Did you know that 79% of people hold onto old t-shirts for sentimental reasons? PPB Magazine recently ran a great article reporting on the results of a survey on this subject by BlueCotton. The survey provided evidence to back up what we’ve know all along (and blogged about not too long ago!) – people are very attached to their t-shirts, and this attachment cuts across age groups and demographics.
According to PPB, the BlueCotton study found that:
- Four out of five people hold onto at least one sentimental old shirt, and some keep two or three.
Vacation t-shirts are the most kept of any category.
- Survey respondents aged 18 to 24 are the most likely to keep old t-shirts, and they are also more likely to keep a t-shirt from a concert or a political election.
- Post-grad degree holders are twice as likely as those with only a bachelor’s degree to have a t-shirt from a sorority or fraternity.
- People are more likely to keep a shirt they got as a sports spectator than as a participant.
- Employer or work t-shirts are most often kept by those in the highest income brackets.
- Shirts from church events are most cherished by women, non-whites and residents of the Southern United States.
So what does all this mean? T-shirts are a great promotion for anyone. Whether you are targeting highly-educated, high net worth professionals, GenX or Y voters, or middle-aged sports enthusiasts, the love of t-shirts cuts across all generations, ethnic groups, and income levels.
And, like we’ve said before, the perceived value of t-shirts (and SWAG in general) is often significantly higher than the actual cost, making them one of the best promotions when evaluated in terms of value for money. Every time someone pulls your t-shirt out of their drawer, they are reminded of your brand – and every time they wear your t-shirt, your brand gets exposed to new audiences. What other advertising medium provides that kind of long-term value?
By Kathleen Booth
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Today’s New York Times reports that the National Academy of Sciences, Institute of Medicine has come out with a report recommending that doctors stop taking much of the money, gifts and free drug samples that they routinely accept from drug and device companies. This comes on the heals of similar reports by the Association of American Medical Colleges (which last year proposed tough new rules governing interactions between companies and medical schools), the Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America (which last July released updates to its voluntary Code on Interactions with Healthcare Professionals that took effect in January 2009), and the Advanced Medical Technology Association (the revised Code of Ethics prohibit gifts of any type, including all non-educational branded promotional items, regardless of value).
Given the slew of new ethical guidelines and gifting rules, it can be mind-boggling trying to understand the options for marketing to healthcare professionals. But never fear! Even with the new rules in place, there are still a variety of ways to reach out to medical professionals. For example, the PhRMA Code allows the gifting of “items designed primarily for the education of patients or health care professionals” if the items are valued at under $100 and don’t have value to health professionals outside of their work environment. So, under these guidelines, you could give out an anatomical model to be used in an exam room, but not a DVD player with a DVD explaining anatomy (because the DVD player has a use outside of the medical environment).
The key for promotional products distributors such as ourselves is to become well-versed in the educational needs of physicians and their patients. In this way, we can better advise our customers – particularly those who are marketing and selling to the healthcare industry – how to strengthen their brand in a way that is ethically acceptable.
By Kathleen Booth
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Few things are worse than lying on a beach towel covered in sand. Let’s face it- once the sand is on your towel, it’s staying, no matter how many times you shake it out. If you’re like me, you’re on the beach all of 10 minutes before you’re covered in sand. It doesn’t really bother me, I just deal with it. But I know it bothers a lot of other people - especially my best friend from college, Katie.
I have never met someone so obsessed with keeping sand off their towel! After all, when you are at the beach, a little sand anywhere is to be expected. But not on Katie’s towel! If we’re at the beach all day, she’ll probably shake her towel off at least 20 times. She even has a specific way of laying onto her towel so she doesn’t kick any sand on it. Her technique, while admirable, doesn’t always work - hence all those shake-offs.
I think I’ve found a solution for Katie and all you other Eremikophobics (Eremikophobia is the fear of sand or deserts). And even if you don’t hate sand- keeping it off your towel is always than better than laying in it!
Beach Bottoms are the solution for sand haters. They are the ultimate beach blankets, stretching to over 85” x 65” - plenty of space for even the biggest and tallest sprawlers. After you lay out the Beach Bottom, you lay your towel on top and voila! Step onto the Beach Bottom before your towel and the sand goes on the Beach Bottom, not your towel! They are made from durable, lightweight, stretch fabric and have two zippered storage pockets with iPod cord access.
Why is a Beach Bottom a great promotional idea? Well, Beach Bottoms’ large size makes plenty of room for branding. There are 8 imprint areas that expand edge to edge, so while the user is putting a towel on top, you logo or message will still be seen. This is a great giveaway for corporate events, event room gifts, executive retreats, or any other summer promotion.
By Jessica Matase
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Today is Earth Day, in case you didn’t already know. What began in 1970 as a grassroots, nationwide protest on behalf of the environment has evolved into a well organized annual event that involves people around the globe. The theme of this year’s Earth Day is “The Green Generation.” According to www.earthday.net, the core principles of the Green Generation are:
- A carbon-free future based on renewable energy that will end our common dependency on fossil fuels, including coal;
- An individual’s commitment to responsible, sustainable consumption; and
- Creation of a new green economy that lifts people out of poverty by creating millions of quality green jobs and transforms the global education system into a green one.
I think “The Green Generation” is a very fitting theme for this year’s Earth Day celebrations. The core values of environmental protection and sustainable living have gone mainstream and are here to stay. According to Advertising Age magazine, 2009 will see triple the number of launches of new, eco-friendly products as 2008. And sales of these products are increasing as well, with Nielsen Co. data showing sales growth of organic food at 5.6% year over year in December from a year ago, and green product manufacturers such as Seventh Generation experiencing a 50% increase in sales last year (with early data indicating that the pace of growth will keep up in 2009).
So what does all of this mean to you as a marketing professional? To me, it means that none of us can afford to ignore the issue of sustainability in our marketing and promotional strategies. Here are some tips you can use as you market to the Green Generation:
- Broaden your definition of “Green”: These days, most people consider “sustainability” to encompass more than just environmental protection. According to advertising agency Saatchi and Saatchi, many are more concerned with social and economic issues such as poverty, employment and health care than they are about the environment. When all of these issues are linked together with the environment under the umbrella of sustainability, they become a powerful selling point. Does your organization have a corporate Sustainability Policy (see ours here)? If not, now would be a great time to put one in place. If you do, then its time to take a fresh look at how sustainability is defined and make sure that consumers know that your corporate value system is in line with theirs.
- Consider cause-related marketing: You don’t have to sell green products to benefit from the green revolution that is taking place. Instead, you can build your brand equity by associating it with causes that promote sustainability. In an era when corporate greed is being blamed for our broader economic woes, consumers are hungry for opportunities to ally themselves with companies that stand for more than just profit. By linking corporate identities with nonprofit organizations and good causes, CRM aims to connect brands with consumers beyond the traditional point of purchase and to form long-lasting and emotional ties. CRM comes in a variety of forms - you can sponsor events such as an Earth Day forum, promote internal programs such as employee volunteer work in the community, promote causes by encouraging your customers to get involved (for example, by giving away tree seedlings for planting on Earth Day), or incorporate purchase-triggered donations into your business model. Check out the kinds of CRM that we’re involved with here.
- Practice sustainable purchasing: Everyone buys promotional products, but how many of those products are eco-friendly? Did you know that just about every kind of promotional item can be found in an eco-friendly form? From t-shirts made of organic cotton or bamboo, to mugs made of recycled corn plastic, to gadgets that help save energy, there is an infinite variety of ways to incorporate the theme of sustainability into your promotional product purchasing plans. Sometimes, you can do this simply by changing the nature of the items you are buying. For example, rather than buying branded bottled water, why not consider making the switch to a branded water bottle that can be refilled and reused time and time again?
- Buy local: One of the main ways we can all cut down on our carbon footprint is by reducing the emissions generated by vehicles used to ship products over long distances. You can do this by working with your supplier of promotional products to find sources in your local area. Not only will this help the environment, it’s a great way to support local business and contribute to a stronger community!
At this point, it’s a little late to start planning an earth day-themed event for this year, but now is the perfect time to consider how you will adjust your marketing strategies to more effectively target the Green Generation. Its also a great time to start thinking about what you will do next April when we celebrate the 40th anniversary of Earth Day!
By Kathleen Booth
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