Rounded Perspectives
Though high-earning (each averages between $4 and 6 million yearly), the following companies didn’t quite crack into the Top 50. They were kind enough however, to talk with us about our industry’s struggles with the government and provide their perspective.
Promo Marketing: In 2011 and 2012, the U.S. government from the national level down has been vocally condemning its own promotional products as “unnecessary government waste.” What do you think about this? Generic government scapegoating and placation, or something more threatening?
“I am of two minds with this.
“I think there is a lot of hyperbole here as the government needs to demonstrate that they can cut costs. Promotional products are an easy target, so it’s not surprising they would hone in on this line item. However, what the government says and what it does is another story. We have had government clients in the U.S. and Canada for years and growth in this segment continues to be strong. We have learned that we need to be laser-focused on value in this segment. While good pricing is a part of this, what’s more important is whether the campaign delivers overall value to the client (i.e., did the products allow the government to communicate a particular message, enable change or connect with a constituency?) If something delivers value, it rarely ends up as a line item to be cut from the budget.
“The government does have a point though. Our industry needs to be better at delivering value to end-users, otherwise our medium will be put on the financial chopping block. There is a lot of waste in our industry as evidenced by the poor promotional campaigns that end up in the garbage bin. I attribute this to poorly executed campaigns where the distributor takes the order (at any cost) without regard for the client’s end objective. When this happens, everyone loses as the end-client sees our medium as landfill that’s ripe for cost cutting.”
– Mark Graham, President of RIGHTSLEEVE and CEO of Commonsku Inc.
“We think the various government responses are as predictable as the sunrise. When budgets are tight, all nonessential expenditures are scrutinized. Promotional products, certainly when compared to police protection, public education and the like, are nonessential. Yes, they can (and do) play a key role in, for example, educating citizens about a new tax law or reminding them to turn off the lights to save energy, but they are not going be lumped into the “essential” category during times of severe budget cuts. So in downturns, politicians will pick the easy targets to show they are doing something about ‘wasteful spending,’ while continuing to ignore the real drivers of waste, like runaway health care spending, big business tax breaks, legal reform, etc. We think the more threatening angle is that most of our product ends up in a landfill after three years. And most of it is made in China. And most of it isn’t consistently tested for unsafe ingredients or substandard labor practices. Unless we are able to create an active constituency with a unified voice (hint, hint) that our elected leaders can hear, the bigger fear is that we are an easy target because we don’t have our act together (rather than we contribute to ‘unnecessary government waste’).”
– Danny Rosin and Robert Fiveash, Co-Presidents of Brand Fuel Inc.
“California Governor Jerry Brown issued a number of unfortunate statements ‘condemning’ state acquisitions of promotional products, despite using buttons, T-shirts, yard signs, bumper stickers and hats in his own race-so clearly he must believe they have some use and worth. It disappoints me that our industry has allowed its value to become minimized while much more expensive and less effective means of advertising and government spending remain unexamined. State budgets are not in ruin because of the cost of promotional products and branded apparel-that’s ridiculous. My company has enjoyed a 30-to-40 percent growth rate over the past few years because our sales force takes pride in what we do and are able to articulate and defend the value of our work and products.”
– Zachary Tyler, President of Creative Marketing Concepts
