Consumerism vs. Global Citizenship
Have you sometimes caught yourself buying a product just for the sake of buying, rather than because you really need it? This probably happened either because you were in a setting where everybody else was buying, or because when you saw the product you somehow felt you really should buy it.
It is undeniable that the marketing industry has a large role to play in this phenomenon. It’s called consumerism. In other words, consumers are often tempted to consume by the promise of being like all the rest, or of personal improvement in different ways, not because the product or service is essential for their wellbeing.
In former times consumers mainly checked the usefulness of a product or service before acquiring it. Would it do the job it was required to do? However, the industrial revolution brought with it greater freedom of choice. Today, industry churns out an amount of products and services much greater than real needs. Consumers often seek a product or service because it is associated with a certain lifestyle, not because they need it.
But this lifestyle association can also be a positive thing. Consumer attitudes are changing as well. Many nations are witnessing a transition from carefree consumerism to conscious consumption. Governments, NGOs and the business community are realising this too. They are developing and promoting policies, processes, products and services which meet this new desire by many consumers - citizens - to be a conscientious consumer and a global citizen, to make choices for the common good, to act in a sustainable way.
