PPB December

DECEMBER 2014 •

PPB

• 57

THINK A BILLBOARD IS JUNK WHEN A CAMPAIGN IS OVER? Nope, it

still has a lot of life ahead. MINI USA recycled its marketing campaign in

support of the 2014 MINI Cooper Hardtop by turning old billboards from

the initiative into reusable totes that were gifted to each new MINI

owner. MINI outsourced the work to Relan, which specializes in recycling

vinyl and fabric waste into useable items, as an environmentally conscious

way to repurpose old billboards and engage eco-concerned buyers.

Green Marketing Turns

One Campaign Into Two

Making A List,

Checking It Twice

Five steps to prepare for inclement winter weather,

via the U.S. Small Business Administration

Determine your greatest risk potential.

might come from loss of heat, frozen or burst pipes

or the inability to access facilities. What would hap-

pen if you had to shut down your business for several

days? Look at the building where you do business

and assess the property damage risks. If you do this

early enough, you’ll have time to make structural

upgrades that can prevent possible future storm,

wind, water or earthquake damage.

Calculate the cost of business interruptions

for one week, one month and six months.

Then investigate insurance options or build cash

reserves that will allow your company to function

during the post-disaster recovery phase. It’s also a

good idea to develop professional relationships with

alternative vendors, in case your primary contractor

can’t service your needs. Place occasional orders with

them so they regard you as an active customer when

you need them.

Review insurance coverage.

Find out if your

policy is adequate for your needs, and consult with

a business insurance expert on the right coverage

for your situation. When buying insurance, ask,

“How much can I afford to lose?” It’s a good idea to

know the value of your property.

Build a crisis communications plan

so you’ll be

able to make sure your staff, customers, vendors and

contractors know what’s going on in the event of a

disaster. Establish an email alert system, and ensure

you have primary and secondary email addresses for

your employees and service providers. Use Facebook

and Twitter to let the public know you’re still in busi-

ness and in the process of recovering.

Consider a work-from-home policy.

Prepare for

the possibility that employees won’t be able to get to

work by developing an emergency work-from-home

policy and investing in the technology needed to

make company files accessible outside of the office.

One can always tell when one is getting old

and serious by the way that holidays seem

to interfere with one’s work.

—BOB EDWARDS, radio broadcaster and member of the

National Radio Hall of Fame

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The National Retail Federation expects holiday retail sales to

increase a healthy 4.1 percent to $616.9 billion, higher than 2013’s

actual 3.1 percent increase during that same time frame. Holiday

sales on average have grown 2.9 percent over the past 10 years,

including 2014’s estimates, and are expected to represent approx-

imately 19.2 percent of the retail industry’s annual sales of $3.2

trillion. If the prediction holds, this would mark the first time

since 2011 that holiday sales increase more than four percent.

Dreaming Of A Robust Holiday

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