Diving Into the ASI/PPAI Carbon Impact Study & What Comes Next
Andrew Kelly of Overture Promotions and Laura Smith of Storm Creek share their reactions to the study, which measures promo’s carbon impact against other advertising mediums. Here, they discuss what the industry must do to keep the positive momentum going.
In February, ASI and PPAI published the results of a third-party study they commissioned along with European promo partners. Climate platform 51toCarbonZero compared promotional products against five other advertising channels, finding that promotional products deliver strong brand recall with comparatively low carbon emissions, including a carbon impact per memorized impression that’s eight times smaller than digital advertising.
It was welcome news to industry sustainability leaders, but they caution that the study, while promising, isn’t the finish line when it comes to sustainable promo; instead, it’s a starting point for more data gathering, deeper conversations and decisive action.
In this episode of Promo Insiders, Counselor’s Theresa Hegel spoke with Laura Smith, who oversees sustainability and compliance at supplier Storm Creek (asi/89879), and Andrew Kelly, ESG compliance manager at Counselor Top 40 distributor Overture Promotions (asi/288473), to get their insights on the study and to consider the industry’s next steps toward sustainability. One thing that’s clear? Whatever happens next, collaboration will be essential to making a difference.
“Sustainability is one of those areas where no single company or association can move the needle alone,” Smith says. “Shared data, shared language and shared standards are the only way we’re going to get better carbon tracking, better traceability and better end-of-life solutions.”
Key Takeaways
• Promo products have significantly lower carbon impact per impression than most advertising channels, about eight times lower than digital, according to a third-party study conducted by 51toClimateZero and commissioned by ASI, PPAI and European promo partners.
• Longevity and repeated use are the biggest drivers of promo’s sustainability advantage.
• Consumer behavior and design quality matter – items must be desirable and retained to realize environmental benefits.
• The carbon impact study is directional, not definitive. Next steps should be gathering and analyzing more granular product-level data, sustainability leaders say.
• Sustainability in promo extends beyond carbon impact to include end-of-life, sourcing and supply chain impacts.
• Industry-wide collaboration is essential to improve data quality, standards and outcomes.
• The study should be treated as momentum for action, not proof that sustainability challenges are solved in the promo industry.