers’ expectation on green consumption