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Greetings!
 When Superstorm Sandy pummeled the East coast last month, hundreds of companies stepped up with donations to nonprofit organizations. Many opted to take a cause marketing approach, enlisting consumers to join in their efforts.
Because no good deed goes unpunished, a recent New York Times article leveled harsh criticism for Sandy-related efforts it pronounced "utterly confounding" in their use of percentage-of-proceeds language (e.g. '15% of the proceeds from the sale of this widget will go to relief efforts'). We couldn't agree more that this vague language should not be used in cause marketing programs. Ever. The New York Attorney General concurs.
Unfortunately the article did little to commend the hundreds of companies that activated storm recovery efforts by effectively structuring their consumer-facing cause efforts clearly, transparently and legitimately. As often happens, one bad apple ruins the whole barrel. On the line? Your brand reputation.
The lesson for you? Remember to concisely and specifically communicate the impact of that consumer action or donation in your cause messaging. Insist that your partners do the same. Submit your fabulous campaigns to the Cause Marketing Halo Awards (now open) and help us continue to publicly raise the bar for corporate/cause partnerships everywhere. Wishing You and Yours A Very Happy Holiday,
David Hessekiel
President
Cause Marketing Forum
P.S. If you'd like to use 2012 budget dollars to register for CMF13, registration is now open to newsletter subscribers only. Full conference details coming next week!
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DECEMBER WEBINAR: Preventing and Managing Crises in Cause Relationships and Programs
December 13, 2012 1:30pm - 2:30pm ETCost: $99 or FREE to Members
 A celebrity spokesperson "dethroned"? A good cause "infected" by politics? A cause marketing program exposed as misleading? Crises can take many forms: those that could have been avoided, those that should have been handled better and the few that were managed so well we rarely hear about them.
Join Cone Communications' Chief Reputation Officer Mike Lawrence, and Executive Vice President Alison DaSilva as they as they provide tips on how to plan cause programs and relationships that minimize crisis risk, and how to communicate- both inside your organization and outside- when a crisis strikes. |
