On a Roll!

At the three-year mark, we have just conducted four industry webinars to report on the progress of the Paper & Packaging – How Life Unfolds® campaign to over 300 people. I am pleased to report that our data suggests we are off to a good start and the future looks even more promising.

According to Cornell economist Harry Kaiser, PhD, the marketing campaign has contributed close to 500,000 short tons a year to paper-based packaging consumption from 2015 to 2017. A consumption ROI has not been recorded for paper thus far; however, we are seeing some of the strongest attitudinal metrics on paper to date, leading us to believe it’s just going to take more time to impact this structural shift in how people are using paper.

Despite this news, we have high hopes for the future of paper and paper-based packaging.

First, we are in a period of economic growth which most economists believe will continue into the 2020s. This is optimally impacting consumer purchasing behavior, driving the need for more of our products. Second, our statistically significant, positive-trending consumer attitudinal data suggests we have continued to deepen consumers’ appreciation for paper and paper-based packaging since the start of the campaign. We believe these leading indicators of positive preference trends will translate to increased consumption over time.

View the 2017 Annual Report here! Also, our refined advertising strategy which introduced our new campaign and characters effectively communicates both product benefits and sustainability messaging. After seeing the advertising, our audience feels more positive than ever about ordering items shipped in corrugated cardboard boxes, purchasing products in paper-based packaging and printing documents. I am encouraged by the two primary messages being communicated by the campaign: the essential nature of paper-based products in consumers’ lives and paper-based products as a smarter environmental choice.

To top it all off, partnering with a new media agency allowed us to extend the impact of our media budget by refining our audience targeting, expanding our digital presence, doubling the number of magazines where our ads appear and buying TV more efficiently. Our emphasis on cost-effective targeting increased our campaign delivery by 30 percent under the same budget.

Lastly, these are tough times for competing materials. Thanks to years of investing in sustainable practices, paper and paper-based packaging have considerably higher favorability over other packaging materials.

As we turn the page and enter year four, we are thrilled that the Paper & Packaging – How Life Unfolds® campaign is one of the many contributing factors helping success in the marketplace for paper and packaging.

Click here for a few words from our Board of Directors about the campaign's progress.