Citizen Brand

The Death of Cause Marketing

AdAge has asked me to provide an occasional point of view on cause marketing and this is my latest effort. I am the last person on the planet who wants cause marketing/branding to die because I do believe in it when it is done right. I will let my column take it from here:

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The Day Cause Marketing Died

How to Keep Consumers From Getting Fed Up With Corporate Efforts

Posted by Mike Swenson on 06.01.10 @ 12:16 PM

         

Mike Swenson

It was a cool and calm morning the day cause marketing died. Its demise went largely unnoticed by all the online news aggregators. The only remaining television news network, ACNBCNN, ran a feature reminding us that it had broken the news the previous year that cause marketing was doomed.

It seemed to happen so quickly. One day the marketplace was full of companies and nonprofits working together for the common good. And then it was over. The blame game is in full swing. Various theories are being debated as to what happened. But looking back, it seems clear why cause marketing died.

It wasn't a natural death. It was murder. The very people who created and nurtured cause marketing through the end of the 20th century and into this century lost control of it at some point. Cause marketing was turned over to the promotions departments of agencies and companies and morphed into something unrecognizable. Cause was no longer about unique engagements with consumers. It had become just another homogenized marketing program fighting to grab its share of the consumer dollar.

From the moment consumers awoke each day until they fell asleep at night, they were inundated with opportunities to give back every time they made a purchase. In between, regardless of what store they were in, point-of-purchase shelf talkers virtually screamed at consumers every 10 feet to buy this or that product and help this or that cause. Consumers were under siege at every checkout lane of every store they shopped to give a dollar for this or a dollar for that. With online shopping continuing to overtake old-fashioned retail, cause banner ad after cause banner ad intruded on that shopping experience as well.

How do we keep this scenario from happening? Those of us engaged in cause branding in 2010 can't conceive of its demise. But as true believers, we also must avoid being naive about practices that can erode its effectiveness as a brand builder and a vehicle for societal change. A recent unscientific poll conducted here on AdAge.com asked for our collective opinions about whether or not cause marketing was doomed because of overexposure to the consumer. A wide margin of those who responded said consumer fatigue was going to happen. Are they right, or were they just the usual vocal minority of people who find it easy to criticize without offering suggestions?

What I do believe consumers will grow tired of are product promotions that masquerade as cause marketing programs. Product promotions are designed to do one thing: Sell products. Simply adding a donation from the sales proceeds doesn't qualify as real cause branding anymore. Cause has to be about engaging the consumer beyond the sale of one product. Companies need to demonstrate that they care about the cause every day, not just the day of the transaction.

Likewise, nonprofits need to be mindful of the types of corporate partnerships they pursue. While the money from a purely transactional cause-marketing program may be tempting, nonprofits should make sure the partnership makes sense. Is there a natural tie between the corporation and the nonprofit, or is it forced? Will the consumer remember anything about the cause once the promotion ends? And what will the money being donated specifically fund?

When cause marketing is done well, no explanation is needed. The partnership instantly makes sense. The consumer is engaged repeatedly throughout the year. And everyone knows where the money is going and what it will accomplish. The true power and reach of cause marketing is missed if companies are simply slapping a nonprofit logo on a consumer product and thinking the consumer will remember them after the transaction is over.

The fictitious dispatch from the future at the beginning of this column should remain just that: fictitious. There are enough companies and nonprofits today that are doing it right. But with increased scrutiny from both corporate and nonprofit watchdogs, we have to make sure we are all doing it the right way all the time.

As always, the consumer will be the ultimate watchdog. The cause formula for success with consumers is very simple: Engage, don't just sell. Educate, don't just market. Find a nonprofit partner that makes sense. And if consumer donations are involved, be open and specific about what they are accomplishing.

In the end, you might just sell some more product, too.

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. 

Meacham's Last Stand?

I have always liked Jon Meacham, Editor of Newsweek. Now I have another reason to like him. He doesn't duck when he has incoming bombs.

Newsweek's parent company, The Washington Post, announced last week they want to sell Newsweek. Meacham, who was making the rounds talking about his new program on PBS, didn't cut and run from the media circuit. Instead he used the promotional pulpit to begin to lay out what Newsweek might have to do. In short, he said flip the business model to on-line only with a print version that is based solely on what were the most read articles on-line.

Meacham has had his critics like the Post's own Howard Kurtz. His decision to move from a digest of the week's news to a more focused publication on a single issue each week, cutting circulation and raising the price has raised more than one eyebrow. But as one supporter of the move said, the move may not be a sure bet, but it is likely the best bet for success.

But Meacham also drew a line in the sand for all of us who consume the news: If we are not willing to pay for news as we always have, then it will be a different kind of "news" that we receive. In other words, it really won't be news at all. We already see it happening.

Perhaps driving home this message, Meacham delivered the challenge on The Daily Show. A nice twist of irony me thinks.

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
Jon Meacham
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Tea Party

Abandoned

We had a scare with a pet in the family the past 24 hours. One of my step-daughter's 12 year old Yorkies wandered off and was missing for more than a day. Fortunately, the story ended happily as Libby was found and returned to her twin, Maggie and the rest of the family.

Unfortunately, there are pets who don't live in happy homes like Libby and end up being abandoned. Pedigree is pushing a pet adoption program to find happy homes. This on-line campaign in the UK is telling the story of Charlie. And every time there are 25,000 views, the next installment will launch.

Genius social media combined with a great cause.

Glad you are back home Libby.

The Gandhi Channel

What might the world be like today if this had happened?

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.

The Pepsi Challenge

  

Pepsi has thrown down the gauntlet. Instead of spending tens of millions of dollars on Super Bowl advertising, the soft drink giant will give $20 million to causes. This very idea was discussed here on Citizen Brand a couple of years ago. Give Pepsi credit for stepping up and making it happen.

Will others follow suit in the days to come before America's newest holiday called Super Bowl Sunday comes calling? Maybe not this year, but if Pepsi sees a return on this cause investment in the form of consumer love and soda sales, others may look at being copycats in 2011.

Of course, it isn't too late for 2010. In fact, with the feel good story of the New Orleans Saints as the predominant story line for this year's Super Bowl, what better time for a brand to step up and do something good.

Pepsi was first. Who will be second and third and fourth?

Photo of the Decade

This photo brought new meaning to a picture is worth a thousand words - or just two words.

 

Happy Thanksgiving (with help from Adam Sandler)