Monday 21 December 2009

It’s a time for giving....


Christmas is the most thoughtful time of the year, and if you’re lucky you’ll be surrounded by your loved ones, enjoying a mince pie and some mulled wine. So why is it that year after year Christmas becomes an increasingly thoughtless affair?

Just like Valentines Day we’ve been swept away into believing it’s necessary to buy the commercial tat and cringeful cards that spill out of shop window displays. The pressure to conform means that any festive holiday is more about the price tag and less about a certain thing called love. We all love uniquely, so why do we give so commercially?

A not-for-profit group called Present Sense was set up last year by a group of women fed up with the commercial pressures that Christmas now brings. The group encourages adults and children to think more carefully about how to give presents in a sustainable way. Present Sense, which now has followers from 46 countries holds workshops to educate people in the art of sustainable creativity, encouraging us to think differently about ‘used’ presents and seeing the thought and love that goes into a present instead of the price tag.

At Re-Sourceful we’re delighted to hear about groups like Present Sense who really embrace the creativity and thoughtfulness of true giving. We believe that this shouldn’t just apply to Christmas gifts but any type of giving, and this includes all year round promotional gifting. Re-Sourceful encourages and assists companies in operating this way, giving them a chance to say much more about themselves as on organisation.

From everyone at Re-Sourceful we wish you a very merry Christmas and look forward to an eco-friendly 2010!!

Friday 27 November 2009

The Better Way to Spend a Penny


Every week seems to have a theme these days, be it National Curry Week, National Story Telling Week or National Eating Out Week, yet one of the most important has just passed largely unnoticed.


National Ethical Investment Week took place between the 8-14th November and aimed to educate people about the green and ethical options available to them and illustrate how we can still get a good return on our investments whilst having a positive impact on our environment and society.

The week is coordinated by UKSIF, the sustainable investment and finance association, who promote responsible investment and seek to ensure that individuals can reflect their values and beliefs in their investments.

With confidence and faith in our financial institutions at an all time low, considering how your money is put to use is all the more important. Rather than letting your savings and investments sit idly in funds that are supporting who knows what, why not look into the vast array of ethical investments available that will still give you a good return and also do some good for others. The question is, ‘why wouldn’t you’?

Re-Sourceful have been fortunate enough to work with two leading financial organisations in ethical investments, Triodos Bank and The Co-operative. We have helped them to promote their message with our ethical products rather than using plastic promotional tat – why wouldn’t you?

To find out more about National Ethical Investment Week check out the website at http://www.neiw.org/

Thursday 12 November 2009

Happy Birthday!!!


Happy Birthday!!!


We’re very happy to say Re-Sourceful is two whole years old this month.


Started back in 2007, with a range of 30 products, Re-Sourceful has grown significantly and can now boast over 150 beautiful, durable and useful promotional gifts.

Having worked for ten years in the industry, we knew how important it is to connect people with brands but believed there was a better way to do it than simply with throwaway tat.

After a lot of discussion, debate and deliberation we came up with the idea of a catalogue of positive promotional ideas, and Re-Sourceful was born.


The main aim of Re-Sourceful is to provide positive promotional ideas that allow business to say more about themselves and that have a positive impact on lives at home and abroad.


We’ve been busy these past two years and have helped a wide variety of businesses celebrate their ethical credentials and approach. From Sun Microsystems to UK Film Council to Manchester University to Triodos Bank – we’ve helped all manner of companies communicate their commitment to the planet.


Re-Use
Waste not want not. It’s a great mantra. It’s not just the environmental benefit of this philosophy that gets us excited though. We love the creative challenge of coming up with new ideas for reusing things.


For example – our recycled courier bags. Made by re-using advertising banners, every stylish bag is a unique statement that stops unnecessary waste going to landfill. http://www.re-sourceful.co.uk/BAUMM+bag

Re-Cycle
Recycling just one plastic bottle saves enough energy to power a 60W light bulb for six hours. It’s amazing how much energy and resources can be saved through recycling. Products made from post-consumer waste help to keep rubbish out of landfill in the UK and also contribute less to the depletion of the world’s non-renewable resources. Awesome.

Such as our Eco USB Wristband – made from 100% recycled plastic and aluminium. A pretty nifty way to carry around all those important files! http://www.re-sourceful.co.uk/Eco+USB+Wristband


Re-Think
It’s ideas that we love, and it’s ideas that can change the world. We think that applying a bit of lateral thinking to a problem can result in some of the greatest ideas.


If you’ve got any eco promotional ideas or have a problem that needs some re-thinking, let us know.
http://www.re-sourceful.co.uk/

Tuesday 20 October 2009

Better put a pocket or two

What better way to kick-start the new season than with a heart-warming exercise in social responsibility, brought to you courtesy of broadband provider TalkTalk who decided to literally give back to the world in an ingenious way.

The company hired a team of former pick-pockets who for the whole of August have been roaming the top tourist spots of London and expertly putting money into the pockets and open handbags of an unsuspecting public.

The initiative, whereby notes of £5 to £20 are ‘put-pocketed’, is designed simply to ‘brighten up people’s lives during the credit crunch’.

If stand-out comes from being out-standing (and we think it does), TalkTalk’s latest campaign is a huge success, as you only have to Google ‘talktalk’ and ‘putpocket’ to see the masses of publicity they have received all over the world.

We at Re-Sourceful like to spend our days coming up with innovative ideas that raise the profile of your brand whilst supporting charities and worthwhile causes and not taking anything from the planet. So if you're looking for an idea that gives back as well as putting your brand on the map, why not give us a call.

www.re-sourceful.co.uk

Friday 5 June 2009

Reclaim your lunch hour


In honour of the beautiful weather that we’re enjoying in the UK at the moment, the Re-Everything team today made a concerted effort to close our laptops and leave behind our blackberries to sit in the park and enjoy an hour of well-deserved sunshine.

With only 16% of employees taking a ‘proper’ lunch break (and by that we mean about an hour away from your desk at least three times every week), and the average break lasting no more than 27 minutes, the glorious sunshine is the perfect opportunity to grab your workmates and get outside.

It's really important to take breaks with colleagues (you’re allowed to ban work talk!) - sitting in the park or outside a pub, going out to buy sandwiches - because good social relationships lead to better working relationships.

Food is also a fantastic excuse to get to know people too. Perhaps other people in your office are just waiting for someone to be the first to take the lead and begin a Friday lunch club?! Don’t be shy!

If you’re stuck for inspiration, have a look at http://www.thebiglunch.com/. The Big Lunch is the baby of Tim Smit of the Eden Project and his idea is that on Sunday 19th July the people of Britain stop what they're doing and sit down to have lunch together.

You can organise a party for your street, and ask everyone to bring something with them, whether that be food, music, entertainment, or even plants they’ve grown in their garden. Register your lunch at http://www.thebiglunch.com/, and that way Sue and Bob from number 32 will know what you’re planning and can offer to bring one of Sue’s fruit cakes.

We think its an absolutely brilliant way to get to make new friends and have a bit of a giggle, so we’re going to throw a Big Lunch here for our neighbours.

To find out more and organise your own Big Lunch, go to http://www.thebiglunch.com/. But don’t let it stop there, make lunchtimes a habit and enjoy them. They’re your time so don’t waste it!

We also think it’s a great bit of joined up, joined in thinking on behalf of the brands that are involved. The Big Lunch is sponsored by Mastercard (click here to see their lovely advertising on YouTube) and supported by EDF Energy, Royal Mail and The Post Office.

If you have, or know of, a brand that is looking for a clever piece of integrated thinking to link their CSR strategy to their brand values and do great things for their reputation, email us at ideas@re-everything.com