Politicians love promotional products when they are running for office, and mid-term elections are right around the corner. Yet the politicians don’t really understand the value of our industry (does anyone?), and that can be dangerous, as they pass laws that can negatively impact us. For example, language has been proposed in the past that want to limit deductions on advertising expenditures. What a headache that would be for our customers and for our industry.
Getting involved in politics is not something most of us have time or interest in doing. I, for one, like it when others handle the political lobbying for me. However, lobbying works best when the numbers are larger. The larger and louder the lobbying, the more effective it is.
It is not as difficult as I used to think. A quick call or email to your elected officials goes a long way when hundreds of people are making the same effort. PPAI has made it easy for us by visiting this website and filling out a form. If you want to make the effort of a call, look up your elected officials here.
The primary message you need to send is that promotional products work and that they create jobs (and thus tax revenue). There is a lot more that can be said, and you can learn about the primary topics PPAI LEAD is focusing on this week here. Each day has a different focus and you can/should fill out the form each day to support the efforts.
Every year, PPAI leads a group of about 80 people to advocate for our industry to ensure the health of our industry. I will be one of the people once again meeting with elected official offices this week reminding them of the importance of our industry. With each office we will be discussing:
Please add your voice to mine and the hundreds of others this week. Click one of the links above that matters most to you and fill out the form. We all make a living in this industry and our efforts will help keep the industry thriving.
