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Rubber Eraser Day - yes really!

Helen • April 2, 2019

National Awareness Days

Glancing through the upcoming National Awareness Days calendar for April, I was amazed and quite frankly baffled to discover that Monday 15th April is #RubberEraserDay

I was intrigued enough to investigate this further to find out the origins and who recognises this day.
Did you know?

  • Joesph Priestly founded a vegetable gum to remove pencil marks on 15th April 1770 he named the substance ‘rubber’
  • The same year (1770) English Engineer Edward Nairne developed the first marketed rubber eraser
  • In 1839 Charles Goodyear discovered vulcanization (a method that would cure rubber and make it a durable material), this became the standard of rubber erasers
  • In 1858 Hyman Lipman patented the pencil with an eraser at the end
  • Prior to the rubber eraser being created wax or bread were used to remove lead or charcoal marks from paper, and sandstone or pumice were used to remove marks from parchment or papyrus documents.
So, who would ‘mark’ (sorry!) this special day?

  • Manufacturers of rubber erasers – they continue to be a staple in our pencil cases*, and not just for school children, so there are so many options to cater for all tastes or function with different designs and shapes.
  • Stationers and retailers – promoting rubber erasers is unlikely to be high on the list of products to market given the low average individual retail price. However, with online tools and social media channels easy to use and at little cost to put together, it can be a fun and timely piece of marketing.
  • Technology equivalents – during my research, I spotted that technology company Logitech mark #RubberEaraserDay with a simple graphic celebrating the original Control + Z solution. Perfect and #goodmarketing

.. and from a marketer’s point of view, it’s worth noting that marketing activities don’t have to be created in stone but can be erased and modified. If the campaign isn’t delivering the results you need, then use the metaphorical rubber eraser to adjust and continue to review and tweak to ensure the optimum success.

For help with reviewing marketing campaigns against performance goals and advising on adjustments, contact Helen at Marketing Doris on 0790 3727750

*All this talk of Rubber Erasers in our pencil cases, has prompted me to properly look at mine and I’ve realised that the one I carry around is likely to be the one I’ve had since my school / college days – great value – I’m not surprised they need their own awareness day!

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