The Golden Rule for Business

Austin, Texas: As an organization that is practicing sustainability and promoting the green movement, you are probably feeling good about your company and about yourself.

Good for you. Congratulations!

As a businessperson, we all have the ideal type of client we like to work with.

What are some characteristics of your ideal customer?

Doesn’t constantly haggle you on price?

Pays their bills on time?

Is a pleasure to work with?

Values your expertise and advice?

Sends you referrals?

Great. Now, put the shoe on the other foot and ask yourself these questions:

Are you acting the same way toward your vendors?

Are your practicing what you preach?

Are you following the Golden Rule (Do unto others as you would like them to do onto you)?

If not, why not?

Take some time to re-evaluate how you are doing business.

Do you like to be haggled on price on every job?  Neither do your top vendors.  Vet your vendors wisely, but then stop beating them up on price each time.

Do you return e-mails and phone calls promptly?  If you are not interested in an idea or proposal, do you at least answer their emails with a “Thanks .. but no thanks”.  Or do you ignore each message, hoping it goes away and never getting back to them –frustrating both of you with a series of unreturned phone calls and emails?

We all like referrals and the word-of-mouth business it brings us. Are you giving referrals to your vendors? I am sure it would be appreciated.  Are they on Facebook or Linked in? If so, give them a shout-out, a referral, a recommendation – a few simple words of thanks.

Are you paying your vendors promptly? It is not your suppliers fault that you are still waiting for one of your customers to pay you, or that you had an off-month.  Pay your vendors on time–or even early.

Are you buying recycled or sustainable products-for all your shopping needs (both business and personal)?

Are you trying to buy US-manufactured products whenever possible?

Business is a two-way street.  We rely on our vendors to make us look good.  They rely on us to keep them in business.

Let’s all take the time to conduct ourselves in a manner more to the way we would like to be treated.

Here’s to a better tomorrow, today.

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Robert Piller, President of Eco Marketing Solutions, has over 25 years of experience in running and implementing green marketing campaigns and is a leader in the recycled promotional products industry, including offering one of the largest selections of reusable and organic tote bags, recycled and biodegradable water bottles, recycled pens and pencils in the country.

His company’s website, EcoMarketingSolutions.com, features over 25,000 eco-friendly promotional items in all price ranges, for any business or organization interested in going green. The site’s handy search tool helps you easily find biodegradable, organic and recycled imprinted promotional items in your price range and time frame.

You can also reach him by email (robert (at) ecomarketingsolutions.com) or comment on his blog postings at GreenSpotBlog.com or below at his Twitter link.

Austin, Texas: Since the new year has just begun, now is the ideal time to think about volunteering and helping a green non-profit organization increase awareness and help to raise much needed funds.

As a green marketer, we are all in this together.

Creating educated consumers is good for your business, as they are the ones that can better appreciate the importance of buying green and going green.

Outreach is one of the basic tenets of green marketing–promoting the need for, and the importance of, green causes, behaviors and political and social movements.

Look into some green organizations–either at the local, state or national level and volunteer your time.  Get involved.

Get known as an organization that cares about the environment-not just about making money.

Help this organization politic for greener standards.

Help them to raise much needed money.

Help them recruit new volunteers.

Help them to create greater awareness.

It is a win-win relationship. Don’t sit back and let the green movement come to you.

You need to come to the green movement.

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Robert Piller, President of Eco Marketing Solutions, has over 25 years of experience in running and implementing green marketing campaigns and is a leader in the recycled promotional products industry, including offering one of the largest selections of reusable and organic tote bags, recycled and biodegradable water bottles, recycled pens and pencils in the country.

His company’s website, EcoMarketingSolutions.com, features over 25,000 eco-friendly promotional items in all price ranges, for any business or organization interested in going green. The site’s handy search tool helps you easily find biodegradable, organic and recycled imprinted promotional items in your price range and time frame.

You can also reach him by email (robert (at) ecomarketingsolutions.com) or comment on his blog postings at GreenSpotBlog.com or below at his Twitter link.

Austin, Texas: As the year comes to a close, it is time to take a look back at your marketing efforts to see if you met your green marketing goals.

As an eco-marketing company, you must be at the forefront of green technology,  waste reduction, recycling and other green initiatives.

Take a look back to see if you can pinpoint measurable reductions in paper usage, miles driven by you and your fellow employees, energy reductions in running your business, supply chain mandates, etc.

Talk to your employees about other areas where you can achieve energy savings, whether it be as simple as thermostat changes and weatherization or more profound and deeper changes.

As the new year approaches, take time to see where you can lead on environmental causes, promote green outreach programs and motivate and inspire your employees, your customers, your vendors and the general public.

Look over your marketing materials to see how you can educate your audience both on the value of your greener product or service, but also on environmental issues in general.

Be sure to practice what you preach in terms of using recycled paper for print, as well as using recycled promotional products to carry your branded message.

Going green cannot be a one-person plan. Be sure your employees are actively behind your green initiatives and agenda.

Did you reach the goal of 10% energy reduction in 2011?

If not, let’s double down and make it happen in 2012.

If so, can you achieve 11% reduction this year?

Keep striving for a greener planet.

We’re all in it together.

Happy New Year!

May 2012 be the greenest one yet.

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Robert Piller, President of Eco Marketing Solutions, has over 25 years of experience in running and implementing green marketing campaigns and is a leader in the recycled promotional products industry, including offering one of the largest selections of reusable and organic tote bags, recycled and biodegradable water bottles, recycled pens and pencils in the country.

His company’s website, EcoMarketingSolutions.com, features over 25,000 eco-friendly promotional items in all price ranges, for any business or organization interested in going green. The site’s handy search tool helps you easily find biodegradable, organic and recycled imprinted promotional items in your price range and time frame.

You can also reach him by email (robert (at) ecomarketingsolutions.com) or comment on his blog postings at GreenSpotBlog.com or below at his Twitter link.

Austin, Texas: A few weeks back I had attended a trade show for the wholesale trade and was amazed at the number of people with banners touting “Eco-Friendly” and “Go Green”, etc.

Being a green marketing company, those signs immediately attracted my attention and I stopped at most of these booths.

Unfortunately, I was quite disappointed at how these firms substantiated their claims.

Just because an item can be recycled, does not necessarily make it eco-friendly. Many of these companies had no clue as to the recycle symbols on their products, whether or not it had any recycled material, country of origin, etc.

Customers are wary of claims that cannot be backed up with proof.

Then, on top of that, the majority of these companies had business cards that were not made on recycled paper stock or FSC-certified paper– nor were their catalogs or flyers.

Pay attention to the little things.

Going green means paying attention to the details, big and small..

If you claim to be green, at least know the issues that are affecting the country in terms of sustainability, carbon footprint and even climate change.

If your business cards and flyers are not recycled or FSC-certified, take down your “eco-friendly” banners- and decide if marketing to a green niche is the right target audience for you.

Marketing takes consistency.

Is your green marketing message consistent?

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Robert Piller, President of Eco Marketing Solutions, has over 25 years of experience in running and implementing green marketing campaigns and is a leader in the recycled promotional products industry, including offering one of the largest selections of reusable and organic tote bags, recycled and biodegradable water bottles, recycled pens and pencils in the country.

His company’s website, EcoMarketingSolutions.com, features over 25,000 eco-friendly promotional items in all price ranges, for any business or organization interested in going green. The site’s handy search tool helps you easily find biodegradable, organic and recycled imprinted promotional items in your price range and time frame.

You can also reach him by email (robert (at) ecomarketingsolutions.com) or comment on his blog postings at GreenSpotBlog.com or below at his Twitter link.

Austin, Texas: I have written several posts over the past few years on the need for more green outreach programs to help promote environmental causes.

Good news- November 15th is America Recycles Day - a full day to promote the value of recycling.

If you are a green marketer or promote the fact that you are “going green”, this is a tremendous opportunity to put your money where your mouth is.

Promote recycling to your audience.

     Be loud.

     Be proud.

     Be seen.

     Be heard.

     Get noticed.

One place to start is by joining with your nearest affiliate branch of Keep America Beautiful, which you can find at the link.

If you are  a recycler, this day should be highlighted on your calendar every year..and planned far in advance, so you can coordinate outreach programs.   I find it funny that I am still receiving calls, faxes and emails for last minute imprinted recycled tote bags and recycled pens– and the event is less than two weeks away. This seems to be the pattern year after year.

The  America Recycles Day website offers several useful toolkits that you can re-print to promote the one day event. This is an easy place to start, as they have slides, handouts, activities, games and other pre-planned programs available.

Sponsor a recycling drop-off program or pair up with those already in place.  The website has a zip code guide to the nearest recycling locations.

Volunteer to talk to a school about the need for increased recycling activity.  Children are the greatest demographic for environmental awareness activities, and as the future protectors of this planet, the best place to start.

If you are a bit more daring, volunteer to speak at senior centers, church groups, Chamber of Commerce, Kiwanis, Lions Clubs and other organizations and encourage them to take a pledge to recycle .  I say more daring, as there will usually be more climate change deniers among those crowds, so you need to be prepared for a little more push back.

Be sure your company is implementing a recycling program for all employees, so you are practicing what you preach.  Encourage employees to recycle at home, as well.

Promote recycling on your company website, catalogs, blogs, etc.  Get the message out.

Learn recycling facts and bring them up on as many occasions as possible.  I found a great source of recycling facts and figures at Recycling Revolution‘s website that are sure to amaze and inspire.  For example, “If every American recycled just one-tenth of their newspapers, we would save about 25,000,000 trees a year.”

America Recycles Day is November 15th.

How will you be promoting recycling to your audience?

Please let me know what type of activities you will be participating in, send images, etc. so I can mention them in future blog posts.

Let’s Make Every Day, Earth Day.

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Robert Piller, President of Eco Marketing Solutions, has over 25 years of experience in running and implementing green marketing campaigns and is a leader in the recycled promotional products industry, including offering one of the largest selections of reusable and organic tote bags, recycled and biodegradable water bottles, recycled pens and pencils in the country.

His company’s website, EcoMarketingSolutions.com, features over 25,000 eco-friendly promotional items in all price ranges, for any business or organization interested in going green. The site’s handy search tool helps you easily find biodegradable, organic and recycled imprinted promotional items in your price range and time frame.

You can also reach him by email (robert (at) ecomarketingsolutions.com) or comment on his blog postings at GreenSpotBlog.com or below at his Twitter link.

The Value of Recycled Promotional Products

Austin, Texas: I got a call this morning from a green marketing consultant wondering whether or not she should spend the extra money getting recycled journal books rather than regular ones, imprinted with her name.

The price difference was nominal– maybe 25 cents on a $4 imprinted journal book.  

I was shocked, speechless for a few seconds.  Then I started to laugh.

If you are a company that is serious about green marketing, your thinking has to be focused 100% on green.

• No dithering.
• No “sometimes”.
• No “maybe”.
• No “only if I get a great deal”, etc.

If you do not show a genuine commitment to eco marketing, then you are, at best, not serious about the environment– and, at worst, a fraud or hypocrite.

Going green is not a part-time cause.

It is a way of thinking – a way of acting.

It is a change in your behavior, activities and a change in the way you look at the world.

Going green should be a trigger to change how you do many of the everyday tasks in life–from driving, to shopping, eating, switching to energy efficient lightbulbs and appliances, etc.

If you are to consider yourself a green organization, you need to live green.

• Act green.
• Think green.
• Read about green.
• Write about green.
• Preach green.
• Vote green.
• Editorialize about green.
• Be green.

If not, do not even think about using the words “eco”, “green” or “environmental” anywhere in your name, in your logo – on your mission statement, your website, etc.

We don’t need green wash. We don’t need subterfuge.

If you are going to carry the green banner, let’s take a more serious view of our commitment to the environment and to social causes.

Let’s make a difference.

Here’s to a greener tomorrow, today.
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Robert Piller, President of Eco Marketing Solutions, has over 25 years of experience in running and implementing green marketing campaigns and is a leader in the recycled promotional products industry, including offering one of the largest selections of reusable and organic tote bags, recycled and biodegradable water bottles, recycled pens and pencils in the country.

His company’s website, EcoMarketingSolutions.com, features over 25,000 eco-friendly promotional items in all price ranges, for any business or organization interested in going green. The site’s handy search tool helps you easily find biodegradable, organic and recycled imprinted promotional items in your price range and time frame.

You can also reach him by email (robert (at) ecomarketingsolutions.com) or comment on his blog postings at GreenSpotBlog.com or below at his Twitter link.

Austin, Texas: As I watch the Republican Presidential debates over the past few weeks, I am amazed at  the lack of commitment by any candidate on most major issues.

Answers  by all seem to be vague, ambiguous and wishy-washy.  There is certainly no passion that comes across to the viewing public.

Is this like your company’s stand on the environment–vague, ambiguous and wishy-washy?

People can easily cut through this B.S. and tell that you are not truly committed.

Green Washing?  No, too many companies do Green Lying, where they knowingly are not green but pretend to be.

If you are a green marketer or an organization going green, how are you living that commitment?

Jut by having the word “green” or “environmentally-friendly” on you packaging or in your mission statement doesn’t make you a green company.

Where is your passion?

How is your company reducing its energy consumption?

How are you reducing packaging waste?

How are you encouraging car pooling by your employees, inspiring greener procedures at work and changing your green lifestyle?

Going green is like fitness….. you need to be committed to it in order to be successful.

Show some passion to the green movement and get involved.

Practice what you preach.

Live the lifestyle.

Your organization will gain a great deal more credibility..and your commitment will show.

I’ll vote for that!
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Robert Piller, president of Eco Marketing Solutions, is experienced in green marketing campaigns and recycled promotional products.

His company’s website, EcoMarketingSolutions.com, features over 25,000 eco-friendly promotional items in all price ranges, for any business or organization interested in going green. The site’s handy search tool helps you easily find biodegradable, organic and recycled imprinted promotional items in your price range and time frame.

You can also reach him by email (robert (at) ecomarketingsolutions.com) or comment on his blog postings at GreenSpotBlog.com or below at his Twitter link.

Going Green: An Interesting Tale

Austin, Texas: I get an email the other day –which I thought was hysterical about th previous genrations understanding of “going green”.

It was very humorous.

Here it is–verbatim:

In the line at the store, the cashier told an older woman that she should bring her own grocery bags because plastic bags weren’t good for the environment.

The woman apologized to her and explained, “We didn’t have the green thing back in my day.”

The clerk responded, “That’s our problem today. Your generation did not care enough to save our environment.”

He was right — our generation didn’t have the green thing in its day.

Back then, we returned milk bottles, soda bottles and beer bottles to the store. The store sent them back to the plant to be washed and sterilized and refilled, so it could use the same bottles over and over. So they really were recycled. But we didn’t have the green thing back in our day.

We walked up stairs, because we didn’t have an escalator in every store and office building. We walked to the grocery store and didn’t climb into a 300-horsepower machine every time we had to go two blocks. But she was right.

We didn’t have the green thing in our day.

Back then, we washed the baby’s diapers because we didn’t have the throw-away kind.

We dried clothes on a line, not in an energy gobbling machine burning up 220 volts — wind and solar power really did dry the clothes.

Kids got hand-me-down clothes from their brothers or sisters, not always brand-new clothing. But that old lady is right; we didn’t have the green thing back in our day. Back then, we had one TV, or radio, in the house — not a TV in every room. And the TV had a small screen the size of a handkerchief (remember them?), not a screen the size of the state of Montana.

In the kitchen, we blended and stirred by hand because we didn’t have electric machines to do everything for us. When we packaged a fragile item to send in the mail, we used a wadded up old newspaper to cushion it, not Styrofoam or plastic bubble wrap.

Back then, we didn’t fire up an engine and burn gasoline just to cut the lawn. We used a push mower that ran on human power.

We exercised by working so we didn’t need to go to a health club to run on treadmills that operate on electricity.

But she’s right; we didn’t have the green thing back then.

We drank from a fountain when we were thirsty instead of using a cup or a plastic bottle every time we had a drink of water.

We refilled writing pens with ink instead of buying a new pen, and we replaced the razor blades in a razor instead of throwing away the whole razor just because the blade got dull. But we didn’t have the green thing back then.

Back then, people took the streetcar or a bus and kids rode their bikes to school or walked instead of turning their moms into a 24-hour taxi service. We had one electrical outlet in a room, not an entire bank of sockets to power a dozen appliances.

And we didn’t need a computerized gadget to receive a signal beamed from satellites 2,000 miles out in space in order to find the nearest pizza joint.

But isn’t it sad the current generation laments how wasteful we old folks were just because we didn’t have the green thing back then?

Just goes to show, that everyone’s point of view of what comprises “green” or “conservation” may be in the eye of the beholder.

Let’s all find ways to be greener – without any name calling or without the passing of judgment.
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Robert Piller, President of Eco Marketing Solutions, is experienced in green marketing campaigns and a leader in the recycled promotional products industry, including offering one of the largest selections of reusable and organic tote bags, recycled and biodegradable water bottles, recycled pens and pencils in the country.

His company’s website, EcoMarketingSolutions.com, features over 25,000 eco-friendly promotional items in all price ranges, for any business or organization interested in going green. The site’s handy search tool helps you easily find biodegradable, organic and recycled imprinted promotional items in your price range and time frame.

You can also reach him by email (robert (at) ecomarketingsolutions.com) or comment on his blog postings at GreenSpotBlog.com or below at his Twitter link.

Austin, Texas:  As a marketer, it seems like it gets tougher and tougher to stand out from the crowd in a world of advertising, e-blasts, social media, etc.

As a green company, it is just as difficult.  Many people are using the word “green” in their name, in their product description, on their packaging, etc.

How can you catch your customer’s attention while so many other companies are also going green?

Well, have you thought about going green locally? Going green at the community level?

Think of ways to promote green outreach to your community.  It is easier to make an impact on a micro level, and it will build goodwill for your organization.

Here are a few simple ideas to keep your green message in front of your community:

1-Sponsor a portion of a highway for litter pickup.

2-Plant trees at a park or school or community center.

3-Speak at local organizations about how companies can “green their office”–such as at chamber of commerce meetings, Lion’s or Rotary Club meetings, etc.

4-Sponsor a booth or table at your city’s Earth Day Festival.

5-Start an Earth Day celebration in your town.

6-Team up with other businesses to promote green seminars, trade shows or fairs.

7-Get your vehicle wrapped with green messages and slogans.

8-Team up with other businesses and sponsor a Trash Pickup Drive–that takes oils, paints, batteries, prescription pills and other non-hazardous trash that cannot disposed of during regular trash pickup.  Get involved with your city’s Solid Waste Department to see how you can help.  You can also bring in the local Boy Scouts and Girl Scouts to participate with you.

9-Work with your city’s solid waste or public utilities department and see if you can help with donations, giveaways, speeches to the general public, cross promoting with their programs, etc.  City services have very tight budgets, and the more public support they get, the better.

10-Sponsor an e-Waste Trash Disposal drop off campaign.  These drop off stations can be wrapped or logoed with your brand — and you can work with local e-waste recycling centers to handle the recycling and disposal of these items.

11-Put together a YouTube or PowerPoint presentation about green issues concerning your community – and use it internally, promote it on social media, lend it to local news outlets and to city services, who might utilize it in some ways.  These presentations need to be 100% non-commercial, with just your logo and message at the end for a few seconds.  If it reeks of commercialism, it will fail.

12-Give out eco-friendly promotional items instead of plastic ones.   Each of these items, from imprinted environmentally-themed coloring books to information wheels should have educational value.

13-Practice what you preach in public.   This would include having a recycling program both at  home and at work, downsizing to a more fuel efficient vehicle, switching to CFL or LED lighting, etc.  Don’t be caught in a lie, promoting yourself as “green” just for appearance sake.

14-Keep in mind: It is important at these events to keep the focus on education and outreach on environmental issues-and not be a shill for your company.  You will have a much more positive impact on the audience.

Stand out from your competition.

Be creative.

How do you plan to promote your green organization to your audience?

I’d love to hear about it.

Let’s make Earth Day Every Day.
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Robert Piller, President of Eco Marketing Solutions, has over 25 years of experience in running and implementing green marketing campaigns and is a leader in the recycled promotional products industry, including offering one of the largest selections of reusable and organic tote bags, recycled and biodegradable water bottles, recycled pens and pencils in the country.

His company’s website, EcoMarketingSolutions.com, features over 25,000 eco-friendly promotional items in all price ranges, for any business or organization interested in going green. The site’s handy search tool helps you easily find biodegradable, organic and recycled imprinted promotional items in your price range and time frame.

You can also reach him by email (robert (at) ecomarketingsolutions.com) or comment on his blog postings at GreenSpotBlog.com or below at his Twitter link.

Business should both Buy American and Go Green at the same time. They are not mutually exclusive.

Austin, Texas: Marketers are constantly looking for the next “big thing” to help promote their brand or message.

For the past five years, it has been green.  

Who hasn’t heard the term “going green” or “sustainability” bandied about in sales meetings, on websites and print ads, in direct marketing campaigns, in mission statements–everywhere.  

Many of the companies that have been going green have been truly working to reduce their carbon footprint and reduce energy consumption.  Kudos to them.

Others liked it because “green” was hot and a way to differentiate themselves from their competition.

Now, with being and acting “green” the cost of entry for most companies, eco marketing, or green marketing, may not have the impact that it once had.

So, what is next?

Red. White. Blue.

That’s right. Buy American.  Old Glory. Patriotism.

Like going green, buying American is a good thing.  It will create more manufacturing jobs in this country, which our economy really needs.

It has already begun.

Personally, our company has seen a tremendous uptick in the number of American-made tote bags, wearables and water bottles that we have been selling these past few months.

As more and more factories produce these goods, prices will surely drop and the difference in cost from an overseas product will get closer to the cost of an American-made product, especially when you add in such other costs as ocean or air freight and turnaround time.

I am all for the Buy American mantra.  I, like most businesses here, prefer to support American jobs and grow our economy.

But, in five years, after the American flag emblem appears on everyone’s products and websites, what will be next?

Is red, white and blue the next green?

I hope so. I think so.

But please don’t abandon green.

Whether it is your marketing niche, unique selling proposition, or just the way you do business,  let’s continue to reduce climate change and continue to Think Green.

We should be able to be green and patriotic at the same time.

After all, what is more patriotic than leaving a greener planet to our families and neighbors?

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Robert Piller, President of Eco Marketing Solutions, has over 25 years of experience in running and implementing green marketing campaigns and is a leader in the recycled promotional products industry, including offering one of the largest selections of reusable and organic tote bags, recycled and biodegradable water bottles, recycled pens and pencils in the country.

His company’s website, EcoMarketingSolutions.com, features over 25,000 eco-friendly promotional items in all price ranges, for any business or organization interested in going green. The site’s handy search tool helps you easily find biodegradable, organic and recycled imprinted promotional items in your price range and time frame.

You can also reach him by email (robert (at) ecomarketingsolutions.com) or comment on his blog postings at GreenSpotBlog.com or below at his Twitter link.