Just a brief little word about something that's on almost everyone's mind . . . no, not that nasty virus that's scaring us all, but this idea is related to Covid-19. It's not that we shouldn't be concerned about the virus, I just wanted to mention a couple of things as we head into what could be called a Downturn (the D word) or a Recession (the R word).
To be very clear, your A-Z Swagman is not an economist . . . everything I've heard about a potential upcoming R or D is from experts much smarter than I am. (that's right, they're from out of town with a briefcase! definition of expert)
The first, and most important thing I'd like to share is a quote I first heard back around 2001. John Quelch, Dean of the Miami Herbert Business School said:
“It is well documented that brands that increase advertising during a recession, when competitors are cutting back, can improve market share and return on investment at lower cost than during good economic times.”
The second is from the Promotional Products Association International 2019 Consumer Study Report. The PPAI is the industry trade group for promotional products (Your A-Z Swagman has his CAS through PPAI). They collect tons of data on the effectiveness of and best practices for using promo in branding efforts:
“Not only do consumers like receiving promotional products (80%), results indicate the majority of consumers (73%) prefer them over any other form of advertising, including telemarketing or sales calls, promotional emails and direct mail. In fact, consumers like them so much, 71 percent say they wish they received promotional products more often.”
Finally, an idea from your A-Z Swagman. OK, I cannot take credit, the original advice is from the CDC and the follow-up is from two sites (Today Show and Playbill) that came up in a Google search for alternatives to singing Happy Birthday twice while washing your hands!
“If you see a faded sign
by the side of the road that says
Fifteen miles to the,
love shack, love shack yeah
I'm headin' down the atlanta highway
Lookin' for the love getaway”
If you sing that, including the pauses, you’ll be washing your hands for at least twenty seconds.
Please look after yourselves – your A-Z Swagman cares about you!