Showing that you have a heart is just a cause away!
Does your company sell products that make your customers dizzy? Do you offer services that none of your competitors can beat? Are your products always in style and on the cutting edge of technology? Well, good for you, but your customers don’t care. Great products and services may work for a single sale, but if you want a lasting relationship with your customers, your business needs more than just a corporate identity. It has to have a heart.
In today’s socially conscious world, consumers have more respect and are more inclined to buy from a company that demonstrates that it is aware of its social responsibilities and is taking steps to meet them. According to a 2008 Edelman Goodpurpose study, 71 percent of consumers worldwide said that, despite the recession, they had devoted as much or more time and money to a worthy cause. More than half of the 6,000 consumers surveyed said that even in the midst of a recession they would be willing to pay more for a brand if it supported a good cause, and more than two-thirds said they would be willing to pay more for green products. products This shows that success will continue to elude you unless you show that you care about the world we live in. Surprisingly, this is not as difficult as it may seem. Enter cause-related marketing.
Cause-related marketing (CRM) is defined as the public partnership of a for-profit company with a nonprofit organization, with the intent of promoting the company’s product or service and raising money for the nonprofit organization. profit. CRM is generally considered to be distinct from corporate philanthropy because the corporate dollars involved in CRM are not direct gifts to a non-profit organization and therefore are not tax deductible.
For example, General Mills launched the “Box Tops for Education” campaign in 1996. Each box top is worth 10 cents and people are encouraged to clip and mail them. After the collected Box Tops are sent to General Mills, each school enrolled in this program receives a check in the amount not to exceed $60,000 per year to spend on whatever they choose. Thousands of schools have used Box Tops for Education money to purchase items such as computers and software, library books, art supplies and playground equipment. To date, this campaign has helped schools win more than $250 million in the last 12 years.
No matter what the cause of your business supports. It can be anything from homeless animals to AIDS, but you absolutely need to let people know about your cause. According to the aforementioned study, even marketers who are deeply entrenched in cause marketing aren’t doing enough to let consumers know about it. Just 40 percent of global consumers said they know of a company that actively supports a good cause, while just 33 percent said they know of a brand that actively supports a good cause, up from 39 percent in 2007. So just supporting a cause is not enough. CRM is completely quid pro quo. Therefore, if you want to benefit from the association, you must ensure that it receives as much publicity as possible.
So, you’ve decided that CRM makes perfect sense for your business and you want to move on, but you don’t know what cause to support. What do you do for a living? Well, there are no hard and fast rules for choosing a cause, but there are some tips that can help you.
o Choose a cause that you and your employees believe in. Cause marketing works best when you do it from the heart, and choosing a cause you really care about will make all the difference.
o Choose a cause that is related to your business. This makes it easier for consumers to associate your business with the cause and will also help reinforce your brand. For example, Procter & Gamble’s brand Olay and the American Society for Dermatologic Surgery have teamed up to provide free nationwide skin cancer screening. In addition to spreading awareness, her goal was also to help women take preventative measures to avoid skin cancer. This partnership was supported by “Desperate Housewives” star Marcia Cross and as a result they received immense publicity which brought 9000 women to the show.
o Iron all wrinkles. Give and take is the foundation of CRM. Therefore, a fixed decision must be made about how the nonprofit can help increase the visibility and brand awareness of its business and vice versa before going public. Negotiate and decide on joint promotions, advertising campaigns, gifts, sponsored events and any other way to get the most out of this partnership.
o Prepare a marketing campaign with a persuasive call to action. The ultimate success of your association rests with the consumers. Therefore, your campaign must engage consumers and persuade them to take action. An excellent example is the affiliation of Lay’s and the Make-a-Wish Foundation. They launched a program called “Share the Joy” asking people to share their special moments on Lays.com. For every moment of joy, Lays donated $1 to the foundation. Additionally, during the promotional period, Lay’s introduced specially marked bags of potato chips. For each purchase, Lay’s donated $0.25 to the foundation.
Cause marketing is like killing two birds with one stone. Your business will not only receive great publicity, but you will also help many organizations and individuals who need all the financial support and awareness they can get. It is a complete win-win situation and an opportunity not to be missed.
