As a design + visual communications firm that still does quite a bit of print work, we tend to be very strategic in crafting direct mail strategies for our clients. We want to first ensure that the purpose of the piece will be accomplished by our creative work, meaning that our advertising objective is met and the consumer is motivated to act. We also want to be sure to avoid creating wasteful junk mail, because as you know, we believe in integrating sustainable choices into marketing programs.

That’s why a recent mailing I received from the Internal Revenue Service kind of threw me for a loop. Now I love getting mail from the IRS as much as the next guy, but I recently received a letter that had some good news. It was in my mailbox when I returned home on 6.15 and if I may paraphrase said something to the effect of:

Hi. You are going to be getting an economic stimulus payment of $x. You can expect it to arrive in your mailbox by 6.20. If you have any questions, give us a holler. Ok, bye.

Now, I’m not saying there wasn’t a reason for this mailer. But was there? I seriously could have waited another five days without hearing from the IRS, especially since I had been waiting since early May-ish for the check to arrive. Five more days wouldn’t have upset me one bit.

To add insult to injury, 6.20 came and went and still no stimulus check! Had I not received the letter in the first place I wouldn’t have anticipated it to come then - go figure! So it makes me wonder even more whether or not this was a smart direct mail strategy on the part of the US Government.

According to sources, as many as 116,000,000 checks will be mailed out - which means that it’s possible that 116,000,000 extra pieces of mail will have been sent out letting folks know their check is a few days away. I wonder how many trees could have been saved? And fuel in mail trucks? And taxpayer dollars?

Just food for thought…But I’d love to hear what you all think. I’m guessing that if there’s any sort of explanation, it’s probably that there’s a law somewhere that says the Federal Government has to notify folks that a refund is coming their way.

If you’d like to read more about junk mail and the fight to rid the world of it - go here: http://www.donotmail.org.

Garret Ohm
http://www.orange-element.com

I’ve been really busy lately developing a proposal for some work for a really great higher learning institution, but I’m happy (relieved) to say that I’m finally finished. I’m really happy with the way it turned out and pumped about our chances. I hope to have more news on this in the next month or so…

In the past couple of days I have seen a couple really great links that I wanted to share. Both are related to some really strong, marketable business concepts. The first is a company called Rmbrme. You can visit their site HERE, but essentially it’s a text messaging service that is aiming to replace the modern business card. To use Rmbrme you sign up for an account and link your social media sites to your account. That way, when you meet someone at an event, you can simply ask for their email address, which you then text to Rmbrme. The person whom you’ve just met then gets an email from Rmbrme with links to all your social networking sites. I’m probably hacking the description so go to their site to learn more, or read an interview with Gabe Zichermann at Sustainable Life Media HERE.

I also heard a story about a new business out of Ireland that’s headed to Maryland that I wanted to pass along. Wavebob (what an amazing name) has picked Annapolis for its new US headquarters, which is pretty exciting. Wavebob has a technology that harnesses the energy generated by waves and turns it into usable power. What a great idea - just like Ze-Gen, which I wrote about this morning, Wavebob turns something that is wasted into something that is usable. We love that kind of stuff. Welcome to Maryland, Wavebob. We’ve been waiting for you.

Garret Ohm
http://www.orange-element.com/

Aaron passed me a link this morning that got me pretty excited. It’s about a technology that I didn’t really know much about, but that looks really promising for generating energy in an efficient, clean way using municipal solid waste (garbage) and construction and development waste.

It seems our friend and former client Jason Hardebeck, has recently been appointed Director of Market Development for a company called Ze-Gen, that is the leader in bringing this technology mainstream.

Here’s a cool clip from their recent stint on the hit show Invention Nation on the Discovery Channel that helps shed some light on what these folks are bringing to the table:

Nice job, Jason. Good luck spreading the word about this technology - it looks very promising!

Garret Ohm
http://www.orange-element.com/

I wanted to pass along a new site that a friend from the CSBA passed along to me recently dealing with sustainable business. The site/movement is called GOforChange and you can see it here:

http://www.GOforChange.com.

It is essentially a website that presents stories of positive change in the Baltimore region. It includes articles, a social network, and discussion forums. They are also developing a marketplace to connect site visitors directly to local products and services.

Also check out the profile for Typecast Press. Their entry includes a picture that has the Orange Element coasters that we developed for our 5th Anniversary Party and that they produced for us!

Garret Ohm
http://www.orange-element.com

Yesterday, in true EJ fashion, she sent an email to the entire Orange Element staff that asked simply “Who left the elephant poo on my desk? Cool!” For a while I was really confused. Why would elephant poo be on her desk, much less in our office? And why would she think that was cool?

After a while my curiosity got the best of me and I had to go ask her what it was all about. It turns out, Andy Bonner had left a paper sample on her desk that was literally made from elephant dung. I’m not kidding and it’s not what you think. It actually looks like real paper - it’s light in color and it DOESN’T SMELL. I swear, I brought it up to my nose and…nothing.

I did a little more research and came up with this site: www.elephantdungpaper.com

We love sustainable products like this and we hope it becomes mainstream. What a great way to use a waste product for something good–after all, that’s what recycling is all about. And the best part is that every time you use this paper, it helps to save the elephants. Good stuff. I can’t wait to see the look on our clients’ faces when we recommend printing their next marketing piece on elephant poo.

Garret Ohm
http://www.orange-element.com

Our good friend Rachael from Tilt sent me this link about how the design community in Baltimore and beyond can band together to support positive global climate change through sustainable design.

Pretty good stuff, so check it out and take the pledge: http://www.designcanchange.org/

Garret Ohm
http://www.orange-element.com