Sustainability Initiatives are Growing at Creative Automation
During the month of June, Hillside, Illinois-based Creative Automation—a leader in direct mail printing and database management services—conducted a reforestation program in partnership with American Forests, which resulted in the planting of 4,000 trees. The program applied to all orders placed with the graphics printing division, and for every $5,000 print production order, 25 trees were planted in the customer’s name.
“The trees are being planted through our partner, American Forests, ... as part of the American Forests California Wildfire ReLeaf effort in the Tahoe National Forest,” said Michael Turano, executive vice president of manufacturing and production. The types of trees [include] Ponderosa Pine, Jack Pine, Sugar Pine, Douglas-fir and Incense-Cedar. “There is such a strong industry focus on going green and we are doing our part as a printer to be more environmentally conscious,” he continued, “but this program gave us an even greater opportunity to give back and renew some of the resources that we are consuming.”
The program was marketed through advertisements in trade publications, banner ads in e-newsletters, press releases, a direct mail campaign targeting several hundred clients, multiple e-mail blasts and handouts at trade shows. “We got a registered trademark for the program name, ‘Reforestation with Creative Automation,’ and also had an icon [for the program] on our webpage that linked to a document with the details,” Turano explained.
Those who qualified for the program will receive a certificate of appreciation featuring the number of trees planted in the company’s honor.
“We never wanted to call the program a ‘promotion’ because our focus wasn’t only on increasing sales. With the industry buzzing about going green, we thought this would be a great way to make a difference and to get our clients involved,” he added. “That being said, June did end up being one of our best months of 2008 so far.”
Due to the favorable response, the company is looking forward to hosting a reforestation program in the near future.
The mission at American Forests (www.americanforests.org) is to grow a healthier world with trees. Its community-based initiatives help people plan and implement local actions that restore and maintain healthy ecosystems and communities. The organization’s work encompasses tree planting, urban forestry, environmental education and community-based forestry.
For more information, visit www.cauto.com or call (800) 773-1588.
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