This Cause Marketing presentation provides an overview, best examples and strategic recommendations. It was written for Frontrunner's 'Cross Link' meetup in TriBeCa NYC. Join CrossLink at www.meetup.com/crosslink Find Frontrunner on Facebook!

1. Cause Marketing for Social Brands
CrossLink, 6/7/11
Michael Fasciano, Digital Strategist
Twitter: @Fasciano

2. Purpose
• First off, WELCOME to CrossLink!
• This presentation aims to provide a brief OVERVIEW on trends, examples, and best
practices for cause marketing.
• The END GOAL is to provide insights that spark GROUP DISCUSSION. So please
think about questions and comments that you d like to raise during the Q&A!
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3. Cause Marketing Agenda
• The opportunity
• Strategic considerations
• Best in class examples
• Partners who can help
• Group discussion
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4. THE OPPORTUNITY
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5. What is Cause Marketing?! Hrmmmm....
• A literal definition might look something like one of the following:
“Cause Marketing is a relationship that bridges commerce and cause in
ways that benefits both parties.”
– Alden Keene
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6. Less literally, it’s TURNING HEADS because it’s INHERENTLY SOCIAL
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7. Practically speaking, it’s simply CO-BRANDING
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8. A NEW FLAVOR that incorporates consumer participation
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9. SOCIAL BRANDS have new marketing needs
Cause marketing programs offer:
• Positive PERCEPTION and REPUTATION
• Loyal, engaged COMMUNITIES
• CONTENT for broader distribution and sharing
• An on-going brand story to PUBLISH and SHARE
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10. Causes are becoming a big part of the marketing toolkit
Cause-related sponsorship SPENDING is up to $1.7 BILLION and GROWING 5% per year
(IEG, Spnsorship Report, 1/4/11)
Consumers are increasingly responsive to causes Cause association impacts purchase decisions
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11. STRATEGIC CONSIDERATIONS
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12. Key planning challenge: Managing a diverse group of stakeholders and
participants
BRANDS:
Seeking to support positive brand perception
Developing owned and earned media communications drive
community, content and sharing
CAUSES:
Recruiting support in the form of advocacy and volunteerism
Courting financial donations to exist sustainably
CONSUMERS:
More conscious than ever about the impact of purchase decisions
Looking to participate in programs that they can believe in and
share with friends
Want to feel good about spending money
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13. Best in-class examples
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14. Complete the action to benefit a cause
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15. Join the conversation to support the cause
Nestle s
Charity
Partner:
Dress
For
Success
Engagement: Send a note
of encouragement and
Coffee-Mate will donate $2
to Dress for Success
Dress for Success is a
non-profit organization that
provides interview suits,
confidence boosts, and
career development to
low-income women around
the world.
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16. Cause-based content program sparks branded advocacy
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17. Fan benchmarks trigger cause donations
MTV s
Charity
Partner:
Opportunitas
Aequa
Engagement: First, watch a video and
answer a question about the MTV show
The Buried Life (shown below).
After completing that portion, MTV let
people know how they can help
children in war-affected Uganda.
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18. Community helps SELECT the cause
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19. Community helps DEVELOP the cause
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20. Starbucks: Even small donations can drive scaled response
 Project
Goal:
Use
social
promoAons
to
aBract
more
in-­‐store
drink
purchases.
 Approach:
Use
paid
social
ads
on
Facebook
to
invite
purchases
of
Starbucks
drinks
on
World
AIDS
Day.
Facebook
event
ads
invite
users
to
visit
Starbucks
on
World
AIDS
day,
during
which
each
drink
purchased
will
trigger
a
5
cent
donaAon
to
the
Global
Fund
for
fighAng
AIDS
in
Africa
 Outcome:
– Almost
200k
users
stated
that
they
planned
to
purchase
a
drink
in
Starbucks
to
support
the
Global
Fund

21. The product is inspired by the cause
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22. The business is based on social impact
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23. Best practices
• Keep it simple
• Incent social actions
• Offer multiple ways in for participation, across a spectrum of behaviors
• Maintain frequent updates as the story unfolds
• Spark network effect to drive organic exposure
• Account for platform-based challenges
• Target the right audience
• Leverage existing audiences
• Social media is not FREE media
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24. Partners who can help
Media Partners
Custom Development
Mobile Apps
Find Green
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25. Innovators entering the cause space
• NEXT MEETUP: Innovating Change: Cause-Minded Startups
• WHEN: Thursday, June 16 @ 7pm
• WHAT: Panel discussion with leading cause entrepreneurs will be led by Nick Chirls,
co-founder of Two-Seed
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26. Thank You
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27. ‘Los Medicos’ Screening
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28. Group Discussion
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29. Appendix
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30. Common cause marketing relationships between the stakeholders
• Research and planning help determine how to
minimize friction among program stakeholders
• For different products and communications, one
profile may be more appropriate or acceptable
than another
• (ie. Water vs. Chocolate vs. banking vs.
childrens products)
• Most cause marketing must account for the
consumer s interests first and foremost
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31. Buy the product so you can support a cause!
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32. Brand identity is reinforced around cause and community
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33. Drive foot traffic to stores via events
Macy s
Charity
Partner:
Make-­‐A-­‐Wish
Engagement:
Tell
everyone
in
your
social
networks
what
is
at
the
top
of
your
holiday
Wish
List.
Macy s
also
encouraged
everyone
to
bring
a
leBer
to
Santa
into
any
of
their
stores,
and
they
would
donate
$1
for
each
leBer
received.
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