I'll begin this column with a story about my 8-year-old retriever/corgi/mixed rescue dog that has been a member of my family for six years. I love her (even though she sheds all over the house) and I consider her feelings when I come home exhausted from work and a long walk with the dog is very low on my to-do list. Yes, I feel bad that she sits around the house all day, goes out to do her business, and then spends the evening as a couch dog.
Some months ago, I started bringing her to a doggie day care several times a week so she could socialize, play, and have dogs and people pay attention to her for 10 hours. Those days, I no longer felt remiss at not doing the long walk when she's had a full day of play and flops on the floor because she's so tired.
After a while, however, even two days a week of this nicety starts to add up. And then there are the visits to family and the occasional vacation when she needs to be boarded. Yikes, it’s like paying for childcare again! (I remember dancing around the house shouting, "I got a raise!" when my kids entered public school and I no longer had to pay for childcare.)
I had only glanced at the shelves in the doggie day care reception area that held maybe a half-dozen items for sale. And then the sign went up that one could pay to have one’s dog bathed while at doggie day care or boarding.
That's when the eureka moment struck. I had, in the past, received some terrific round, logoed dog brushes from Evans where the bristles disappeared with a single twist. I loved that brush, even though I couldn't sell a single one of them to my targeted audience. I always had one in my handbag.
Perhaps, I thought, I could put together an entire package of doggie products and other promotional items that I could 'sell' to my doggie day care at retail price (no discounts here) and receive in return, not money, but credit towards my dog’s day care. How awesome would that be!
So yes, I was going to barter. I recall several years ago that bartering for all sorts of services was a big industry, but I had not kept up to date on it, and I really do not know how prevalent it is in the promotional products industry. Is the “B” word even used in distributor discussions? Does it "fly under the radar?"
Granted, you don't make any actual money from this type of transaction, but in this case it will save me money. And add to my promotional products gross dollars sold. I guess I view it similar to a sponsorship, where a distributor provides a certain amount of product for the opportunity to advertise/market his company to those special audiences.
So how is my doggie day care promotional product program going? Unfortunately, the owner had just attended a conference where she purchased all sorts of stuff, including the green polo shirts that the staff wears. Those eureka moments don't always come with the best timing.
But, she knows what I can do for her (tote bags with her logo on it, luggage tags with each dog's photo inserted, women's logoed tops, all sorts of doggie paraphernalia, the list goes on), and she doesn't have to spend a cent! We are currently looking at removable bumper stickers with her logo and information on it.
So where else do I spend money on a regular basis? She doesn’t know it yet, but my hairstylist is next.
Annette Kurman, an award-winning writer, holds bachelor degrees in journalism and nursing, an MBA, and Accreditation in Public Relations. She has been a newspaper reporter, director of public relations at several non-profits, a senior living administrator, and is a registered nurse. She recently joined Allstates Business Solutions and is learning - and living - the life of a distributor. She can be reached at akurman@allstatesbs.com.