When I worked in the corporate world, I worked for a Fortune Global 500 company. When it came to sourcing brand merchandise, protecting the corporate image by mitigating damage from an unsafe promotional product was the only way to do business. At the time, at least in my mind, safety was pretty much a black or white issue. It was either safe, or it wasn’t. Since then, I’ve come to understand that product safety is more like a thermometer.
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When the discussion turns to delivering safe and compliant promotional products, and specifically how difficult it is to do, I usually go with this response: “You can either run toward the problem, or you can run away from it.”
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For effective use, the engagement professional will be strategic and thoughtful in the selection of promotional products as a communications device. Selecting the right products means knowing your communication objectives.
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There’s no avoiding the fact that safe and compliant promo products come at a price. Rarely is a product that has been manufactured and shipped in a socially responsible and safe manner without a competitor in the marketplace at a lower price.
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I’ve covered many topics through the years and this one is perhaps the most frightening. It threatens our livelihoods and puts a bright spotlight on the Consumer Products Safety Improvement Act (CPSIA). Increasing awareness for product safety and CPSIA regulations is a good thing. Our industry needs to better understand what it takes to be in compliance with these regulations, but this story is outright scary.
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After having an especially trying excursion to the office recently, some parallels between the day-to-day drive and what we run into professionally came to light.
Read MoreWhether you are selling to a global brand like Nike or to your local YMCA, no single asset is more valuable to your client than the client’s good name.
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What are these weeds that are choking our business growth and how can we fertilize where we need to?
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Interesting parallels between The Five Stages of Grief and the path our industry has taken when approaching the topic of product safety and compliance.
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The message is clear: Fortune 1000 companies are fully aware of the need to protect their brands, and as such, they expect their distributor partners to deliver safe and compliant products.
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