Citizen Brand

Cause marketing for Venus & Mars

Late last year, the annual Barkley cause survey made a big discovery - men do have a heart. We talked to male consumers all over the USA and found out that men are impacted by cause marketing in nearly the same numbers as women. We also found out that only 3 out of 10 chief marketing officers were contemplating targeting men with a cause program. Sounds like some fertile ground for the right brand and nonprofit doesn't it?

At the Cause Marketing Forum in Chicago last week, I had the opportunity to meet with two small groups of fellow cause marketers to discuss cause and men. We had a great mix of people from agencies, companies and nonprofits. The discussion was spirited and we arrived at some interesting insights. The most significant one came when we talked about what motivates men in general and then discussed what that means when developing cause programs.

We all can agree that emotion plays a huge role in cause marketing. But while that is a primary motivator for women, is it the same for men? Our group in Chicago decided that it probably is not the primary motivator for men. Emotion will always be a factor in cause programs, but for men we decided that other dynamics may matter more - competition and accomplishment.

Men like to compete and men like to be able to see the results of the work they do. If you agree these are two big motivators for men, then the cause programs we develop to target men may look different than most cause programs today.

A cause program for men might have a component where the consumer is asked to take specific action or do some work as opposed to just writing a check or swiping a credit card to make a donation. A cause program for men might involve a competitive component where consumers who raise the most money for the cause or solicit the most participants for a cause are rewarded. The reward doesn't have to be a personal reward for the consumer. Instead it could be a brand increasing the amount it donates to its cause recognizing the milestones achieved by the male consumers it is targeting. Thus, the consumer can point with pride to what he has "accomplished." Starts to makes sense doesn't it.

We only had a couple of hours in Chicago but we all believe we identified some insights into how brands and nonprofits should look at programs that would get men involved. I look forward to hearing what others in the cause community think. Let the collaboration begin!

Marching Babies

Here is the new PSA promoting the March for Babies - March of Dimes' primary fundraiser to support their mission of stronger, healthier babies! Work produced by Barkley in our continued partnership with the March of Dimes.

 

 

 

2011 March For Babies

It's time to start thinking about March for Babies. Lots of bad weather right now, but it won't be long before we can look forward to taking our steps to help more babies be able to take their first steps. Check out the new PSA produced by the March of Dimes and Barkley.

 

 

Felicity Huffman is 2010 Lee Denim Day Ambassador

Our 2010 Lee National Denim Day ambassador is Felicity Huffman. Of course, her most recent gig is playing one of the Desperate Housewives on ABC Sunday nights. But my personal favorite role by her was on one of the best but most short lived shows on television - SportsNight.

Now Felicity will be turning her passion and talent toward helping Lee Jeans, the Entertainment Industry Foundation and our newest partner, the Cancer Support Community raise needed dollars for research and support programs.

You can join Felicity and the team anytime you want at DenimDay.com

 

The KFC/White Castle cause debate

There has been quite a debate raging among marketers in general and cause marketers specifically about the KFC pink bucket of chicken program to fight breast cancer and the White Castle hamburger scented candle program to fight autism.

Just trying to say all that with a straight face is difficult. Pink buckets of chicken and hamburger scented candles. Sounds crazy doesn't it? What a great country.

The fact is that I have always maintained that if a company is raising money for a good cause and that money is being truly used to help that cause, then it is a good thing. We are very involved in the breast cancer fight through a number of different programs at Barkley and we can tell everyone with great specificity where those dollars are going in that fight. So two important keys to good cause marketing are that enough money is being raised to really help the cause and we all know specifically what that money is going to do.

There is another side of cause marketing that the KFC/White Castle programs shine a light on and that is creating cause programs that make strategic sense to the brand and to the cause. This is where these programs miss the mark. Simply put, should restaurant chains that have some offerings not always considered to be among the healthiest choices and health related causes become partners? To paraphrase a new ad campaign, probably not.

There is an argument I have heard during this debate which is interesting. If certain food options are known to be less healthy, then at least those companies offering them can offset the problems caused by supporting a health related cause. Strategically, I think this is defensive marketing and does not create the foundation for a long term cause program that builds both the corporate and nonprofit brands. It might be fine for a one off cause promotion, but not for the long haul.

Obviously,restaurant chains are in the business of selling food. It is natural to assume that their food would play a part in a cause program. (Or in White Castle's case, the scent of their food.)  But many of them also have very distinct brand cores and values that could lead them in many different directions for cause programs, not just health related ones. And there are so many non health causes that need support, it would not be difficult to find one that is the right fit for a company.

Sometimes, these debates are what I call "inside baseball." Those of us closest to the firing lines get worked up while consumers at large could care less about strategic cause marketing. I experienced some of that this weekend when I had a handful of friends and family ask me if I had seen that KFC was doing a big promotion supporting breast cancer. Their initial reactions had nothing to do with whether or not it is a strategic fit or even wondering how the money was going to be used.

All they know is that KFC is trying to raise more money than has ever been raised before in one program to fight breast cancer. They will leave the strategic and ethical debate to us. Could be a lesson there somewhere. 

Cause Oscars

 

Thanks to David Hessekiel of the Cause Marketing Forum for honoring Lee National Denim Day as one of his Top Ten all time cause marketing programs.

It has been an honor for all of us at Barkley to be a part of this historic program.

Link here to see David's article in AdAge listing all ten of the best cause programs ever.

Cause keeps on ticking

The 2009 edition of the PRWeek/Barkley Cause Survey released this week sends a clear message that cause branding programs work even in tough economic times.

That's good news for all of us who believe that cause programs are one of the single best ways for a brand to create permanent connections with their customers. And good for non-profits who are hit hard by the economy and need new, effective ways to gain dollars and volunteers for their missions.

You can download a copy of the 2009 survey at the Barkley website. We would love to hear your comments on the findings and the accompanying article featuring some of the most successful cause marketers today.

Marketing spend on cause up!

In the midst of marketing budgets being slashed this year, we have incontrovertible evidence that cause branding is the go to strategy in this epic economic downturn. Aaron Baar tells us in this story on Mediapost.com.

The economy may be causing marketers to scale back on expensive, high-production efforts, but one area is still likely to see some growth this year: cause marketing.

According to IEG, North American companies will spend about $1.55 billion on cause marketing efforts in 2009, a roughly 2% increase over 2008. That is down from previous year-on-year increases in the cause marketing arena, but in the current economic climate, any increase in a marketing program is worth noting, says Dan Kowitz, vice president of IEG Sponsorship Consulting.

"As consumers, if there's anything we want to see a company spend money on, it's a cause that's important to us," Kowitz tellsMarketing Daily. "And marketers know that."

As evidence of consumer interest in sponsorship, Kowitz cited a Performance Research survey from February 2009 in which 41% of Americans said companies should increase their spending on cause marketing, compared with 13% who said they should increase spending on sports sponsorships and 20% who said they should increase sponsorship of cultural events.

Plus, cause marketing is generally cheaper than sports sponsorships, Kowitz says. Mott's, for instance, has said it will contribute up to $134,000 (the equivalent of feeding one million people through the Feeding America non-profit), which is much less expensive than the many millions it might cost to put a company's name on a sports arena.

"When you talk about subjects outside of sports, they come at a much more cost-effective price-point," Kowitz says.

Cause marketing, however, can be tricky, particularly among a public that has grown jaded and cynical, Kowitz says. The key for marketers boils down to one thing: authenticity."

"Companies have to do this in an authentic way," he says. "You can't claim to be a green sponsor just by putting your logo on a recycling bin."

And with consumers more empowered than ever to find and call out companies on how their business practices don't live up to their cause-marketing initiative, companies have to put a lot of time and effort into their chosen programs, Kowitz says. The good news is that many marketers have caught on and are living up to their promises.

"Companies have done a better job [with cause marketing] than in the past 12 months," Kowitz says. "What they could have gotten away with six years ago, for instance, was to throw money at something and say they're supporting it."

Zappos Review

The marketing community has been all abuzz about the review of agencies being conducted by Zappos. At first, Zappos was going to invite in a select number of agencies but when word got out they were looking, interest grew.  Zappos is a cool brand with great leadership and an even greater culture. And in this economy, winning business is critical.

Zappos received over 100 initial entries and paired it down to 20 or so for the presentations. Full disclosure now. Barkley was one of the finalists. Our team presented on Thursday.

The creative leader at agency Ignited, caused a few waves this week when he criticized Zappos in this AdAge article. All of us in the agency arena have opinions from time to time about all review processes. Some are tightly controlled by third party consultants preventing agencies and prospects from communicating with each other except under their watchful eye. Other reviews appear from the beginning to simply be a brand trying to light a fire under its current agency and then magically the current agency is retained.

Zappos was neither of these. Zappos had a wide open and transparent review process. Anyone could participate and we all knew the rules going in. The people at Zappos have been helpful and honest.

I defer now to one of my Barkley partners who was on our team in the room Thursday to add the postscript.

Moms love causes

The 2008 edition of the PRWeek/Barkley Cause Survey is published and any company who is not involved in cause branding today should take notice.  Why?  Because moms, who are responsible for more than $2.1 trillion in consumer spending this year like to spend with companies that support good causes.

The survey revealed that moms demand companies use their power for good, with 85.6 percent saying it’s important for companies to support a cause. With regard to their purchasing decisions, 58 percent say they would pay more for a brand that supports a cause, 69.2 percent say they would try a brand because it supports a cause, and 76.8 percent say they would recommend a brand that supports a cause. Overall, 66 percent of moms say they have purchased a brand because it supports a cause.

You can download a pdf of the survey and article along with a transcript of our 2008 Cause Roundtable by going to this link at the Barkley website.

And here is a link to a column on cause written by PRWeek's Erica Iacono who we work with each year to develop the survey.

In this economy, the companies that have established cause programs will benefit from the special relationship they are developing with their customers.  And those companies that don't have them, now is a fine time to consider starting one.  It could prove to be the point of differentiation that separates a company from its competitors.  And when the economy does improve, the difference will be even greater.