Is Cause Marketing Right for Your Nonprofit?
You know that cause-related marketing is a partnership
between a for profit and a nonprofit. Each partner has
something to offer the other.
Many of you have a cause-marketing program in place
already. But for those of you who don't, how do you know
when cause marketing is right for your nonprofit? And if it
is, how do you bring the program to life?
I interviewed expert cause marketer Joe Waters, Director
of Cause & Event Marketing at Boston Medical Center, to
answer these questions and more. You'll find more answers
in Joe's blogs: Selfish Giving and The Savvy Giver:
http://www.selfishgiving.com/
http://www.thesavvygiver.com/
- NS (me): How do you define cause marketing? There are
so many definitions out there. Many nonprofit marketers
are confused.
JW: Cause marketing is a partnership between a nonprofit
and a for profit for mutual profit.
The "profit" for the nonprofit is visibility and/or money.
For the for profit, it's an enhanced image and sales.
- NS: How did cause marketing evolve as a major strategy
for corporate support of nonprofit issues and causes?
JW: American Express's campaign for the Statue of Liberty
in the early 80s was the first major cause marketing
effort. Since then, companies have slowly caught on to the
value of moving beyond straight philanthropy.
Frankly, many have had no choice because of the
disappearing bottom-line that once made "charity possible.
Cause marketing allows companies to serve two masters:
Consumers that expect them to give back, and investors
who demand growth.
It's called cause marketing, but a more accurate name is
"Cause Sales".
- NS: What kinds of nonprofits are likely to benefit
from cause marketing, and to solicit interest of
corporate sponsors?
JW: A a company will sometimes partner with a small,
unknown charity simply because it's a worthy cause, but
most look for charities that are well-known and respected
by consumers.
There's a double benefit here because they're supporting a
worthy cause AND a reputable organization. Companies also
favor charities with a large supporter base and,
increasingly, marketing know-how.
For instance, the studio that released Charlotte's Web
partnered with Heifer International, an Arkansas-based
nonprofit that provides livestock to poor farmers,
because of a natural farm animal connection. What sealed
the partnership was Heifer's 160,000 person mailing list
and ability to conduct grassroots marketing from a
nationwide network of offices.
The studio could have partnered with any organization that
worked with livestock, but Heifer delivered advantages
they could take to the bank.
- NS: Who usually benefits most, the charity or the
corporation?
JW: People always seem to think it's the company, but I
disagree. For most companies, cause marketing is just
one of the ways they're building reputation and driving
sales. Their marketing mix is like a dish with 100
ingredients: If you leave one out, no one will miss it.
But with fewer ways and dollars to promote themselves,
nonprofits stand to gain a lot from cause marketing,
especially if they land the right partner.
Take the partnership between Starbucks and Boston-based
Jumpstart, focused on early literacy skills. Starbucks has
raised money and given Jumpstart great visibility via its
Web site and stores, especially in the northeast. Thanks
to Starbucks, Jumpstart now enjoys national awareness.
But what has Starbucks gained from this one partnership?
Can we really say that Starbucks would be any less
successful if they hadn't partnered with Jumpstart? Nope.
Jumpstart http://tinyurl.com/yg3xwx
- NS: What are a few "best practices" case studies?
JW: Well, I think the Starbucks/Jumpstart partnership is a
very strong one. It demonstrates just how much one company
can impact a nonprofit. And Starbucks has benefited over
time from its cause marketing partnerships with Jumpstart
and others to forge a credible brand that has probably
helped its business.
Another notable partnership I'm following is between
D.C.-based First Book and bookseller Borders. Borders has
hosted fundraising programs in their stores that have
raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for First Book.
First Book's mission of getting new books in the hands
of children is a cause Borders and its staff members
feel passionately about. It shows in their commitment to
the program, and its impressive results.
Finally, I'd refer you to my Selfish Giving blog to
read about my organization's partnership with Boston-based
party retailer iParty. Like the other two partnerships
it's been built on commitment and mutual reward. It's also
a good example of a local partnership.
- NS: How should a nonprofit dive into cause marketing
for the first time?
JW: There are many steps, but the first is to honestly
assess what you have to offer a corporate partner. Does
your organization's mission resonate with a company's
customers? Do you have an event that will provide great
visibility for your partner? Do you have a relationship
with a sports star or celebrity to feature in a joint
advertising campaign? Do you have an extensive network
of volunteers or local offices to help market a company's
products or services?
With my organization, we started with a strong relationship
with just one company, iParty, which had been a consistent
supporter of the organization for many years. We leveraged
that one relationship, that single asset, into over 20
new corporate partnerships.
- NS: Whom on the nonprofit staff should be involved? Is
this a marketing or development responsibility?
JW: It's both. But what's more important is that everyone
understands the value of cause marketing to the
organization. If leadership and staff members aren't
committed, it really doesn't matter what department you
work for or how talented you are. It won't work.
- NS: OK, let's assume that there's a nonprofit that
doesn't fit your criteria for cause marketing success?
What other kinds of corporate support are available?
JW: I would tell them to stop worrying about cause
marketing and just focus on opportunity. If you have
something of value that you think companies will want,
you don't have to stay between the lines of cause
marketing.
A friend of mine works for a Boston organization with lots
of foot traffic. She does traditional cause marketing,
but she closed her best deal when she convinced a company
to sell their products in her main entrance area. That one
deal raises her organization several hundred thousand
dollars annually. Is it cause marketing? No. Is their
money green? You bet it is.
© 2002-2008 Nancy E. Schwartz. All rights reserved.
About the Author
Nancy E. Schwartz helps nonprofits succeed through effective marketing and communications. As President of Nancy Schwartz & Company (www.nancyschwartz.com), Nancy and her team provide marketing planning and implementation services to organizations as varied as the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Center for Asian American Media, and Wake County (NC) Health Services.
Subscribe to her free e-newsletter "Getting Attention", (http://www.nancyschwartz.com/getting_attention.html) and read her blog at http://www.gettingattention.org for more insights, ideas and great tips on attracting the attention your organization deserves.
NOTE: You're welcome to "reprint" this article online as long as it remains complete and unaltered (including the copyright and "about the author" info at the end), and you send a copy of your reprint.
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Revised April 12, 2008
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