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Predictions 2008: The Year of Eco-friendly?

With 2007 coming to a close, we're going to take a look at promo trends for 2008 over the course of several posts. What better place to start than the rise of eco-friendly promos?

Eco-friendly in 2008: Targeting the Mainstream, Hits and Misses
In 2007 there was a lot of industry buzz around eco-friendly promo products, and there were finally enough products in the industry for us to create a section of our site for them. In 2008, product selection looks to be several times as large, with almost every major producer introducing some eco-friendly items. While we're happy to create, promote and talk-up eco-friendly products, the real question is: will they sell?

My prediction: yes, a little. The main obstacle is price, and in 2008 many marketers will want eco-friendly products for their promotions, but only a fraction will have the budget to pay a premium for them. The winners will be products that are highly-visible eco-friendly products (think earth tones and kraft paper) which are reasonably priced. Organic cottons and recycled fabrics that make products 2-3 times as expensive as their non-eco counterparts are going to see only modest sales, at least in 2008.

Two surprise winners will be eco-friendly items that aren't eco-friendly: inexpensive non-woven totes and polycarb water bottles will be promoted as alternatives to disposable bags and bottled water. Since they're reusable alternatives to disposable products, they do help the environment without being organic/recycled/biodegradable themselves.

Posted by mark at December 6, 2007 10:49 AM

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