Many companies allocate a portion of their marketing budgets to support non-profit organizations. This activity, which has become known as Cause Marketing, provides abundant benefits for both the funding companies and the causes being served. Cause Marketing—i.e., “Doing well while doing good”—adds a socially responsible component to a company's marketing plan and can enhance brand image and reputation by accelerating corporate awareness within desirable market segments.



Cause Marketing is fundamentally about believing—in what is good and what is possible. It enables a corporation to make meaningful statements concerning social responsibility, ethics and the public interest. There are hundreds of worthy social issues—e.g., the environment, education, the elderly, diseases, the homeless, children and poverty—that have received much-needed support from Cause Marketing. In turn, supporting a cause provides the corporation with the opportunity to garner appreciation and recognition from new constituencies who are interested in or loyal to that issue.

One of the first organizations to practice Cause Marketing on a national basis was American Express. After experiencing considerable public relations benefits from their support of regional causes, they created a highly promoted national program. American Express pledged to make a donation to support the reconstruction of the Statue of Liberty every time a member made a purchase with “the Card.” Ultimately, American Express contributed $1.7 million to the Ellis Island Foundation. This ground-breaking Cause Marketing program was a marketing triumph that provided American Express with a high degree of visibility and favorable recognition.

There was, however, one element of the program that was out of kilter. While social responsibility implies a certain degree of humility that correlates with the perception of a corporation's sincere support for the cause, American Express reportedly spent about $6 million publicizing this program. While their contribution to the cause was undoubtedly generous, critics suggested that it might have been better if the Foundation had received $6 million and $1.7 million was spent on publicity.

As corporate/non-profit partnerships have become less of a novelty, a new balance between promotion and benevolence has resulted. However, the corporate end-game remains the same—to accomplish a marketing objective while supporting a worthy cause. If properly managed this is not exploitation, but rather a valuable partnership that provides significant mutual benefits.

There are key components to developing a relevant and successful Cause Marketing campaign:

•Partner. A Cause Marketing program starts with choosing the right partner. A safe, non-controversial approach is to partner with a mainstream non-profit organization that has high name recognition and strong public acceptance. The downside of this approach is that it does not provide much marketplace distinction, since many companies provide comparable sponsorships.

Organizations seeking to develop more creative and distinctive approaches should listen to the market to find appropriate Cause Marketing partners that address under-served public needs. With this approach, however, the stakes are definitely higher, with the potential for significantly higher gains accompanied by greater risk potential. That, however, is the trade-off that frequently accompanies good marketing programs.

• Structure. A partnership agreement should carefully delineate the terms for the creation, management and monitoring of all program components. The parties should agree upon a detailed marketing plan that aligns partnership responsibilities and establishes guidelines to orchestrate program activities and the communication of clearly defined messages within each relevant constituency.

• Accessibility. Like every good marketing campaign, the success of a Cause Marketing initiative correlates directly with how quickly and easily people can identify with the message. Therefore, some of the most popular and effective Cause Marketing events are those that are participatory, visual and media-friendly—e.g., auctions, balls, walk-a-thons, bike-a-thons, golf tournaments, concerts, rodeos, athletic events and art shows.

While Cause Marketing is an accepted marketing tool within the largest organizations, only a modest number of smaller financial services organizations have incorporated this powerful approach into their marketing plans. Cause Marketing, provides an excellent opportunity for organizations of any size to generate goodwill while enhancing corporate image and promoting a sense of corporate integrity. Furthermore, in a time when corporate practices and policies are being scrutinized more closely than ever before, it is simply good business to demonstrate that the organization has a social conscience through Cause Marketing. In addition, working on behalf of a cause can generate support and approval for the corporation from a wide range of constituencies.

Cause Marketing, when properly planned and executed, can result in a win/win/win situation. The financial services organization strengthens brand image and loyalty while gaining market share; a worthy, non-profit organization gains visibility and additional support; and the cause the non-profit serves is advanced.