The Impact of Cause-Focused Messages on the Purchase and Consumption Behavior for Services Supporting Environmental Conservation: A Field Experiment in Shimane, Japan

In this study, we will conduct an intervention using a touchscreen vending machine that potential consumers will operate to purchase services supporting environmental conservation. The vending machine includes six different screens: the initial screen, consent screen, service explanation screen, payment interface, usage instructions for the application, and the photo & card printing feature. Our intervention will focus on the service explanation screen.

There are two variations of the service explanation screen: a Product-focused version and a Cause-focused version. The Product-focused screen emphasizes service details with images and text in the upper portion and main section of the display, while the environmental conservation activities conducted by local high school students are briefly described in a small text section at the bottom. On the other hand, the Cause-focused screen highlights these conservation activities prominently with images and text in the top section, relegating the service information to a smaller text area at the lower part. Although both screens use identical text, they differ in three key aspects: 1) the visual content displayed (service details or information about the organization’s use of donations), determining which is more visually appealing; 2) which content occupies the prime position at the top; and 3) the proportion of the screen each type of content occupies (dominance).

Based on the screen type shown, potential consumers will be divided into two groups:
Product-focused group (control group): those who view the Product-focused screen
Cause-focused group (treatment group): those who see the Cause-focused screen

2024-11-09

2024-12-20

1) Dropout rate (or number of dropouts) at the service explanation screen
2) Purchase rate (or number of purchases) of the services

To examine whether the displayed service explanation screen affects the purchasing behavior of potential consumers, we will use the following two outcomes. These metrics are derived from the operational log data of vending machines selling the services.

Dropout Rate = (Total number of logs where the "Return to Top Page" button was touched on the service explanation screen + Total number of logs that automatically returned to the top page after a certain period on the service explanation screen) / Total number of logs that reached the service explanation screen

Purchase Rate = Total number of logs where the payment process was fully completed / Total number of logs that reached the service explanation screen

Note: The reason for not considering the purchase rate as the sole primary outcome is the potential influence of screens following the service explanation screen. After the service explanation screen, the vending machine displays a payment screen with a QR code. This payment screen also includes a "Return to Top Page" button and an automatic return feature after a certain time, which may affect the results. For example, if it takes time to launch the QR payment app, the screen may unintentionally return to the top page after the set period. Since this cannot be solely attributed to the intervention's effect, we also use the dropout rate at the service explanation screen to measure its pure impact. Therefore, the effect of the intervention is primarily examined using the dropout rate from the service explanation screen, with the purchase rate serving to complement the results.

1) Usage log of the dedicated smartphone application
2) Survey results

Secondary outcomes will be analyzed as exploratory research rather than hypothesis-testing research. The reason for this is that the randomization in this experiment applies only to potential buyers, and consumer behavior and evaluation are influenced by selection bias when actual purchases are made.

From the usage logs of the dedicated smartphone application, the following outcomes will be specifically created for exploratory analysis:
- the types of missions accomplished,
- the total number of mission attempts,
- the total number of missions completed, and
- the total points earned by users (points obtained by completing missions, aggregated per user).

Survey responses are mandatory to obtain a commemorative item. From these survey responses, the following outcomes will be specifically created for exploratory analysis:
- the awareness rate of donations to environmental conservation activities
- the extent to which donations influenced purchase motivation
- the percentage of the service fee to be used for environmental conservation activities
- environmental awareness
- satisfaction with the service
- valuation of the service

Experimental Settings
In this study, we will conduct a field experiment at the Oki Islands UNESCO Global Geopark in Shimane Prefecture. The environmental conservation supporting services being tested are sold by the Oki Islands Geopark Management Bureau, and the price at the start of the experiment is 1,000 yen. Half of the sales amount will be used to support environmental conservation activities conducted by local high school students. The development of the touchscreen vending machine and the system used to sell these services is managed by NEC Solution Innovators, Ltd., and the field experiment will be conducted in parallel with a business validation test by the company. The parallel business validation test aims to verify whether a certain number of the eco-friendly services will be purchased at the Geopark.
Since visitors to the Geopark recognize the Oki Islands Geopark Management Bureau as the service seller (which is, in fact, true), they will not be aware of the involvement of NEC Solution Innovators, Ltd. Therefore, this study, which aims to verify the effect of Cause-Focused messages, is considered to fall within the framework of examining promotional methods for services sold by non-profit organizations.
The services targeted in this study mainly consist of three components. The first one is a commemorative card, where buyers can choose either a card printed with their photo taken that day or a card printed with a landscape of the Geopark. The second component is an exclusive app that allows participation in quiz missions involving visiting local landmarks. The selection of landmarks and quizzes is designed by local high school students from Oki Islands. The third component is commemorative goods, including limited cards and commemorative stickers about the nature and culture of Oki Islands created by the local high school students. These are given to participants who achieve a certain number of missions and complete a survey.
The service will be sold for 1,000 yen at the start of the experiment. However, depending on the sales performance after the start, the price may be adjusted. Specifically, if it seems unlikely that the business validation team's goal of selling 150 units over the entire experiment period will be met, the price may be reduced. Conversely, if sales exceed the target pace, the price may be increased. The final decision on any price changes will be made by those in charge of the business validation experiment, and the researchers of this study will not be involved.


Intervention
In this study, we will implement an intervention using a touchscreen vending machine that potential consumers will use to purchase services. This machine will be installed at the entrance of the Oki Islands Geopark Museum, a well-visited location within the Oki Islands UNESCO Global Geopark. The vending machine will only support QR code payments and will accept just one specific QR code payment service. The machine features six different screens: the initial screen, consent screen, service explanation screen, payment interface, usage instructions, and the photo-taking & card printing screen. Our focus will be on the service explanation screen.
There are two variations of the service explanation screen: a Product-focused version and a Cause-focused version. The Product-focused screen emphasizes service details with images and text in the upper portion and main section of the display, while the environmental conservation activities conducted by local high school students are briefly described in a small text section at the bottom. On the other hand, the Cause-focused screen highlights these conservation activities prominently with images and text in the top section, relegating the service information to a smaller text area at the lower part. Although both screens use identical text, they differ in three key aspects: 1) the visual content displayed (service details or information about the organization’s use of donations), determining which is more visually appealing; 2) which content occupies the prime position at the top; and 3) the proportion of the screen each type of content occupies (dominance).

Based on the screen type shown, potential consumers will be divided into two groups:
Product-focused group (control group): those who view the Product-focused screen
Cause-focused group (treatment group): those who see the Cause-focused screen


Hypothesis
Attribution theory posits that individuals tend to infer intentions and motivations behind human actions and social phenomena. Our study's focus on services supporting environmental conservation is no exception; consumers are likely to speculate whether the primary purpose of selling these services is to boost sales by leveraging environmental conservation or if it genuinely aims to support environmental preservation.
In the context of Cause-Related Marketing, cause-focused and product-focused messages are believed to emphasize different underlying motives of the service. Specifically, cause-focused messages are perceived to enhance the altruistic impression that services are sold for the sake of environmental conservation, while product-focused messages tend to reinforce the self-serving impression that environmental efforts are merely a means to increase sales (Samu and Wymer, 2009; Samu and Wymer, 2014; Fu et al., 2023).
In our study, park administrators are selling services supporting environmental conservation, making it less likely for potential consumers to perceive them as being motivated by profit. Consequently, the influence of product-focused messages is expected to be limited, as consumers are less inclined to believe that environmental conservation is being exploited for sales.
Based on these premises and in alignment with the findings of Fu et al. (2023), we posit the following hypothesis:

Hypothesis: Cause-focused messages will increase the purchase rate of services supporting environmental conservation more than product-focused messages and will reduce the dropout rate at the intervention screen, leading to higher rates of service purchases.


Analysis Plan for Testing Hypothesis
We will use hypothesis testing of population proportions to analyze purchasing behavior. To control for weather conditions and the presence of personnel near the sales area, we will also conduct an analysis using a logit/probit model with these covariates.Additionally, this experiment may not satisfy the Stable Unit Treatment Value Assumption (SUTVA). An example of this is when a group of visitors receives different messages—some seeing the cause-focused message and others seeing the product-focused message—leading to a group discussion that influences their purchasing decision. This situation would violate the no interference assumption.To check for robustness, we plan to conduct an additional analysis excluding payment logs that occurred in rapid succession within a certain interval.


Supplementary Analysis
Based on previous research, cause-focused messages enhance the intention to contribute to the cause. In this study, the cause refers to environmental conservation within the Geopark. The dedicated app, which is part of the service being sold, offers quizzes that provide learning opportunities about the Geopark's environment and culture.Therefore, if potential consumers who receive the cause-focused message exhibit an increased intention to contribute to environmental conservation, their usage behavior of the service—such as the number of quiz attempts and responses—may differ from those who receive the product-focused message. This difference may arise since a heightened intention leads to a stronger motivation to learn about the environment. Moreover, differences in service usage may lead to variations in responses to post-usage surveys, influencing environmental awareness and service evaluation between the groups.

To explore whether these possibilities actually occur, we will conduct supplementary analyses from the following perspectives:
1) To compare environmental awareness and service satisfaction between the product-focused and cause-focused groups, we will perform group comparisons. Since this analysis aims to generate hypotheses for future studies rather than test them, we will concentrate on identifying trends rather than conducting formal hypothesis tests.
2) To capture relationships between variables, we will conduct cross-tabulations and correlation analyses.

By comuputer (Specifically, using a computer to generate random numbers and determining the displayed screen based on those results.)

Individual

No

N/A

We are uncertain about how large a sample size we can secure for this experiment. This is because we will conduct the field experiment in parallel with a business validation experiment to determine how well these services sell. The goal of the business validation experiment is to sell 150 services over the entire experiment period. Therefore, we expect that we will not be able to secure a large sample size in the thousands. From previous research, we believe that the effect size is not very large. Thus, a sample size of over 800, which can detect Cohen’s h = 0.2 (a small effect size), is ideal. Supplementary Information: The analysis target for this experiment is the payment logs that have advanced to the service explanation screen. In other words, the total number of potential buyers (both those who actually purchase and those who do not) who have viewed the service explanation screen will constitute the sample size. The maximum number of services that can be sold over the entire experiment period is 300 units. Therefore, if the sales are good, the sample size is expected to depend on this upper sales limit.

The sample size for each group is currently undetermined for the same reasons mentioned in the overall sample size section.
Since two types of screens will be displayed randomly, it is anticipated that each group will have approximately half of the total sample size.

Based on our estimated sample size range, the minimum detectable effect sizes (MDES) for α = 0.05 and power = 0.80 are as follows: Please note that all MDES values are expressed in terms of Cohen's h. Sample size 50 per group (total 100): MDES = 0.56 Sample size 100 per group (total 200): MDES = 0.40 Sample size 150 per group (total 300): MDES = 0.32 Sample size 200 per group (total 400): MDES = 0.28 Sample size 250 per group (total 500): MDES = 0.25 Sample size 300 per group (total 600): MDES = 0.23 Sample size 350 per group (total 700): MDES = 0.21 Sample size 400 per group (total 800): MDES = 0.20 Sample size 450 per group (total 900): MDES = 0.19 Sample size 500 per group (total 1000): MDES = 0.18 These values indicate the smallest effect sizes (in terms of h, or the arcsine transformation of the difference in proportions) that can be detected with a power of 0.80 and a significance level of 0.05 for the given sample sizes. We anticipate that the actual sample size will fall within this range, and therefore the detectable effect size should be within the aforementioned values. According to Cohen's h, an h of 0.2 is considered a small effect and 0.5 a medium effect. Thus, a total sample size of 100 to 200 can detect medium effects, while a total sample size of about 800 can detect small effects. The calculations for these MDES values were performed using R.