Promoting the Green

With the popularity of the green movement, as an industry, we should position our products as necessities in customer’s lives, not mere luxuries. Those of us in the industry know in our bones the many economic, environmental, and health benefits plants provide, but it is worth pointing it out to the “plant-blind” public. When the public sees true value in plants, we will see steady demand for our products and services. Plants contribute to living a healthy life in a variety of ways, from providing us with oxygen to helping in the fight against allergies. Ball Horticultural Company and America in Bloom have free bench cards available with messages such as:

• Rooms are cleaner when plants are present (50-60% fewer airborne molds).
• Plants in the office mean fewer sick days (14% reduction in sick days).
• Plants help people focus and concentrate (20% increase in memory retention).

Now is the time to emphasize the value of plants by making strategic marketing investments, both as individual firms and through industry-wide efforts. This marketing message need not require a huge budget. There are many resources for marketing ideas, including these websites among others:

• America in Bloom (www.americainbloom.org) has Community Resources information on the economic and health benefits of plant material.
• The National Gardening Association (www.garden.org) slogan “When you garden, you grow.” The website presents a variety of regional information for home and community gardeners.
• The National Garden Clubs (www.gardenclub.org) message “Growing our World, Greening our Communities” promotes the sharing of garden and plant expertise through the Wisconsin Garden Club Federation (www.wisconsingardenclub.org) and other organizations.
• The Arizona Nursery Association’s “Plant Something” (www.plant-something.org) campaign includes plant perks and benefits.

There are a lot of ways to promote the “Green” of the green industry. One way is to include the “value of plants” message as part of whatever advertising you do. Signs, banners, posters, pamphlets, as well as your employees, should all convey the importance of plants in enhancing quality of life.