Marketing For Just Cause

Cause marketing is a relationship between a for-profit and a nonprofit that brings in money and resources for the nonprofit, while providing credibility and goodwill for the business.

According to the IEG Sponsorship Report, this category grew to $733 million in the US in 2001. There are a number of reasons for that growth. A Cone Communications survey found that:

- 80 percent of Americans have a more positive image of companies that support a cause they care about

- nearly two-thirds of Americans say they would likely switch brands or retailers to one associated with a good cause

- more than half said they would pay more for a cause marketer's products or services

- 87 percent of employees at organizations with a cause marketing program feel a strong sense of loyalty to their company as opposed to 67 percent of those at companies that do not support causes

As you can see, adopting good causes can be beneficial, but your company's involvement should be planned just as you plan any other business activity. Here are five steps to developing an effective cause marketing program.

Choose Your Cause Strategically. Search for a single charitable cause that you and your employees can believe in, as well as one that helps advance your business objectives. For instance, a company may choose an educational cause to ensure it has a continuing pool of well-educated workers. Many companies seek issues that align with their products, services or geographic service area. Others look for issues that resonate with niche audiences or that differentiate them in the marketplace. You may want to consider choosing an emerging issue. This way, your company will be a pioneer rather than just another in a list of companies.

Perform Due Diligence. Once you have identified the cause, check out the individual charities involved in that cause just as you would any other strategic ally. Do they deserve your support? What is their public perception? Are they well run? What are their objectives, goals, successes and failures? Who are their executives and board members? Do they have any complaints lodged against them? How much of their money goes to salaries and overhead and how much actually gets to those it serves? Are they capable of helping you access intended target markets? Below is a link to a site that helps you evaluate charities. http://www.give.org/index.asp

Establish Goals. Now that you have selected your charity, determine what it is you want to accomplish with your involvement from a business perspective. There are tangible and intangible goals you can reach through cause marketing. Are you looking for networking opportunities at the board or donor level? Do you want to raise your business' profile through publicity about your involvement? Are you trying to build employee or customer loyalty? Or, do you just want to shore up support in your home community? Set your goals and then you can determine what resources, both time and money, to budget for the cause.

Dive In. Although writing a check to the cause will help, this should not be the extent of your participation. Choose a single cause and maintain a focused campaign that integrates the cause into the very fabric of your organization. Look at other ways to expand your involvement. Serve on the board. Become a volunteer for your selected cause. Encourage employees to get involved in projects with the selected charity. Give them a "charitable time" budget each month that lets them use business hours to perform their service with your chosen cause. Strategic allies and even customers may want to be involved if you have selected your cause wisely.

Communicate. Develop a simple, direct and compelling message that not only explains the cause but the reason your company is involved. Explain how purchases ? if part of the program ? are directed into the cause and how that contribution will affect it. Then, promote the cause in customer mailings and in your advertising. Create joint events with your nonprofit partner to attract customers, prospects and media coverage.

Selecting and supporting the right cause for your company can build profit, brand equity, as well as employee and customer loyalty, while improving the world. So, what could be better than that?

About The Author - Harry Hoover is managing principal of Hoover ink PR, http://www.hoover-ink.com/. He has 26 years of experience in crafting and delivering bottom line messages that ensure success for serious businesses like Brent Dees Financial Planning, Carolinas AGC, New World Mortgage, North Carolina Tourism, Ty Boyd Executive Learning Systems, VELUX and Verbatim.

---

Corporate Cleavage

I enjoy cleavage as much or even more than the... Read More

Have You Sold Your Internal Customers?

You can make the sale. You know your core message.... Read More

Are You a Marketing Octopus, or a Marketing Worm?

One of the greatest challenges to effectively marketing a business... Read More

Off the Shelf Small Business Mapping Software

All small businesses can benefit from inexpensive off the shelf... Read More

Two kinds of Advertising for a Marketing Strategy

Advertising is the lifeblood of any business. If you do... Read More

Marry Your Marketing Plan

Make a vow to keep up your marketing schedule in... Read More

10 Surefire Ways to Add Sizzle to Your Brochures

Businesses rely on brochures as their front line in communicating... Read More

Knowing When To Charge More and To Charge Less

More And MoreIt was notable that when I started my... Read More

Unique Gift Items ? 3 Creative Ideas

With promotional items there are standards: t-shirts, mugs, note cubes,... Read More

The Easiest Small Business Direct Marketing Tip You?ll Ever Get

This really and truly is the easiest (and most profitable)... Read More

Are You Ready To Research Your Market?

Picture this. You develop some product or service, spend countless... Read More

Promotions for Mobile Detailers

Mobile businesses are quite unique in the way they must... Read More

Whats In It For Me?

Sometimes, one of the most difficult things to teach beginning... Read More

Twelve Places to Buy a Mailing List

©2004 Jeffrey DobkinThere are two types of lists, determined by... Read More

The Great Direct Marketing Conundrum

Many a home business owner has spent sleepless nights thinking... Read More

The Role of Marketing for Boards of Directors

Small and emerging companies often do not put together a... Read More

Consumer Thinking And Search Marketing

12/20/04According to a recent article by ComScore Networks, about three-quarters... Read More

Global Market in the Cyber world?Go and Get It !

With the Internet opening up the doorway to the global... Read More

The Greatest Business Tips are FREE

The best way for someone to hang on to a... Read More

How Architecture Rendering is Part of the Impact

Cartoons have gone from celluloid to digital. Movies have gone... Read More

Direct Mail Marketing Done Correctly, Cannot Fail

So how do you do it?Direct mail marketing. When it... Read More

No One Gives A Damn About Your Business. Unless You Give em A Reason To

The good news is that there are thousands of people... Read More

How to Win a Price War

Any economics student can tell you that price is a... Read More

Flesh Eating Spiders And Other Marketing Horrors

After a friend was bitten by a spider, I decided... Read More

A Jack Of All Trades Is Often The Master of None

You've heard variations of that saying your entire life. Consider:... Read More

URL Everywhere? Offline Marketing For Online Success

Your URL (www) should be everywhere and more.I know many... Read More

Do You Really Know Your Prospect?

I'd like to introduce you to someone. I don't actually... Read More

Census Data Mapping for Small Business

When studying the demographics of an area for a business... Read More

Web Site Marketing: 10 Little Known Upsell Strategies That Will Magnify Your Profits

What is Upselling?It means pre-selling any additional features of your... Read More

Marketing For Profit - 6 Critical Traits

Develop These Six Critical Marketing Traits...And Success Will Surely Follow.If... Read More

Developing a Contact List- Part Two

In a previous installment, we spoke about how to come... Read More

The Anatomy of Hype

On a copywriting board I frequent, someone expressed bafflement that... Read More

Build Lifelong Networks With Your Own Barter Group

I don't know if you have ever seriously considered bartering.... Read More