• by Joe Mandese  @mp_joemandese, June 8, 2022

At a time when the ad industry is looking for new options for offsetting the climate crisis, at least one advertiser utilizing an old school approach: recycling. Not it's products or services, but the ads it uses to promote them, including billboards.

HiRoad, an alternative car insurance brand that rewards its customers for doing the right thing -- normally in the form of lower premiums for good-driving behavior -- is turning the vinyl from static out-of-home billboards it uses to advertise into duffle bags given as premiums to incentivize customers and employees.

"We chose to work with Clear Channel to prevent the billboard vinyl from going to waste," the company says in a statement announcing the program, adding, "Doing something sustainable felt like a good ripple to make. So we sought a solution for turning the material into something useful and durable. We partnered with Rareform to upcycle the billboard vinyl and craft one-of-a-kind duffle bags to share with our employees and a group of Arizona early adopters who use HiRoad for their car insurance."