I could use some thoughts on this one

[Odell]

As some of you may know I own a company that repairs respiratory equipment. Some of the equipment we repair are oxygen concentrators, cpap and bipap machines, portable ventilators, and a plethora of other medical equipment mostly respiratory related, some not.

Occasionally, I am asked about the PV I use as I am traversing the shop floor. Being an ex smoker, and having used a PV for over a year now, I would like to introduce this to all of the employees at our company.

The question I have is "What would be the best way to accomplish this and at the same time try to get a maximum success rate of conversion from analogs?" We employ roughly 35 people not all of whom are smokers, but there is a high enough percentage that I feel it would be a worthwhile endeavor. I just don't want to come across as proselytizing or have our people feel any pressure. At the same time I would really like to have all our employees stop analog use.

We wouldn't have a problem providing kits for our people. I'm more looking at suggestions for a really good kit and then suggestions on how we could motivate our folks to stay with it. If you think I'm barking up the wrong tree, please say so. I've frightened many trees over the years.

 

[calico21]

Well kudo's to you for wanting to try. As a business owner I would think about liability issues. I think just providing the info to them in a general manner would be best and giving them the info about the forum and give them a limited reimbursement if they would like to try it Say up to $75.00 so they can order what may suit them best. Then there is no pressure from you per say.

 

[JustaGuy]

I ran a small consulting firm before, but only 5 employees, so limited business experience. I would keep it fair to all employees. If you offered some kind of incentive for smokers, something of equal value should be offered to non-smokers.

You're the leader of the company and people seem to like to play follow the leader. One subtle way you can promote PVs is just be seen with it every chance you get, unless there is no vaping on your shop floor. If you have a habit of hanging out with smoking employees, hang out with your PV. Giving smokers a PV set (not in lieu of bonus) at Christmas is also another informal means of encouragement, followed by juice samples the next holiday for those converted? Again, not neglecting others.

It's your company, so you can also set policy, but that is definitely pressure. The important thing is you show you're doing so because you genuinely care about their health, unless you're doing it for insurance savings, which I would explain to them.

 

[Odell]

@Calico
Thanks Calico. I would consult with our attorneys prior to implementing this as the liability issue cannot be overlooked (nor understated for that matter). The physical presentation of the kits to our folks I was thinking might be a more powerful statement to the fact that we as a company are concerned about our peoples health. I have given the forum address to some folks that have asked. My thinking was that a formal program might be a little more proactive. Maybe not. This is still a gleam in my eye so to speak.

@Justaguy
Thank you for your comment. My motivation for this is strictly for their health not insurance. The XMAS thing cold potentially work. BTW, I do vape with my smokers occasionally.

 

[calico21]

A company I worked for at one time gave a one time limit of $500 dollars to pick any stop smoking program we chose, we could try as many as we liked but the company only payed the first $500. With a very nice presentation(brochures) of the main choices out there I don't think you could go wrong(your model,don't know what you're using, a 510 version and an 808 maybe) for them to try at the meeting and help ordering it. Have an official ordering day at the end of the week. Leave it open for them to order later as well so once you get a few more of them hopefully it will spread.

 

[Odell]

A company I worked for at one time gave a one time limit of $500 dollars to pick any stop smoking program we chose, we could try as many as we liked but the company only payed the first $500. With a very nice presentation(brochures) of the main choices out there I don't think you could go wrong(your model,don't know what you're using, a 510 version and an 808 maybe) for them to try at the meeting and help ordering it. Have an official ordering day at the end of the week. Leave it open for them to order later as well so once you get a few more of them hopefully it will spread.

That idea has potential! I carry a Reo Mini at work. Perhaps a Reo, Ego, a couple of others (suggestions are welcome here). BTW Calico what program, if any, did you choose when they offered?

 

[tearose50]

I think it's a great idea ---

The main problem I see is don't promote as a quit smoking device. Vaping is to be promoted as a smoking alternative.

Besides the legal points, no one wants to be told to quit or switch by anyone with authority in their lives! A gift of this new fangled e-cig machine that you tried and liked, has a different feeling. I'm sure you can find the correct vernacular to use with your employees and associates.

Of course, many vapers do "switch" for sure------or even just use when and where they can vape and not smoke.

 

[calico21]

That idea has potential! I carry a Reo Mini at work. Perhaps a Reo, Ego, a couple of others (suggestions are welcome here). BTW Calico what program, if any, did you choose when they offered?

At the time I had already started quitting using chantix(through DH's insurance), it obviously didn't last! If I had known about this at the time I would have seen if they would have allowed it, but me thinks not I would be happy to have a boss like you that is just wanting to share a great find with his/her associates.

 

[madjack]

I think I would be proactive on the deal...let it be known, you would provide starter kits for folks who wished to switch...get some of the free business cards available from this board to hand out...contact some vendors and see what kinda deal you could get...I know Liberty Flights has the Riva501 Lite bundle for 30 bux...see if they would cutcha deal...throw in a bundle of cartos from Crystal Clear Vaping and a couple of bottles of juice and you are around 75bux per and will have provided a kit and a couple of weeks worth of juice for those who are truly interested...I bet you would get more than a few takers and word of mouth would hook most of the rest........................

madjack

 

[Odell]

I think it's a great idea ---

The main problem I see is don't promote as a quit smoking device. Vaping is to be promoted as a smoking alternative.

Thanks. That's what I tell anyone that asks me about my PV.

 

[Odell]

At the time I had already started quitting using chantix(through DH's insurance), it obviously didn't last!

I don't know if it was rougher on me or the poor people that had to put up with me during my Chantix "experiment".

 

[Odell]

I think I would be proactive on the deal...let it be known, you would provide starter kits for folks who wished to switch...get some of the free business cards available from this board to hand out...contact some vendors and see what kinda deal you could get...I know Liberty Flights has the Riva501 Lite bundle for 30 bux...see if they would cutcha deal...throw in a bundle of cartos from Crystal Clear Vaping and a couple of bottles of juice and you are around 75bux per and will have provided a kit and a couple of weeks worth of juice for those who are truly interested...I bet you would get more than a few takers and word of mouth would hook most of the rest........................

madjack

I'm thinking that might work too MJ. There looks to be a recipe here utilizing all of the sage comments you all have offered. Thank you very much.

 

[JustaGuy]

@Justaguy
Thank you for your comment. My motivation for this is strictly for their health not insurance. The XMAS thing cold potentially work. BTW, I do vape with my smokers occasionally.

You're a good man to work for, a leader as I said.

 

[Levitas]

You hiring? I'm looking to grab a couple of tanks and maybe a second ProVari

Really though, I hope it works out for your employees

 

[Odell]

You're a good man to work for, a leader as I said.

That's very kind of you.

Although I do know of a couple of ex employees that would have an issue with that statement.

 

[Odell]

You hiring? I'm looking to grab a couple of tanks and maybe a second ProVari

Really though, I hope it works out for your employees

Glad I wasn't drinking milk when I read this.

 

[erich]

Giving smokers a PV set (not in lieu of bonus) at Christmas is also another informal means of encouragement, followed by juice samples the next holiday for those converted?

Just my $0.02, but I feel like this is a bit of a "gift with a motive". I generally feel like something like this should be given on no particular occasion and when no gift was "already expected". It's be like giving someone a gym membership he didn't ask for, or one of those pretentious "a donation has been made in your name to XYZ" cards. Give me cash and flyer. On the other hand, free stuff on a random Tuesday can't shatter any expectations.

Being seen with it is probably the best first step. Some people are going to simply shun it on principle, but I think vaping is definitely still a case of lack of exposure. Most people simply have no idea about it. I was amazed to find out that this had been around for years... I would have given it a shot long before had I even been aware of its existence.

 

[ensigngreenbean]

Here are a few suggestions / things to consider.

One of course is liability. This is not in my realm of expertise, but there is the potential for a lot of liability. We live in a litigious society, and employees view their employers as having “deep pockets”. It’s a shame, but it’s reality.

Having said that, there might be a few ways to pull this off without incurring a large amount of liability, cost, or resentment from non-smoking employees.

If you are concerned about their health (and offer health insurance), then consider starting a wellness plan. It won’t be able to cover vaping (it’s not recognized by the Department of Health), but it would cover other means to stop smoking. The gist of the program is to motivate people to be more proactive about their health through diet, exercise, not smoking, etc. For motivation, you can pass along any health insurance discounts you receive to them in the form of lower premiums. Also, I think there is a tax credit for some of this (limited to 200.00 per person if I remember right). This would benefit smokers and non-smokers, so everyone wins. Your health insurance agent should be able to tell you all of the details, such as what would work, amount of discounts, costs, taxation impact, etc.

The other way is to promote vaping more discretely. It’s not too uncommon for businesses to offer their employees discounts with established vendors. Pick a few vaping websites and see if you can strike a deal to get a deep discount on starter kits. Maybe throw in a couple of non-vaping vendors so the non-smokers don’t feel left out. I would suggest subsidizing the starter kits directly with the vendor to make them even cheaper, but that would probably fall outside of the rules of de minimis and would have to go on the employee’s w-2 as taxable income.

Lastly, the simplest method might be to just pick out a couple of employees that have shown the biggest interest in vaping and send them a kit. I would suggest doing this anonymously as a personal gift, so no liabilities, tax implications, or hard feelings can come back to you. They may put two and two together, but you can always deny it. If one or two of the employees pick it up, there’s a pretty good chance that it would spread; even without financial incentives.

Sorry about the novel. Sometimes I get going and can’t stop.

 

[JustaGuy]

Just my $0.02, but I feel like this is a bit of a "gift with a motive". I generally feel like something like this should be given on no particular occasion and when no gift was "already expected". It's be like giving someone a gym membership he didn't ask for, or one of those pretentious "a donation has been made in your name to XYZ" cards. Give me cash and flyer. On the other hand, free stuff on a random Tuesday can't shatter any expectations.

Being seen with it is probably the best first step. Some people are going to simply shun it on principle, but I think vaping is definitely still a case of lack of exposure. Most people simply have no idea about it. I was amazed to find out that this had been around for years... I would have given it a shot long before had I even been aware of its existence.

Ok, give it out on random occasions then, Father's Day, Mother's Day, Valentines, Labor Day, employee's birthday, Random Tuesdays, Casual Fridays, as a raffle prize, doesn't matter, just get it in people's hands. I don't think certificates/reimbursements would be as effective. Stores make a tidy profit, hundreds of millions a year, from people who buy each other gift certificates and never cash in. Reimbursements also require the employee to make a commitment and take the first step. Most people like things to stay the same. You can always offer the employees the option of a nicely gift wrapped e-cig kit or box of deluxe cookies of equal value. None in lieu of a Christmas bonus, as I said.

It's a gift, no different than a necktie, watch, an iPhone, laptop, or a dog collar, which could also be attached the ulterior motives of "dress better", "you've been late to work", "you should check in more often", "can you write the proposal at home?", and "don't let your dog run free on the premises" respectively.

 

[bmwjen]

First, I think it's awesome as a business owner that you want to do this! Especially since you are in the respiratory field.

I'll second what Calico said....... I've worked at places that offered healthy benefits........like they pay you an additional $20 in each paycheck if you lose x amount of weight, or are a non-smoker. Right now I work at a place that offers lower insurance premiums to non smokers. ...........smokers pay an additional $25/month on their premiums (insane)

The place I work now also offers free patches, & gum, & one rx of chantix. They do not offer "vape stuff" though. Maybe you could keep a stash of 510 kits in your office & hand them out to people that are interested in trying......hand out the ECF business cards... & DEFINITELY vape with your smokers whenever possible