PPB December 2017

Wellness Programs | FEATURE H elping clients create a wellness-focused environment and a corporate culture emphasizing health and wellness requires much more than just choosing health-related promotional products, such as syringe pens. Tom Goos, MAS, PPAI immediate past chair and president of distributor Image Source, Inc., astutely notes that the objective of a wellness program is to keep people away from syringes and pill boxes. These are certainly useful promotional products and they have a valuable place with many audiences, but establishing a wellness program requires more than clever products. Rising healthcare costs and an uncertainty about the future of health insurance are concerns affecting everyone. As a result, companies have become increasingly interested in implementing wellness programs for their employees. While there are obvious benefits to a healthy workforce, businesses also recognize the positive effect a healthy team has on the company’s bottom line. Corporate wellness programs are a nearly $8 billion industry in the U.S., and the industry is expected to grow by almost eight percent through 2021. Worldwide, the industry is worth $40 billion, according to the Global Wellness Institute, but only about nine percent of the global workforce has access to workplace wellness programs. This presents a prime opportunity for distributors to create wellness programs for their clients, and it opens markets for suppliers who manufacture and decorate products that can serve as reminders and incentives, and carry a program's message. The booming wellness market also creates an ongoing opportunity for smart and committed distributors who are able to invest time in building client relationships and generate sales opportunities to become their clients’ go-to resource for implementing these programs. A syringe pen will not make a business healthy, but knowing how to create wellness programs can bring robust new business your way. by Jeff Solomon, MAS FIT for OPPORTUNITY WELLNESS PROGRAMS | DECEMBER 2017 | 47