A Pause to Reflect on Cause Marketing
To Make Good Work Greater, There Needs to Be Collaboration and Sharing
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| Brian Powell | |
Cause marketing spending is projected to reach $1.57 billion this year, according to the IEG Sponsorship Report. And it's more powerful and effective than ever in this economy. According to Performance Research, 41% of U.S. consumers believe companies can best improve brand perceptions by increasing their cause sponsorships -- for the first time surpassing sports and arts/cultural categories as ways to boost consumer opinion.
While philanthropy may be down, consumers often see a cause campaign as a way to break a tie on a choice and enable them to personally contribute at low to no additional cost. With the demand for increased transparency, brands are learning to leverage their efforts in sustainability and support of other social issues as differentiating drivers of favorability and word-of-mouth.
Meanwhile, nonprofits, advocates and social entrepreneurs see other fundraising methods and budgets stagnating, and find the potential increase in donations and awareness by aligning with a corporate brand to be much more critical.
But for all its success, cause marketing is still a relatively new discipline. Ask five people about it, and you're likely to hear five different perspectives covering corporate social responsibility, strategic philanthropy, donations at check-out, nonprofit marketing and limited-time-only transactional programs, among others. Too often, it's pigeonholed into two broad models: short-term promotional partnerships or long-term corporate citizenship.
| ABOUT THE AUTHOR | |
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Brian Powell is a managing director of TracyLocke in Dallas and a passionate believer in cause marketing for making business and social impacts. He writes about cause-related subjects on twitter at @goodconcepts or read his blog at thegoodconcepts.com. |
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Instead, cause marketing should include both -- as well as many other strategies -- in an integrated approach. It needs to craft stories that inspire people to take action, presenting those stories in myriad forms and prompting action in both storefronts and on social fronts.
So the broad definition of cause marketing should be ideas with business and social impact.
Specific interpretations aside, too often nonprofit organizations ask corporations for funds without providing a real partnership. And too often brands ask causes for their logos without providing real programs. Jason Saul of Mission Measurement said it best at the recent Cause Marketing Forum Conference in Chicago: "Cause marketing must shift from fundraising to selling impact."
To make the good work greater, there needs to be more collaboration and sharing -- among like-minded nonprofits and national, regional and local entities; among the for-profit and nonprofit sectors; and among clients on both sides of the profit fence and their outside service providers, including agencies.
Cause marketing, much like digital marketing, will continue to evolve from a specialized discipline to a more integral component of an overall strategy. The qualitative and quantitative results are simply too powerful to ignore. But it will always require the specialized gifts and talents of people driven to do more.
Procter & Gamble Co., at the recent Cause Marketing Forum Conference, shared a quote from its CEO in 1973 that still guides its cause strategy to this day: "Business is only a means to an end, and the end is a constantly improving society." My pithier version: Done right, doing what's right always turns out right.
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Collaboration is important but so too is the need for a trickle-down of partnerships and best practices to nonprofits that deserve and need local cause marketing strategies.
As cause marketing becomes a less specialized strategy so too should it bcome a more practiced one. Elitist practices reserved for the biggest brands--both non- and for-profit--are no way to encourage an industry to grow.
Joe Waters
Selfishgiving.com
Joe, you're dead-on about elitism not growing the industry, but even moreso, it's not going to grow their very own programs and best pactices...
It's like the open code debate in some ways -- sure you can keep the secrets locked up for awhile, but through innovation due to need, others are going to match and surpass your guarded/elitist/proprietary information.
And, since this is info large for-profits and non-profits are using for themselves, it may take the industry longer to grow, but grow it will, while leapfrogging & at the expense of non-sharing contingencies.
Don't get me wrong, maybe it's my background or my DNA, but I am very competitive -- in sales being the top producer often cam at others' expense, but that just is not analogous to cause marketing. Best practices & innovations need to be shared not just for the better chances of success for those participating, but as Joe mentioned, to steward the growth of the industry.
For awhile, most for-profits had blinders -- no make that blind-folds -- on regarding cause marketing. Now, some see clearly, but I'd still say the majority have a murky, gauze covered vision of it... confusing it too often with donating & charity, with no upside for them.
The more for-profits see these cause marketing suites, the more they will feel the tug of the need-to-know what's in it for them... and that's a great thing. Knowledge is power (wow, am I the first to ever say that ;). It is -- and the knowledge of cause marketing gives equal power to non-profits and for-profits.
The key is to fully understand the needs of the company and find the win-win where real benefits can accrue to both partners.
There are many organizations, however, that have a much harder time with cause marketing. Religious based organizations -- even if their work is non-denominational -- will find it hard to find corporate partners. Organizations that work on issues with controversy such as reproductive rights, will also find it difficult.
For the corporation, successful cause marketing means becoming authentic about putting the cause first. This is often hard for people who are focused on brand management or sales leads. We are focused on video and multimedia tools that can help bring the cause to life -- show me the difference you are making and I am more likely to associate your company with the good work.
Thanks Brian for writing this piece and it will be an adventure to be part of the growing influence of cause marketing in the next few years.
Michael Hoffman
See3 Communication
www.see3.net
I for one take heart that in spite of all the pain, consumers tell us in poll after poll that they believe it is important for individuals, companies, government and causes to come together to offer comfort to the afflicted, safeguard our planet's future and set the stage for a better future.
As Brian Powell cogently points out, cause marketing (an umbrella term for many strategies designed to do well by doing good) is not the solution to all the world's problems, but it does offer many win-win-win opportunities.
Doing good in and of itself is no guarantee of success, but numerous case studies and reams of research show it can be an important success factor. A near guarantee of disappointment (in this or any other marketing endeavor) is a failure to engage in serious planning, secure an adequate budget and commit to excellent execution.
The public is hungry for great cause-related programs. Now is a great time for business, nonprofit, agency media and other professionals to rise to the occasion with programs that deliver inspiration, ROI and resources for organizations seeking to make this a better world.
David Hessekiel
Cause Marketing Forum
www.causemarketingforum.com
First a bit of gratitude to Brian, Michael, Joe, David and countless others for promoting cause related marketing in its various forms. Each of us can share many great success of cause related marketing in our personal and professional lives.
I want to echo the call for integration. I speak to agencies, brands, celebrities and nonprofits everyday - and my #1 takeaway over the last 12-18 months is integration. Not just between orgs but WITHIN orgs. Getting buy in from internal groups at large corps and agencies is my largest hurdle. Too often a groovy cause idea is thrown in at the end or included as an afterthought. Strategies succeed - but the cause tactic often languishes.
We see great success when the cause related idea is used as the integrated differentiator in the campaign. Not just because it feels good - but because it works. When we're able to include a cause message at the core of a campaign we see greater uptick in every metric. Targeted and strategic cause campaigns take the sharp edge off of online marketing efforts and drive higher #s, leads, donations etc.
Finally, with the explosion of social media, we're seeing undeniable #s in our online cause related campaigns. I predict that we'll see more of these types of campaigns as agencies, brands and charities fully realize the power of an authentic cause campaign on the social graph. These tactics drive more leads, more donors and more loyalty than traditional counterparts. I'm not suggesting that cause related marketing will replace the more traditional tactics - but all boats are rising in ways not seen before.
Again - great thanks to Brian and Ad Age for covering a topic that seems to be bubbling just under the traditional PR/marketing surface.
Joey Leslie
KOMPOLT
www.kompolt.com
@jleslie
Appreciate the insights - thanks for continuing to write about, and heighten the awareness of, a great marketing strategy.
-eddy-
www.29agency.com
And, to the others for adding to the dialog.
As one focused on working in the association arena, it has been a "struggle" to share with companies and charities the potential of engaging trade associations and/or professional societies into the cause efforts. And, for most trade associations and professional societies to see, understand and engage in cause alliances with companies and charities.
The IRS shows 1.7 million trade associations and professional societies. They have millions of members and represent nearly every conceivable profession and industry. Most have local chapters/affiliates that make local cause marketing a real possibility.
Thanks to David Hessekiel and the Cause Marketing Forum, we seem to be making some headway.
We just completed one of CMF's Masters Series Telesessions on this topic. If you are interested in finding more about engaging trade associations or professional societies, you can get the recording at http://www.causemarketingforum.com/audiocourses.asp. Or, the power point at http://www.slideshare.net/DrakeCo/cause-marketing-connecting-with-trade-associations-professional-societies.
Thanks again Brian for bringing attention to the power of cause marketing.
Steve
Without a doubt Cause Marketing (CM) is a bi-product of both Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) and globalization, as it serves to address the heightened awareness and concerns of social and environmental problems.
But just as with CSR, I feel it's deeply important that brands & partnering non-profits recognize that CM is a discipline which needs to manage the social impact of its practice. Brand-managers have to ask themselves the same questions considered by their critics: "Does my cause-marketing practice have the authority and capability of addressing the social issue that I have linked to my brand?"
Best practices are needed, and if, as Brian states, CM is to evolve from a specialized discipline to an overall strategy, the risks have to be identified alongside the rewards. Whereas:
CSR seeks to address the social impact of what the business "has done to" society
CM seeks to address the social impact of what the business "can do for" society.
I hope marketing officers will leverage some lessons learned from responsibility officers. In my mind, the most successful CM campaigns are not one-time runs, but long-term stratagems with partners uniquely poised to promote, advocate, impact and reward.
~Lee Fox
KooDooZ
To your point, this is a rapidly evolving discipline, and it heartens me to know that the best practices from other disciplines are more and more being brought to bear for a category whose members will benefit perhaps more than any other.
John Kiker
Great post, and good to see cause innovators like Joe Waters, Lee Fox, Michael Hoffman and Joey Leslie chiming in with their insights among the comments. (Hi, guys.)
I think you effectively crystallized the challenges and opportunities facing cause marketing, and agree that collaboration across stakeholders within an organization is critical for maximizing adoption, efficacy and sustainability. And in gaining that internal buy in across disciplines, it will hopefully catalyze a very important mindset shift that cause marketing is not merely a flavor-of-the-month tactic to drive transactions, but a way of conducting business responsibly that aligns with your core mission, and through which you can have significant long-term impact on your brand, your customers, and the causes you support.
If companies -- and especially, marketers -- only think as far as the cash register, they miss the larger opportunities to affect change, and cultivate change ambassadors among their customers. Cause Marketing is not simply adding a dollar toward some random charity you may not even recall after check out, but about creating a platform through which consumers can become aware of the cause, educated about the issue, and empowered to make a difference through opportunities to provide ongoing support for the cause, and in doing so, for the brand.
Isolated tactics don't work in traditional marketing, and even less so in cause marketing where an increasingly conscious consumer market can sniff out inauthenticity, and what I like to refer to as 'causewashing,' and end up doing more harm to the brand. When all is said and done, it's not about arbitrarily attaching your marketing efforts to a high profile charity for your own increased exposure, but about using your brand equity to generate awareness for the cause in facilitating social good. And if that is your focus, it's just a matter of selecting the cause that aligns with your company/brand values and the values of your customers. It's a partnership, not a promotion, and if done right, it's one that has optimal residual effects for both cause AND brand.
As always, I'll continue to bring focus to the importance of authentic cause marketing in my Triple Pundit series (http://www.triplepundit.com/pages/cause-marketing/), and will look forward to discussing this further with you and the rest of the cause marketing crew on Twitter!
Best,
Gennefer
Twitter: @Gennefer
All the best,
Jim
Outstanding point of view! The explosion of social media tools and users coupled with the resurgence of a social conscience offers a rare opportunity to do "good" on a broad scale while still moving clients business forward.
The importance of a strategic fit between the client, cause, message and the delivery medium(s) are key to reach both hearts and minds with relevance.
I love the term 'Marketing with Meaning' from Jim's post above and you've outlined a great approach to this.
Keep your thoughts coming!
Thanks for bringing the topic to light.
Ashly
I just want to echo something Brian wrote in his second paragraph.
An opinion survey, published October 2008, of 1,033 small businesses conducted for the Chronicle of Philanthropy and underwritten by Advanta, found them enthusiastic for corporate giving, but economizing during the recession. No surprise there, of course. Businesses small and large are acutely affected by the recession, too.
What are business to do that understand the need and have a charitable impulse, but aren't in a position to give much during these rocky times?
I routinely suggest clients consider cause marketing, which I define as "a relationship that bridges commerce and cause in ways that benefit both parties."
Cause marketing is an answer for nonprofits and companies during the recession. But as everyone else has underscored, it has to be done right.
Warm regards,
Paul Jones, President
Alden Keene and Associates
Bob Thacker, CMO OfficeMax, inspired us all with his presentation of "A Day Made Better" cause program at the recent Cause Marketing Forum Conference. Created to erase teacher funded classrooms, this annual initiative is based on an amazing insight that every year U.S. teachers spend an average of $1,200 of their own money to fund classroom supplies.
Bob saw a social need plus a way to set the brand apart, and in the process transform OfficeMax – by embracing cause marketing in a more holistic way.
And with his permission I'd like to add this comment I received via email to this dialogue:
"I think you have done an excellent job of summing up the state of cause marketing today. At OfficeMax, we believe that our focus on helping eliminate teacher funded classrooms has become part of our company's soul. Its tragic that a few soul-less companies have been exposed as greedy and heartless in these times. They have tarnished other companies who believe in corporate responsibility. At OfficeMax we believe that we have a responsibility to serve more than just our shareholders, we are also responsible for improving the quality of life as well."
Bob Thacker
CMO, OfficeMax
========
Brian Powell
@goodconcepts
thegoodconcepts.com
Brian writes that there are two essential paths: short-term promotional partnerships and long-term corporate philanthropy. Both of those are potentially effective, so case studies abound on how they worked to drive traffic and sales. But we're dancing around the BIG idea. Consumers, like voters in the last US presidential election or this most recent Iranian presidential election, are seeking to make the world a better place. Or at least to make their own worlds better places.
So to engage consumers, companies must become agents of change.
As I wrote in more depth elsewhere, selling features doesn't work anymore and selling benefits doesn't work so well anymore. Consumers have been lied to, misled and had brand promise after brand promise broken. Notice that consumers aren't lining up to mourn bankruptcy filings of some of our most iconic brands.
Cause marketing is what's next. But it's bigger than we're talking about. It's NOT about partnering with non-profits. It's not about cute, short-term promotions. And it's not about doing good so that PETA or Greenpeace gets off your back.
It's about the recognition that we're all in this together. Brands must demonstrate to consumers that they share THEIR values, that they care about what THEY care about and that their products and services are consistent with those shared values and concerns. And - note cause marketers turning away - virtually nobody does this right. Patagonia gets it. Starbucks gets it (or got it, depending on whom you ask). Avon gets it. Those brands are about changing the world for the better. And consumers instinctively understand it.
Consumers aren't saps. Why would a cheese or a microwave promote breast cancer research? That's old-school cause marketing. And it's yesterday's news.
We have to believe consumers are savvy enough to know when a company makes a full and authentic commitment to an issue or cause and whey they are in it for business reasons only. Companies that fully embrace their commitments are far likely to generate participation and support from citizens looking to make a difference.
Thanks,
Chris Mann
New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc.
At the Boy Scouts of America, our national development office has completely gone away from sliding a menu of needs/opportunities across the table for support (thank you Rick Jones) and have turned our focus on building relationships around the common ground of both the corporation and our organization. Before we even talk dollars we listen, listen, listen to what's important to folks, and based on what we learn we identify a potential platform, initiative, and/or message to wrap a relationship around. This process ultimately develops into a strategic discussion about a comprehensive integration of assets that directly supports both party's goals and results in a win/win for our partners and our organization.
Thank you Brian for the wonderful insight and pause for reflection. I fear that due to the extended time it is taking to "close deals" or even develop interest, many companies and non-profits alike might enter a sort of panic mode and negotiate deals that aren't integrated, collaborative, or comprehensive in nature. It's worth the extra time and relationship development to find the right partners, craft the right deals, and offer those we serve the best we can, even in times of tight budgets and tight timelines to perform.
In the long run, those who see this as a marathon and not a sprint will still be around to celebrate with each other!
Best,
Stephen Emerick
Director of Corporate Alliances
Boy Scouts of America
I think it is healthy for people in any discipline to continually debate and critically analyze where things are at in the discipline and how things can be improved. It's good to keep in mind that good intentions do not always lead to good outcomes. I appreciate your effort to continue that discussion.
I've already said much on this topic in my Stanford Social Innovation Review piece (http://www.ssireview.org/articles/entry/the_hidden_costs_of_cause_marketing/) and on Joe Waters' blog (http://selfishgiving.com/cause-marketers-journal/defending-cause-marketing). So I will only reiterate in response to your post that I think we also need more research on cause marketing.We've had a lot of good research on some benefits of CM for corporations and cuases but I think there are many areas still left open. For example, I don't think it is given that cause marketing is powerful and effective in every case and for everyone. We could use a more nuanced view of who benefits in various cases. Also, what is the relationship between cause marketing and other types of fundraising? We know in fundraising that building long-term relationships with funders is the most beneficial for growing sustainable support for philanthropic orgs (that for ex. might lead to major and endowed gifts). How does cause marketing fit into the mix and is it the best use of time im some, all or no cases for nonprofit fundraisers? In addition, research by Cone indicates that people say they are giving more due to cause marketing but giving overall in the U.S. has remained at around 2.2% of GDP for the past 30 years, according to the annual Giving USA. This means that even though total giving goes up each year, it isn't getting any bigger in relation to the rest of the economy. This implies that 30 years of cause marketing may not have influenced more giving. More research to figure out what is going on here would be useful and important if cause marketers want to make their case.
Best,
Angie
@aeikenberry