I meet with an old friend and colleague recently. During our Saturday catch up in her beautiful garden, we talked about the digital spilling onto ATL and the pollution. 2 topics supposingly unrelated but intertwined: marketing & environment. Both subjects are close to our hearts, but it seemed there is an unexpected connection.
The marketing industry is producing masses of waste during the process. From one time trade stands all the way down to gifts, bags, brochures and leaflets.
Is it really necessary?
Many businesses now successfully operate paperless administration. We have changed our approach to real estate by sharing office space with other businesses. As employees we are now looking at addressing our everyday waste by bringing our own cups and lunch containers to be filled at pop up kitchens. We bring our reusable cotton bags to the grocer.
Don’t get me wrong, I for one want to know what’s on offer, but I make a point of taking a picture of the leaflet instead of taking one. If it means that there is at least one more person that can benefit, it is worth it.
It’s in those single acts of individuals that a change is made across the city. Let’s free our cities of single use packaging and single use marketing.
What if we all took a stand to limit single use marketing, saving the planet and helping small businesses achieve greater efficiency. A few years ago we thought mobile marketing would replace leaflets, but with the new privacy regulations, businesses yet again are looking into print as a safe alternative to speak to an individual in the specific location.
