Why You Should Switch to Eco Friendly and Sustainable Promotional Products

Eco-friendly promotional products are widely available for branded marketing campaigns. Even better, reusable products such as stainless steel straws, water bottles, and tote bags rank high among consumers. Before you switch to branded sustainable swag, you should ask a couple of important questions. Why should my business be environmentally friendly? And why should I choose sustainable products over traditional promotional items?

Why be environmentally friendly?

The answer to this question may seem obvious: to help achieve a better, cleaner environment. However, for a business, this can’t be the only acceptable answer. Any decision a company makes, including using sustainable products, must align with its core mission while tangibly improving its reputation, profits, or productivity. So why be environmentally friendly? 

An organization that commits to the environment reaps multiple benefits, including:

• A valued reputation for green products and practices
• Reduced manufacturing costs due to smart energy use and reusable resources
• Increased profits due to consumer demand for reusable and sustainable items
• Access to government subsidies and tax benefits for greener energy use
• • A valued reputation for green products and practices?
• • Reduced manufacturing costs due to smart energy use and reusable resources?
• • Increased profits due to consumer demand for reusable and sustainable items?
• • Access to government subsidies and tax benefits for greener energy use?

These reasons to go green are important because without taking such steps, eco-friendly promotional products will have little effect on your brand and may damage your reputation. A company that flaunts sustainable promotional items without addressing its environmental footprint could be seen as hypocritical. Customized sustainable items should reflect your company’s commitment to the environment rather than be seen as an independent marketing strategy. 

Why choose sustainable products?

Top eco-friendly products have become significantly cheaper in recent years since recycling, organic materials, and manufacturing processes are more cost and energy-efficient. It’s now possible to offer branded sustainable items at an equivalent or lower price to traditional items.

Also, consumers increasingly opt for environmentally-friendly lifestyles and the green products that support them. By offering reusable promotional products, you’re helping your customers and clients achieve their own eco-friendly goals, and improving your brand reputation, too. 

Reusability is another crucial consideration when choosing sustainable products. Disposable items like single-use plastic water bottles, plastic bags, and event cups are used once and then discarded. With reusable items, your brand has the opportunity to generate multiple impressions through repeated use. 

Benefits of eco-friendly plastic

Plastic is a serious threat to the environment. Of the 14 billion pounds of waste produced annually, the majority is plastic. Plastic items can take 100 to 500 years to decompose, resulting in various toxic microplastics that make their way into the food chain. Some plastics, such as PET containers, are virtually indestructible and don’t decompose at all, and only a mere 9% of plastics are recycled.

The environmental impact of plastic has led to the development of eco-friendly plastics, often made from corn or wheat byproducts. The benefits of eco-friendly plastics include:

• More efficient manufacturing processes than those used to make traditional plastics
• Take less time to decompose
• Eco-friendly plastics tend to be thinner and lighter than conventional plastics, reducing product weight and transportation costs
• Eco-friendly plastics do not contain toxins such as BPA and PVC

Eco-friendly promotional product ideas

If you’re ready to make the switch to sustainable swag, where do you start? Top eco-friendly products include:

• Cloth tote bags
• Reusable silicone and stainless steel straws
• Reusable water bottles
• Recycled paper notebooks

• Reusable travel mugs
• Calendars made from recycled paper
• Promotional items made from sustainable wood or bamboo
• Clothing made from recycled or sustainable materials