Can you imagine ordering a recyclable product in a bid to achieve a zero-waste lifestyle just to be disappointed that it arrived in the mail with a print ad that you have no choice but to throw away? Indeed, the global shift to sustainability has pushed many businesses to adopt zero-waste operations, but advertising has still mainly remained a high-waste aspect for many companies.
Print ads have always been a huge chunk of the advertising materials produced year after year, and it has even made a serious resurgence in recent years. But this doesn’t mean the case for zero-waste marketing is completely lost. In fact, here are six sustainable advertising practices you can try for your business:
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1. Useful Promotional Merchandise
Instead of slapping your logo and brand name on a brochure or a flyer that will go straight to the trash once someone else has had a good look, you should try giving away branded merchandise that potential clients can actually use in their daily lives.
A good example would be giving away hand fans or pens with your logo on them. Not only are these things highly useful for their recipients, but they can also keep your branding visible for a longer amount of time, allowing you to remain top of mind longer than a print ad in the trash.
2. Iron-on Clothing Labels
For your apparel store, you might be tempted to attach paper tags to every piece of clothing you ship out. But do you have any idea how fast people snip out these paper labels when they get their new clothes?
The better thing to do is get iron-on clothing labels that can stay on even after dozens of laundry sessions. Iron-on labels are much more sustainable since they are never thrown away — they get donated or sold or given away along with the clothes, so your branding will also stand the test of time.
3. Reusable Packaging
The more reusable packaging you use, the longer your brand will remain visible to people. You may opt to use recycled paper bags, biodegradable plastic, and even eco-bags that bear your shop’s logo. These are things your customers could reuse and even parade around in public, doing wonders for the recall of your brand. In every way, it’s better than using single-use plastics and bubble wraps that will only end up as pollutants.
4. Focus on Online Marketing
Another great way to ditch any kind of waste in your marketing efforts would be to focus on online marketing. Instead of sending out brochures by mail, you can do e-mail marketing. Instead of physically putting up posters on notice boards, you can just go with online infographics to spread the word about your brand.
Traditional marketing is no doubt great and effective, but so is online marketing, especially if you have a social media marketing expert on board. You can reach a lot more people all around the world with an online shout-out anyway, and without all the waste of print marketing.
5. Digital Vouchers
If you’re one of those shops that increase brand awareness by offering discounts to first-time buyers or returning customers, you should really consider sending out digital vouchers instead. You can set up a paperless QR system to verify all discount vouchers.
6. Other Print Ad Alternatives
Aside from online and digital marketing, there are other traditional marketing alternatives to print ads. These include putting up LED billboards or running ads on TV or radio. These options might be a bit more expensive than photocopying a bunch of flyers, but it’s a worthy price to pay to achieve zero-waste business operations, even in the marketing aspect of your business.
Final Thoughts
Sustainable advertising is not only beneficial in achieving your zero-waste goals. It is also a wonderful way to appeal to planet-friendly customers who would surely appreciate the effort you put in popularizing your brand in an environmentally-conscious manner.
