Try Before You Buy: How to Design Information Systems to Enhance Consumer Willingness to Test Sustainable Innovations

Abstract

More and more business organizations recognize the relevance of sustainable innovations as driving factor for their corporate strategies, products and processes. But while the concept of sustainability is generally ratified by employees and consumers, their willingness to actually use or buy such innovations can be low. One of the most important facilitators for the adoption of innovations is self-experience generated by testing the innovation. This paper provides insight on how sustainable innovation testing affects consumer mindsets and which barriers consumers face when considering testing a sustainable innovation. The study draws on the data from an in-depth interview study with seven providers and consumers of electric cars (as sustainable innovation) in business and private environments. Insights about the nature of consumer’s willingness to test are extracted and recommendations for the design and use of information systems as facilitators for testing sustainable innovations are derived.