PROJECT SUMMARY
PAINT REDUCTION THROUGH PUBLIC EDUCATION
(SURVEY AND ANALYSIS)
January 3, 2006
The Paint Education Survey is the 2nd of 11 projects that are part of a Memorandum of
Understanding (MOU) established on April 1, 2005, and signed or endorsed by over 60
representatives of the paint industry, government agencies, paint recyclers, and retailers. The
MOU is a milestone agreement facilitated by the Product Stewardship Institute, Inc. (PSI) with
the multi-stakeholder Paint Product Stewardship Initiative (PPSI). The results of this project will
be used to develop a nationally coordinated leftover paint management system.
PROJECT GOAL: The goal of this project, which was developed by the PPSI Education
Workgroup, was to document why the public overbuys paint so we can develop and implement a
public education strategy that will effectively change consumer purchasing behaviors, thereby
reducing the amount of leftover paint at the point of generation.
PROJECT STATUS: On behalf of the multi-stakeholder PPSI, the National Paint and Coatings
Association (NPCA) contracted with behavior change specialist, McKenzie-Mohr & Associates, to
conduct a phone survey of residents in Portland, Maine, in September 2005. The Final Residential
Paint Survey: Report and Recommendations by McKenzie-Mohr & Associates is now available on
the PSI website: www.productstewardship.us/supportingdocs/Paint_FinalResSurvey.pdf.
SURVEY RESULTS: This study identified and ranked the reasons that people over-purchase
paint, and recommended educational strategies to reduce leftover paint. Nearly all respondents
purchased too much paint rather than too little. Since less than one-third of the survey
respondents hired contractors to perform the painting, the Workgroup decided that the study did
not need to address over-buying by contractors. The survey identified the following reasons why
people have leftover paint, along with the percentage of respondents who strongly agree with
those reasons:
 Paint is cheaper when purchased by the gallon than by the quart (77%).
 It is better to overbuy then not buy enough (56%).
 Want leftover paint for touch-ups (55%).
 Prefer having leftover to going back to store to buy more (50%).
RECOMMENDATIONS: To reduce leftover paint, McKenzie-Mohr & Associates
recommended that retailers selling paint provide an in-store kiosk that would allow consumers to
estimate the amount of paint they need at the point of sale without retail clerk assistance. The
consultants based their recommendations on the following survey findings:
 The majority of people do not perform measurements at home that might aid them in
purchasing the right amount of paint for the job, and it is unlikely that extensive
education will change people’s behavior so that they will measure at home prior to
coming to the store to buy paint.
 Educating retail clerks to assist customers to buy the right amount of paint is not likely to
be successful since only 16% of those surveyed received assistance from a clerk in
determining the right amount to purchase.
 Reducing the cost of purchasing paint is not a significant motivator to buy the right
amount.
 An in-store paint calculator within a user-friendly kiosk might provide a consumer with
greater confidence that they will buy the right amount of paint, especially if a percentage
is included in the calculation for touch-up.
 Some retailers already have kiosks in their businesses to help the customer choose paint
colors and may be able to add paint calculators to those kiosks with minimal cost and
time investment.
The consultant made the following additional recommendations:
 To encourage the use of the kiosk, the store might provide a discount coupon that is printed
only upon completion of the kiosk-based calculations, or other incentives.
 Target educational materials regarding the purchase and management of paint toward
men, since men are more likely to take measurements, conduct exterior painting, store
paint, and take leftover paint to a collection facility.
 Consider testing whether a consumer will over-buy less if they understand the
environmental and other costs of having leftover paint.
 Test the use of stickers on paint cans that identify where leftover paint can be donated,
reused, or recycled.
 Pilot test any of the recommended strategies prior to broad implementation.
NEXT STEPS: The PPSI Education Workgroup is seeking funds to pilot test some of the
consultant recommendations, as well as some of the following additional options that arose
during the Workgroup discussions:
1. Test the kiosk calculator to allow consumers to estimate the amount of paint they need at
the point of sale without retail clerk assistance.
2. Test whether consumers will reduce their over-purchase if they use small sample sizes
provided by the retailer.
3. Test whether the public will return light colored leftover paint to be retinted at a retailer
for new paint projects.
4. Test specific educational messages, including the Leftover Paint Management Guidance
For Consumers.
5. Test the effectiveness of the Earth 911 Paint Wise website, and possibly marketing that
site.
If you are able to contribute toward any of these efforts, please contact Heidi Sanborn, consultant
to the Product Stewardship Institute, at [email protected].
Product Stewardship Institute, Inc.
PPSI Project #2 Summary – Paint Reduction/Public Education
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