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HILE THE FUTURISTIC TECHNOLOGI-
CAL advances portrayed in the 1960s
TV show “The Jetsons” haven’t all
materialized yet, we’re getting fright-
eningly close. Self-driving cars, robots
that deliver room service, small, wearable drones that can
fly—these are all products in development. But one thing
that the Jetsons’ creators didn’t envision was mobile
phone technology, something that’s become a modern
necessity.
People now use their mobile phones to access digital
media more than laptops, and 64 percent of American
adults own smartphones. Plus, with more than one billion
people using tablets worldwide, brand promotion oppor-
tunities for the promotional products industry abound.
In the rewards and incentives sector, for example, dig-
ital technology has had a huge impact. “In the past
decade, we have seen a shift in how we share information,
communicate, entertain ourselves, shop and even connect
with brands. Everything we want and do is a click—and
now a swipe—away,” says Aubrey Collins, marketing and
communications director at MediaTree (UPIC: tni), a digital
rewards supplier. “Because of this, reward and incentive
promotions must evolve with technology to meet chang-
ing consumer expectations,” she says.
“Promotions that include digital appeal to demograph-
ics across the board, and include items such as music
downloads, movie tickets, magazine subscriptions, digital
movie rentals and more,” Collins adds.
Beyond rewards and incentives, it’s clear that with
more people attached to an ever-growing cache of shiny
devices, promotional products that are related to those
devices or that can be accessed from them, are growing in
popularity.
W
TODAY’S CONSUMERS—AND THEIR INTERNET-CONNECTED DEVICES—
ARE ON THE MOVE
By Julie Richie
EDITOR’S PICKS
42 •
PPB
• NOVEMBER 2015
GROW
Multi-Screen Society