a better way to advertise

I do not understand vanity license plates on cars. Why would anyone pay extra money each year just to have some sort of personalized message on their license plate? Plus, it's usually in code, since messages are limited to like 8 characters or something. So, basically, you've just paid money to have a message nobody understands on your car.

I actually have practical knowledge on this subject. When I was in high school my parents owned a tax business. They, in their attempt to constantly advertise their services, decided it would be a good idea to have "superfast" put on the license plate, since the tax service they owned offered a "Superfast refund". Except that they were only able to have "suprfst" on the license plate. Everybody misread the plate to read "superfest" and totally missed the advertisement, so it was a total waste of money for them. Plus, my sister and I (I am a twin...that's a later post) were teen drivers, so we were driving all over town with a license plate that read "suprfst". Maybe it's just me, but doesn't that seem like an open invitation to a police officer to give out tickets? Good thing he probably didn't understand it, either.

I completely understand that business owners want to utilize every form of nontraditional advertising possible to make people aware of their business. Nearly every tangible item of mine is completely decked out in aquaBling regalia, as a means of advertising my product on the cheap. From stickers, to t-shirts, to magnets...it goes on and on. But, I don't have a personalized license plate. I think money is better spent on a car window cling. This way you can advertise for your business, and include your logo and all the letters in your business name, making it easy for the public to understand your message.

Anyway...I am pretty excited, because I am working on new packaging for my single aquaBling, and I think we are close to being done. One thing I have learned about getting into retailers is that your product needs to be easy to place. It's best if you have a stand and already packaged, priced products available at a single price. Retailers don't have the time or energy to spend deciding which stand they want, or which pieces, or how many. Make it easy for them, and they are more likely to buy your stuff.

The decision to change packaging was really bittersweet for me. I sell a product that is designed to reduce waste, and so in my mind, by placing it into packaging that had to be thrown away, I was contributing to landfill waste even further. But, I need packaging...hence my dilemma. The solution: recyclable packaging made from recycled materials. Brilliant.