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The Five Big Essentials of Cause Marketing:Advice from MMC on Reaching into the Hearts and Minds of Women
Marketers got the t-shirt – brands that dogood, do well. And the money is pouring in:cause marketing is the fastest growingcategory of sponsorship spending,projected to hit $1.6 billion+ in 2010,according to the IEG Sponsorship Report. But as a marketer, how do you know if your cause campaign is worth the investment?The payoff has to go beyond measuringnext quarter’s sales; it’s about makingemotional connections for the long term,particularly with women who make morethan 80% of all purchasing decisions.At Marina Maher Communications (MMC)we’re experts in marketing to women. Our cause marketing campaigns on behalf of clients have been instrumental in creatingstrong bonds between target consumersand brands. When we conduct causemarketing campaigns, we filter themthrough five essential criteria:
LET YOUR DNA SHINE 
Don’t just jump on the cause marketingbandwagon. Align with a cause that is anauthentic reflection of your brand equity. It’stoo easy to say “all women support breastcancer, so let’s make that the tie-in.” Wehave seen more programs fail for this veryreason – the connection isn’t tight andconsumers aren’t interested. Women getthe connection between the brand and thecause intuitively – and know whenmarketers don’t.
The COVERGIRL Clean Makeup partnershipwith “Children’s Safe Drinking Water” urgedwomen to submit a video explaining howthey give back. For every entry, COVERGIRLprovided a week’s worth of clean water to achild in need. COVERGIRL spokeswomen Queen Latifahand Dania Ramirez issued the call to actionfor COVERGIRL “Clean Makeup for CleanWater .”
 
 Who is Doing it Right?  
MAC Cosmetics,an edgy brand started by two gay makeupartists, created the “MAC AIDS Fund”;COVERGIRL Clean Collection stands for clean and fresh and tiesin with “Children’sSafe Drinking Water ”; Dawn DishwashingLiquid is known for its ability to fight greaseand supports The International Bird RescueResearch Center and The Marine MammalCenter that helps rescue and clean animalsfrom oil spills. There’s a true and authenticlink between these brand’s DNA and their cause-related initiatives.
SHOW RELEVANCE
Align with a cause that women will want tosupport personally and share proudly withtheir networks. In time, many will becomeyour brand ambassadors. Partner with acause that has a wide commondenominator and you’ll build a communityof women who stand with your brand.
Think About This:
Women focus heavilyon what benefits their children. Education ishigh on many women’s lists, as is theenvironment. Aligning with a cause thatgives their children a better chance in theworld will create a strong emotional bond.General Mills made it easy for moms tosupport their local community byparticipating in “Box Tops for Education,” asuccessful school-based fundraisingprogram that has helped America’s schoolsearn more than $300 million over the past13 years and over $50 million last year alone.
BE CLEAR ABOUT YOUR CAMPAIGNPURPOSE
Be transparent about how women willbenefit from engaging with your brand.Where will the donations go as a result of her efforts? Women want to know details.Provide them. 
Clear Leaders on Every Scale:
Wal-Martwas the first major retailer to directly tie itsenvironmental footprint to land conservationwith “Acres for America.” The retailer 
MMC’s “Purex Saves Green” initiative, tobenefit Earth Day Network, tapped intowomen’s desire to support “green.” It wasbased on the insight that “green” did notneed to translate into extra cost or extrawork. More than 300,000 women visited theWeb site and 75,000 of them entered acontest. The brand enjoyed double-digitshare growth and outpaced sales forecasts.
 
committed $35 million over 10 years topermanently protect one acre of importantwildlife habitat in the U.S. for every acre of land Wal-Mart has developed and willdevelop until 2015.Pedigree launched “The Pedigree AdoptionDrive Foundation” to help raise over $1.4million, saving thousands of shelter dogs.IHOP raised money for the Children’sMiracle Network, by giving away free shortstacks on National Pancake Day andasking customers to donate what theywould have paid to their local Children’sMiracle Network hospital.
DRIVE SIMPLE ENGAGEMENT
KISS!
 
Don’t make it so complicated that it’soverwhelming to join and participate.Women are hard wired to help, so tap intothis desire. Be the brand that facilitates their contribution.
LIVE THE CAUSE
 It’s easy to think vertically – when youshould be looking 360º. Your cause–relatedactivities need to be totally integratedthroughout every marketing discipline.Spread the message everywhere: promoteit on package, in-store and integrate it intoyour Web site. Let your advertising buildawareness and issue a call to action. PRshould be using social media to start adialogue with your target consumer.
 
Wherever the consumer looks or listens,that’s where you
 
want to be.
If this gives you cause to reconsider cause marketing, please call DebraGaynor at 212-485-6883 or e-mail to
dgaynor@mahercomm.com
.
MEMBER WORLDCOM GROUP
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