Last night (28^th March 2023) at the House of Commons, the BPMA hosted their first in person debate as part of The Debating Group, to represent the promotional merchandise industry. The debate challenged end user speakers to a head-to-head on the subject of the effective relationship with promotional merchandise.

The motion

The motion “Promotional merchandise is the medium which forges the most effective and long-term emotional relationship with its audience” was proposed by the BPMA’s CEO Carey Trevill, supported by Ollie Gilmore, Group Planning Director at advertising agency, VCCP. Opposing the motion was lead by Tony Spong, Lead Consultant for Brand Strategy at expert marketing consultancy, AAR and Alana Ballantyne, Planning Director, also from VCCP. Chaired by Baroness Amanda Sater, herself a former marketer, the debate provided lively discussion and reportedly the longest question and answer session the debate has ever had.

 

The BPMA motion argued that effective communication must connect emotionally with the audience. Presenting the belief that promotional merchandise is the medium which can deliver in a long lasting, effective and impactful way, Trevill and Gilmore presented a multifaceted argument which helped the listening audience understand the place promotional merchandise holds for consumers. Spong and Ballantyne in response, presented an excellent case to state it was a mix of channels and mediums which all help to deliver effective outcomes.

Tough opponents in the debate, the opposition were quick to unpick the arguments presented and whilst the vote was close run, questions from the floor which challenged on every aspect from sustainability to relevance to getting in the room at the start of the brief, proved in the end to sway the vote in the BPMA’s favour. A pre debate vote showed several the audience had swapped sides to vote in favour of the motion despite the mix of end users and promotional experts, the shift left the BPMA with a resounding success.

Discussion was continued after the debate in one of Westminster’s famous politico pubs, The Red Lion and several discussion points will be continued after this debate. The BPMA would like to thank everyone who attended the debate yesterday as the support for the industry and new connections made will help raise the profile of merchandise.

The Debating Group

Under formal debating rules, this group debates contentious political issues which surround marketing and whilst this debate had less political challenge, the representation of industry in this political setting brought the challenges faced by our sector into the spotlight.

The Debating Group boasts trade association members from across the spectrum and include the Chartered Institute of Marketing, Advertising Association, IPIA, Data & Marketing Association, Market Research Society. The BPMA joined a few years ago and hosted one of the first virtual events in 2020, also winning that debate, helping further the profile of the industry with end user audiences.

 

Published on: March 29th, 2023