George A. Polisner, CEO of alonovo.com.
What is "alonovo"? Is it an acronym, a Latin phrase, or what? -- Annette Dutro, Indianapolis, Ind.
Our research indicated that our model would resonate with everyone except professors in the romance languages, thus the name is indeed Latin for "sustaining or nurturing something refreshing or new." We are happy to report that we now have that particular demographic locked up.
How do you choose the products you feature? After you select them, do you keep monitoring the company? -- Name not provided
We are very happy not to have to choose them. We want to provide the information about the manufacturers and then let the alonovo.com community decide what they want. The companies are continuously monitored, and we receive updates from the wonderful folks at KLD Research & Analytics, Inc. Our community can also exchange more casual (not used in ratings) news and information in our forum section.
How does one select the least harmful product? -- Darcy Bell Symes, Spanish Fort, Ala.
Many of our decisions are contextual to each of us, which is why we have built the technology to allow our community to weigh their own values and product ratings that are reflective of their values (not ours!).
Alonovo.com states, "When you purchase using alonovo.com, you are doing your part to send a clear message to businesses -- we want blue skies, clean water, a fair and growing economy, intelligent use of our natural resources, safe and humane workplaces and sensible partnerships with local communities." How does me buying a copy of Consent to Kill: A Thriller from Amazon.com via alonovo.com send an ideological message about natural resources and local communities? Said book would be wrapped in plastic and shipped to my home via fuel-consuming vehicles while my money was divided between Amazon.com, alonovo.com, and the charity of my choice, none of which are necessarily in my "local community." Moreover, to my knowledge no businesses know that I made this purchase through alonovo.com. I want to believe this works, but I'm skeptical. -- Leah Sprain, Seattle, Wash.
All excellent questions, Leah. Our strategy is to engage as many people as we can and to help people incrementally learn about social responsibility and gradually create a new economy predicated upon a balance between people, planet, and profit. Although Amazon.com (or any shipped product) requires production resources, think about how many times I would have to circle a shopping mall in my Prius before I'd find a parking spot -- especially during the holiday season. We have made certain compromises, and you are right that the model is not perfect -- but together, as we shape an intelligent market-force demand, we will have more influence over a more balanced supply chain and help many great organizations (some of which are local-community focused, like the Interra Project.) Furthermore, we believe that as the community grows and we have demand impact on the economy, businesses will certainly become aware of the new free-market economy.
I hadn't heard about your site before reading the interview. How do you advertise? Do you rely on word of mouth? -- Name not provided
Our advertising model is focused upon earned media, conferences, organizational co-marketing, and, most importantly, referrals from members of our growing community. As we have funded this privately, we are trying to grow alonovo.com in a grassroots manner.
Since launching alonovo.com, do you feel you are making a dent in the online shopping market? -- Name not provided
We have a long way to go before making a dent. The online shopping space is over $64 billion in annual consumer spending. I'm not sure we've scratched the paint yet -- but as we grow with great people (like the Grist readership), we are certain to create an impact.
I'm skeptical that people will actually choose a higher-priced or lower-quality item based on a social responsibility rating. Do you have evidence to the contrary? -- Name not provided
We are skeptical, too. That's why the product catalog is a vast array of competitively priced products from Amazon.com. Nevertheless, I am optimistic -- there has never been easy access to the information we are providing. I've got to believe that most people will pay a small premium if they know the product is produced with fair-labor practices and a gentle environmental footprint. If not, in the future I'll be writing to you from a small farmhouse in France.
Who are your biggest competitors, and how do you set yourself apart from them? -- Name not provided
No one has taken a similar approach in terms of providing a social-value driven and fully integrated shopping experience. There are other entities that provide varied information, such as BuyBlue.org; however, we believe we have struck an important balance between business viability and societal value in an apolitical way. You don't have to be a Democrat to appreciate a clear blue sky, and you don't have to be a Republican to want a growing economy. We want to bring the American community back together.
When you hear that big companies like GE, Ford, and Wal-Mart are "going green," do you believe it? -- Name not provided
My 45 years have taught me to be very cynical. When someone is touting that their coal is so clean it can be sprinkled on breakfast cereal, I am mildly amused and more anxious to get as much independent, trusted data for our alonovo.com community as I can.
Do you consider yourself politically active, or do you focus on improving and changing corporate accountability and responsibility? -- Morgan Poncelet, Fremont, Calif.
I believe that politics are a shadow manifestation of the underlying economy. That is not to say I am not politically active. However, I believe that the American community is intentionally divided into red/blue, liberal/conservative, or by race/gender/religion in order to keep us distracted, divided, and conquered. I think by expressing the economic power we share together -- in an informed, intelligent way -- we will bring the political system along with us and provide the reforms for lasting change, such as campaign finance reform.
How do you decide which nonprofit organizations to help, and what percentage of your proceeds go to them? -- Name not provided
We share 20 percent of our commerce revenues with the organizations selected by alonovo.com users. We initially approached a set of organizations I have personally worked with, and from those relationships, the community has suggested various organizations or organizational leadership has contacted us. [Editor's note: Grist is one of alonovo.com's recipient organizations.]
Conservation Science Institute links to Downbound.com, which will direct 10 percent of the proceeds of product sales to the CSI fund-raising arsenal. The items being sold are environmentally friendly organic shoes, clothing, and other accessories that meet ethical requirements. We hope CSI can raise significant funds and help our members find these products. Can we do the same with your organization? If so, how? -- Bruce Wright, Wasilla, Alaska
Feel free to contact us at -- we are happy to support meaningful causes.
The opening text that explains your mission doesn't make any sense! I'd like to send a link to my friends, but they won't be able to understand what you do. -- Matt Eggers, San Francisco, Calif.
A very good point, Matt -- we are revisiting our mission statement to clarify. How's the following? We are fostering cooperation in the market between supply and demand by introducing corporate social responsibility as a competitive demand factor. This will cause the market to naturally balance people, planet, and profit within the supply chain. We accomplish our mission by providing a socio-values-driven shopping portal to catalyze an informed market-force demand. We also include social responsibility news aggregation, a community information exchange, subject-matter expert blogging, and SR-related community education.
How do you keep yourself motivated when the rest of the world doesn't seem to have the same mind-set as you? -- Ivy Co, Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada
Fair-trade coffee and an understanding that everyone really wants to do good things. The remarkable group I work with every day and people who have inspired me like John Kenneth Galbraith, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., John Lennon, and my wife and children keep me going.
Simple people
Ask Umbra on her hotness, corporate gift baskets, and more
Ask Umbra on canned and frozen foods
Comments
View as Flat