RAISING AWARENESS WITH THUMB SOCKS

 Dosomething.org is a nonprofit organization dedicated to causes that affect young people across the nation. Among these issues is texting and driving: a fatal habit that led to 1.3 million crashes in 2011 alone.

Dosomething.org recognized a need for enhanced youth awareness and developed a campaign – a call to action for its members to address the problem of texting and driving. “We were thinking: How do you stop people from texting? Well, you use your thumbs,” says Naomi Hirabayashi, chief marketing officer at Dosomething.org. “Then the idea came: thumb socks. We realized they could be a lot of fun and were also really visual, so they would serve an awareness purpose.”

The socks function as a reminder of the dangers of texting while driving. “We’re giving young people the tools to start a conversation around safe driving with their friends in a fun and unique way,” says Hirabayashi.

Dubbed “Thumb Wars,” the idea behind the campaign was simple: Give away “thumb socks” to interested participants and encourage them to share their photos. The socks are given to young people, ages 13-25, who sign up to participate in the campaign through the nonprofit's website. Participants who share their photos are entered into a drawing for the chance to qualify for a college scholarship.

So far, the campaign has received an unexpectedly large public response. Last year, over 223,000 people participated in “Thumb Wars,” and over 127,000 pairs of socks were given away. The success of the Thumb Wars campaign is largely due to the simplicity of the giveaway. “It makes the story clear, simple and impactful,” says Hirabayashi. “Make sure you’re offering something of clear value to your target market.”

Umbrellas Might Just Be The Right Promo Item

A&A Specialty had one of it's corporate clients have their yearly agent's conference in Seattle, WA and asked what might be a good item for their overseas and local agents.  We suggested, well it is Seattle known for it's rain and guess what they'll continue to use a good umbrella when they leave the conference.  It rained.  Good timing and good choice.








Umbrellas Reign at Cannes Film Festival
 The stars were out, despite a torrential downpour, at the 2013 Cannes Film Festival. The Great Gatsby opened the festival, and all eyes were on Leonardo Di Caprio, Carey Mulligan and the rest of the cast as they navigated the rain-soaked red carpet in tuxedos and evening gowns. But as luck would have it, the real stars of the evening proved to be the logoed umbrellas that each of the cast members carried to protect their designer clothing.
             
The humble umbrella typically is a low-profile accessory. But at Cannes, it took center stage, appearing in every picture the paparazzi took of Hollywood’s most glamorous and beautiful matinee idols. The Great Gatsby umbrellas carried by the film’s stars were provided by an international promotional products distributor, who works with communication agencies all over the world. Typically the agency orders promotional products as part of a full marketing package for the movie companies.

Though umbrellas typically don’t play a leading role in a brand’s marketing budget, all bets were off when the Gatsby umbrellas ended up in the hands of the film’s leading man.

“When someone like Leonardo Di Caprio touches a promotional product, it turns into gold at once because the item will be seen on TV and in many magazines,” a distributor spokesperson said. And indeed, nearly every photo of every star that walked the red carpet at Cannes features celebrities carrying large black umbrellas with their branded logo prominently displayed.

As for the umbrellas, one word of caution: Carey Mulligan reportedly got hit on the head by one of the umbrellas as she got out of her car – although that also got press coverage and was recorded by TV cameras, garnering additional attention for the umbrellas.