by By Elena Shintani
Over 33% of the United States population has been vaccinated for COVID-19. With the shot becoming more widely available to Americans, companies have begun to use this opportunity as a new way to market their business. Across the country businesses are giving discounts, freebies, and other incentives to customers in order to increase interest in getting vaccinated while increasing their sales numbers. Here are some of the brands using vaccines to their advantage.
One of the most well-known companies participating in this trend is the glazed donut giant, Krispy Kreme. If you go to one of its 1,005 locations with an official COVID-19 vaccination card, you can get a free glazed donut every day until December 31, 2021. This is one of many “free donut” promotions that Krispy Kreme holds which insinuates they must not be expecting a huge financial loss from this event.
- Staples and Office Depot
Office supply stores Staples and Office Depot are offering free lamination of all completed COVID-19 vaccination cards. This offer has no set end date, and the CDC says it is acceptable to laminate your COVID vaccine cards for protection purposes. Despite this, you may need to get a new one if you will be getting any kind of booster shots within the next few years. This promotion may also help these retailers get more customers in the door after having to shut down in-person shopping during the pandemic.
- Budweiser
Classic American Beer company Budweiser is offering compensation for a free beer at ABeerOnBud.com. If you have been fully vaccinated (and apply before May 16, 2021) Budweiser will put cash on your mycooler.com account. This is a great way to get people to buy more of their product, as many consumers don’t just buy a single beer.
- Other Small Businesses
Many local businesses are also using this technique to encourage residents to get their vaccines. In New Jersey if someone is fully vaccinated, and over the age of 21, they can get a free beer at one of many local breweries in the area. D.C. Marijuana Justice, a Washington D.C. cannabis reform group, also recently announced its “Joints for Jabs” campaign. On April 20, 2021, over 4,000 Washington D.C. residents, all over the age of 21, proved they were vaccinated and received a free joint from the advocacy group.
There are also many other small businesses doing discounts and special offers related to getting vaccinated. This is a great way to promote public health and also get some more business after being in a pandemic for over a year.
This marketing tactic is a new and interesting way to get people talking about your business. Many restaurants, bars, malls, and other retailers have struggled to survive the last year due to the pandemic. Encouraging people to get vaccinated helps encourage a decline in COVID-19 cases, and restrictions. Businesses would benefit from more people being able to socialize and participate in pre-COVID activities. If you are looking for a way to promote the health of your community and help stop the spread, look into doing a vaccine promotion.
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Hi Elena! I really enjoyed reading your blog. I think it is really awesome that New Jersey partnered with breweries to help encourage their residents to get the vaccine. Hopefully more states and places start giving incentives to getting the vaccine.
I’ve really enjoyed seeing these vaccine promotions campaigns from companies. A related example this article reminded me of was Lyft and Uber pledging free or discounted rides to vaccination centers to encourage people to get vaccinated. Another interesting thing I’ve seen happening is employers giving incentives to their employees to get the vaccine like cash, paid leave, or vacation time for salary workers. It’s definitely good to see companies proactively encouraging the health of the community like you stated. Great post!
Wow! I have actually learned a few new things. I just got fully vaccinated today and will defiantly be visiting Krispy Kreme for my free donut. I believe these are brilliant ways for brands to get more involved with the effort for more people to get vaccinated. I hope to see more of these promotions, promoting more individuals to be safe. Thank you so much for sharing!
I loved your post! This is something new that no brand has every really had to think about. It’s crazy to think that businesses are promoting deals based on a vaccine (I think it’s great). I do hope more and more places around the world start to do this.
I thought this post was great! I wrote my post on CSR and I think this post fits into that. This past year has been new territory for corporation trying to lend a helping hand. I think businesses promoting their products with the COVID-19 vaccine is a great way to help while also promoting their products or services. I also think you incorporated great examples.
I thought this post was great! I wrote my post on CSR and I think this post fits into that. This past year has been new territory for corporations trying to lend a helping hand. I think businesses promoting their products with the COVID-19 vaccine is a great way to help while also promoting their products or services. I also think you incorporated great examples.
I thought this article was super interesting. Many of these companies also will be viewed in a better light for aligning with encouraging vaccination.
Like another blog I read, incentives are a great way to promote the vaccine. It’s very interesting how companies go about encouraging Americans to get vaccinated. This is the company’s way of taking a stance on COVID and the vaccine.
This is a cool post! It’s great that so many companies are encouraging people to get vaccinated. Companies have such a huge influence over people and should be using their abilities to promote public health. Everyone loves promotions or free things, so that’s a great way for a companies name to circle along with the connection to the vaccine.
Really interesting read! I think it’s awesome to see how brands have now become so involved in promoting a healthier world especially since the start of the pandemic. These large corporations certainly have the means and influence to encourage people to get vaccinated so I love that more and more brands are following suit. Thank you for this post!