Recycle Your Vintage Marketing And Save The World!
Rising fuel price and inflation has caused many people to simplify their life and live below their means. Governments and schools have been promoting the virtues of “reduce, reuse and recycle” for ages but green consciousness did not take off save for niches here and there. Until reality hits home that income are not rising as fast as expenses, most people spend extravagantly and lavishly. The Green Movement of the “3R” is far from their thoughts.
A girlfriend said she used to throw away the cooking oil bottle when there’s about 1 cm left. It’s time wasting to wait for the oil to travel from the bottom to the opening. Now with the cooking oil price increased by 2-time and the supermarket has lesser stock and varieties. She used to the last drop and even tried to use less oil in cooking.
With rising food price and shortage elsewhere, the mood isn’t buoyant which led many retailers to predict that our famous Great Singapore Sales in June-July period – which draws tourists from all over the world – will somewhat be dampened. Mother Gaia is going through a difficult time. Just listing the recent 3 events that “shook” the world – USA’s sub-prime crisis threatens to bring the rest of the world down with recession, China’s Sichuan is suffering the consequences of a catastrophic 8.0 Richter earthquake, Myanmar’s homeless are dying of diseases and starvation after Cyclone Nargis flattened and forever changed it’s coastline.
What’s the reaction of businesses towards their businesses?
- Cut down on non-essential and/or unnecessary expenses
- Slow down manpower recruitment and get existing workforce to multi-task
- Outsource to lower operation costs
- Negotiate better pricing and terms with vendors or replace vendor with cheaper source
- Replace materials with close alternatives
As we were discussing all these over lunch, my business associate in the printing business quipped: “The clients will hang on and recycle their design concepts longer and opt for reprinting only. You guys who works on new marketing ideas, new creative concept, new design execution will be affected.”
Yes, that’s true. A very realistic analysis.
Interestingly, Sony Electronics already recycled it’s vintage ads to promote recycling of its products since last last year. Sony said:
“At Sony, we support the recycling of our products with the same respect we have when creating them. Teaming up with Waste Management, we’ve built a recycling program that makes it easy to dispose of electronics in an environmentally-safe way. Bring your unwanted Sony product to any participating Waste Management eCycling drop-off center and recycle it for free.”
As part of the marketing campaign, Sony recycled some old commercials to remind us all to recycle our old electronics. The ad concepts include a spot of a father videotaping his family, holding an enormous camera with a suitcase-sized carrying case over his shoulder.
So what are you doing with your marketing campaign in such economic sentiments? Wait and see? Scale Back? Step Up? Or recycle your previous successful campaign and give it a new look? Whatever it is, keep marketing as that is the only profit generating department in your company.