Sustainable Marketing & Eco-Friendly Gift Ideas [Infographic]

Looking to create eco-friendly brand promotions? Many companies are starting to rethink the way they market. As green living becomes more popular with customers, sustainable marketing represents a great opportunity for businesses. Why not stand out with your audience while having a positive impact on the planet? Create a better world with better brand messaging, and enjoy more sales in the process.

Obviously, it’s still important to offer customers quality promotional items that make your business look good. That’s why sustainable gifts are so exciting. There are all kinds of eco-friendly gift ideas that can show off your branding at its best. Choose from reusable straws, cups, and bags, or narrow your focus to items made with sustainable materials like bamboo, hemp, and recycled plastic. Whatever you choose, these sustainable gift ideas are sure to leave a positive impression with your customers.

Sustainable Marketing & Eco-Friendly Gift Ideas

Everyone loves a feel-good story. That’s why sustainable marketing is so successful. Going green shows customers that your company cares about more than the bottom line. And when the planet matters to you, your company matters to customers.

Why Good for the Planet Is Good for Business

We all want to treat our environment better, but small business budgets are tight. Will using personalized sustainable gifts actually pay off? The data says yes!

51% of customers favor eco-friendly brands

A global study by the Advertising Specialty Institute (ASI) found that 51% of people have a more favorable opinion of a company with sustainable promotional products.

51% of customers prefer sustainable products

According to a study by the Global Web Index, half of consumers say the environment influences what they buy.

Gen X likes companies who offer reusable cups

According to a study by the ASI, 71% of Gen Xers prefer doing business with companies who gave reusable drinkware promotions.

Logos on reusable bags get 3,300 impressions

A study by the ASI found that custom reusable bags will get your logo noticed 3,300 times in their lifecycle and are held onto for an average of 11 months.

So…What Exactly Is Sustainability?

Sustainability focuses on ways to live that do not deplete or destroy natural resources. We’ve all heard the statistics about plastic, but here’s one more to help you understand why sustainable marketing is on everyone’s mind.

Every year, over 8 million tons of plastic wind up in the ocean.

We cannot continue to create plastic waste at this rate without affecting our ecosystem, food sources, and personal health. That means plastic consumption is unsustainable.

What Makes Products Sustainable?

It’s not all bad news. Sustainable products are here to help. These are products made with materials that create less waste and have a smaller impact on the environment. Let’s take a look at the materials you’ll find in sustainable gifts and promotions.

Recycled Materials

What’s old becomes new again. We can reduce waste by using recycled plastic to create backpacks, notebook covers, coolers, and more.

Bamboo

Bamboo is a fast growing, self-regenerating grass that requires less water and resources than trees. That makes it a great sustainable marketing alternative to wood and plastic.

Wheat Straw

Did you know that the excess wheat stalks left over from wheat harvests can be used to supplement plastic in products by up to 50 percent?

Hemp

Hemp is a quick growing weed that requires little water and nutrients. It can absorb carbon emissions in the atmosphere, grow without pesticides, and is biodegradable.

Single Use vs. Reusable Promotional Products

Why switch to reusable products? Landfills can only hold so much waste. Opting for reusable products rather than single-use will help lessen the impact of waste on our environment. Products made to be reused will also get your branding seen more. We recommend reusable eco-friendly gift ideas like:

Reusable Water Bottles

There are how many plastic bottles in the ocean?! Gulp! Feature your logo on reusable custom water bottles to create sustainable marketing your customers will love.

Eco-Friendly Water Bottle Gift Ideas:

Fusion Bottle – 22 oz

Reusable Straws

Whether you choose bamboo reusable straws with branded pouches or collapsible metal straw keychains, customers appreciate this trendy way to skip single-use straws.

Reusable Straw Gift Idea:

Reusable Cups

If you’re looking for popular sustainable marketing ideas, look no further than reusable cups. Restaurants and cafes love promoting on these to get their branding seen around town.

Eco-Friendly Promotional Cup Ideas:

Tips for Sustainable Marketing with Eco-Friendly Gift Ideas

How do you make an impact on customers without making an impact on the planet? There are all kinds of ways sustainable marketing can increase your brand visibility. Here are some tricks for creating more sales with less waste:

1. Go Big on Reusable Bags

Did you know we use five trillion tons of plastic bags every year? Instead, get noticed with a large imprint on reusable bags that are made to get seen again and again.

Gift Ideas for Custom Reusable Bags:

2. Opt for Long Lasting Products

The average office worker uses 500 disposable cups a year. It’s no wonder that reusable promotional drinkware garners 1,400 impressions in its lifecycle, which averages at least one year.

3. Daily Use Means High Visibility

As many as 8.3 billion single-use straws litter the world’s beaches. You could get your promotion in customer’s hands by offering reusable straw keychains instead. These will get seen every time customers need to take a sip or reach for their keys.

Is your business ready to go green? There’s never been a better time for the prosperity of the planet and your business to start implementing sustainable marketing.

Sources:

https://www.iucn.org/resources/issues-briefs/marine-plastics

https://www.ecofriendlyhabits.com/eco-friendly-stats/

https://media.asicentral.com/resources/Global-Ad-Impressions-Study.pdf


This infographic is brought to you by Pens.com at Pens.com.

Tags: infographic
Jessica Carreiro

From marketing tips to product recommendations, I’m here to help small businesses be their best.

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