Case 15-2
The CFL: Coming Soon to a Light Socket Near You
In a nation with 4 billion light sockets, one light bulb per household can make a real difference. If every
U.S. household replaced one ordinary incandescent light bulb with a compact fluorescent lamp (CFL), the
energy saved would be enough to light 3 million homes. This single change would be the environmental
equivalent of taking 800,000 cars off the road and preventing 450 pounds of greenhouse gases from
reaching the atmosphere. Change a light bulb, help the planet, slash energy costs—sounds like a win-win
situation.
Yet since the CFL’s invention more than 30 years ago, it has been slow to catch on. Meanwhile, the
incandescent light bulb, which was commercialized more than a century ago, still accounts for more than
90 percent of all light bulbs sold in the U.S. Why have CFLs not been more popular?
• Higher price. One big reason that CFLs have not been big sellers is because each costs five to seven
times more than an incandescent light bulb does. A CFL can last up to twelve times as long as an
incandescent bulb does, and installing even a few will make a noticeable difference in a household’s
monthly electric bill. However, the initial outlay has discouraged many people from making the
switch.
• Not the same old light bulb. A second reason is that CFLs do not work as well as incandescent bulbs
do in certain circumstances, such as in fixtures outfitted with dimmers or in spotlights. Because the
two types of bulbs are not completely interchangeable, consumers have to do at least a little research
and possibly some experimentation to determine when they can and cannot install a CFL in place of
an incandescent bulb. Instead, most consumers stay with what they know and keep buying the same
type of bulbs they have always used.
• Still too new. Until very recently, few CFLs could be found on store shelves; those that were available
had to compete with rows and rows of incandescent light bulbs. And CFLs were rarely featured in
advertising. Despite some publicity, not everyone was getting the message about the CFL’s energy
efficiency and the long-term cost benefits of switching from incandescents.
• Disposal concerns. Because CFLs contain a minute amount of mercury, they must be handled like
hazardous waste instead of being thrown away like ordinary light bulbs. Sylvania provides customers
with special packaging to return burnt-out CFLs for recycling by dropping them off at FedEx Kinko’s
or at local post offices. However, even when consumers know about the benefits of CFLs, they may
not know how to dispose of them safely.
Now the CFL is coming into its own amid a growing chorus of campaigns by retailers, manufacturers,
utilities, and government agencies. Wal-Mart is putting a major marketing push behind CFLs, featuring
them in ads and on the Web to encourage its 100 million customers to buy at least one new bulb. The
retailer has even added CFLs to its back-to–school shopping list for eco-friendly products that it has
posted on Facebook to reach “green teens.” Utilities such as Pacific Gas & Electric in California have
given away free CFLs or have offered CFLs at reduced prices to encourage customers to at least try the
bulbs.
Major bulb manufacturers like General Electric, Philips, and Sylvania are helping to educate
consumers about CFLs through on-package information and in marketing communications such as ads
and media interviews. With new government standards calling for the phase-out of regular incandescent
light bulbs over the next 10 years, manufacturers are also testing energy-efficient lighting alternatives
such as low-heat incandescent bulbs, new halogen bulbs, and light-emitting diode (LED) bulbs. Soon
light sockets all over America will be lit with CFLs and other new bulbs.
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Case Questions
1. Would you characterize the CFL as discontinuous, dynamically continuous, or continuous? How does
this level of innovation help to explain why CFLs have diffused relatively slowly through the market?
2. Does the decision to adopt CFLs follow the high-effort or low-effort hierarchy of effects? What are
the implications for marketers who make or retail CFLs?
3. How have the characteristics of the innovation and consumer learning requirements affected
consumers’ resistance to and adoption of CFLs?