Are You Kidding Me?
by Jack Hancocks
Something happened recently in California that has my blood boiling. It didn’t immediately piss me off, but the more I thought about it and the more I read about it, the more incensed I became. Now I know that our publication is Canadian-based and is primarily circulated and read in Canada, so you may ask yourself why something happening in California is even relevant to our world. Trust me, it is. In case you haven’t heard about this, here is the headline story posted on the Specialty Advertising Association of California website on February 24, 2011.
California Bans Promotional Products At State Agencies
California Governor Jerry Brown has issued a memorandum directing all California state agencies and departments to immediately stop purchasing “free giveaway and gift items — such as key chains, coffee mugs and squeeze toys” as part of his “continuing efforts to cut costs and tackle the state’s budget gap.”
It continues: “Not a cent of taxpayer money should be spent on flashlights, ashtrays or other unnecessary items, most of which likely end up in landfills.” Now come on Jerry, you didn’t ban direct mail and according to some studies, 99 per cent of that ends up in landfill. You didn’t ban TV or radio or print advertising, and the money spent on those is much higher than promotional products. Not only that, but the message isn’t nearly as lasting. What a hypocrite; ban promotional advertising? You didn’t have a problem using buttons, coffee mugs, bumper stickers, T-shirts, and the like to get yourself elected, Jerry. Then again, he probably doesn’t consider those as promotional products, but rather as political tools. The only political tool here is Jerry. Well, he’s done it, so now all we can do is hope that the people most affected by his ban, the promotional products industry owners and employees in California, can do some serious lobbying to get this ridiculous ban lifted.
I could go on, but that’s not the main reason I am worried. I am worried because one of our Canadian deep-thinking politicians may actually read about this and think it is a great idea for reducing our ever mounting deficit. My God, if it’s good enough for California it must be good enough for us. Problem is, the ban is going to adversely affect employment statistics. Are increased employment insurance benefits and welfare payments a fair trade-off for a few million dollars in promotional products? There are lives being affected here, not just government budgets. Where are the people who are inevitably going to be laid off or the owners who will lose their businesses supposed to go for income? I don’t get it! Do you? This is a pretty short-sighted approach to their problems out there, but then again, most political solutions usually are.
Something else has happened in the promotional products industry in the United States, which quite frankly has me both upset and embarrassed. I have been torn as to whether I should even mention it here or whether I should just hope that by ignoring it, it will go away. I am talking about the Advertising Specialty Institute’s (ASI) introduction of Promo Man, their super hero mascot. Maybe I am totally missing the point here and I don’t mean to show disrespect for Promo Man’s alter-ego, Dave Vagnoni, who does a great job with ASI News, but come on people. How does this type of thing benefit an industry that is constantly fighting its image of “trinkets and trash” and that is trying to be taken seriously as an alternate and legitimate form of advertising? No wonder California has no problem banning the purchase of “plastic gewgaws,” as Jerry Brown calls them. Perhaps Promo Man would have fared better when Arnie was governor.
I understand that Promo Man is a tongue-in-cheek representation, but really folks, he does nothing to assist our efforts at legitimacy or increase the level of respect that is shown for our industry.
That’s my opinion, anyway. What do you think?
