How has the “inactivity pandemic” altered the sports market for awards retailers?

Over the years, we have all heard about the negative impact inactivity has on our kids as well as on adults. There are two extremes in play here. On one end, kids are oriented to online activities like computer games, listening to music, and other long periods of inactivity – often, they do not participate in sports nor visit the playground or even run around outside; but on the other end, parents are pushing kids to participate in more than one sport at a time, and four to six competitive team sports a year. In response to both of these factors, we have seen new activities and sports become popular, giving both kids and adults more choice in ways to get exercise and perhaps even compete, which has meant a widening of the customer base for kids’ sports items, if not perhaps an increase in total volume for awards retailers.

Technology is now playing a role in making exercise fun and competitive. Spinning classes, for example, have become popular as technology has allowed us to participate in group spinning whether in the same room or online.

In terms of the more traditional activities that are competitive, trophy shops are getting new opportunities to help recognize participation and achievement. A few examples of sports that have expanded are martial arts, dance, cheer, and the explosion of soccer in the U.S. I engrave more perpetual plates than ever for those that achieve various Krav Maga levels in martial arts.

Industry suppliers have expanded their trophy offerings to include many more sports and activities over the last decade.

Given this information, it’s important that awards shops ramp up their marketing to these customers. Marketing to organizations and businesses offering new sports and activities that may use trophy or plaques for participation or achievement awards can be efficiently marketed by using post cards designed for this particular purpose. It is cost effective to have a general-purpose post card made up for sports trophies or kids activities. Post cards are less expensive to mail and are most often seen or read. Post cards can be mailed a few at a time or you can create a large mailing campaign based on the time and funds you have available.

-Bob Hagel, Eagle’s Mark