"Cause-Related Marketing: Why Social Change and Corporate Profits Don't Mix" by Inger Stole
Important note about the article: Please be aware that in this article, Inger Stole uses the acronym CRM to refer to cause-related marketing, although, as you learned in this class, the acronym CRM is widely used to refer to customer relationship management.
After thoroughly reading the article, your assignment is to post here (as a comment) a minimum 10 line reaction to the information presented to you. Then you have to find and discuss a cause-related marketing example: identify which one of the six types it belongs to, was it a successful marketing endeavor for the company, how do you feel about it, was it cause-related or cause-exploitative. Your examples need to be different from those found by everyone else who posts their comments before you, so the earlier you complete the assignment the better. You also have to find examples different from those already presented in the article. If you find your example online, include the link for your source in the comment.
Sources:
[1] http://www.causemarketingforum.com/page.asp?ID=188
[2] http://www.prwatch.org/node/4965
www.yoplait.com
I learned a lot from this article. I didn’t know there were six kinds of cause-related marketing arrangements, but as I read about them, all of these ads and commercials started to pop into my head and now it’s clear to spot the difference between them. I didn’t like how the article said that some CRM partnerships could do more harming than helping. I know it’s true that some companies lie about what they actually donate, but at least they’re actually donating. I think that businesses should put a note on their products saying what amount they plan on donating and they shouldn’t make it hard for customers to donate, like with the Yoplait lid example. Overall, I think CRM is a good thing for both the company and the charity because the company gets the publicity and the charity gets funded.
ReplyDeleteAn example of cause-related marketing is Pampers with its “One Pack = One Vaccine” campaign. Pampers joined with UNICEF and donated one vaccine for Neonatal Tetanus for every pack of specially marked Pampers that were sold, so they say. This campaign would be an example of a purchase-triggered donation because they require you to buy something in order for the company to donate. It was a very successful campaign because they raised about $10.8 million, which they expect to fund over 200 million vaccines. But, I feel like this could be more cause-exploitive than cause-related because at the bottom of the website it says that Pampers donated $0.05 to the fund for every pack of specially marked products sold. A pack of diapers definitely costs more than $0.05 and you can’t get a vaccine for that little, so the name for their campaign alone shows that they are cause-exploitive. It was good of them to raise that much money, but by the name of their campaign I would assume that they would donate the amount to pay for a vaccine per pack, which has to be more than five cents.
Source: http://www.unicefusa.org/hidden/pampers-usfund.html
This article gave me a better understanding for Cause-Related Marketing, CRM. There are six different kinds of CRMs; advertising, public relations, sponsorship, licensing, direct marketing, facilitated giving, and purchase-triggered donations. This last type, purchase-triggered donations, is the one that is used most often by industries. The first company to do so was American Express in 1983 when they raised money to go towards restoring the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. Purchase triggered donations are when a company promises to donate a set amount of a product's price to a certain cause. CRM is changing as new technologies come out. For example iGive.com gives online shoppers teh chance to chose from over 400 stores and have up to 39% of your purchase go to more than 18,000 nonprofits.
ReplyDeleteAn example of a company using one of the six types of CRM arrangements is Victoria's Secret PINK line and they use advertising. Right now "going green", recycling, world peace, all these ideas are very popular. Victoria's Secret has taken their PINK line which consists of undergarnments, sweat pants, hoodies, zip ups, bags, perfumes and lotions, etc. and incorporated those ideas. Many of their sweats and hoodies are adorned with giant peace signs or messages encouraging everyone to Go Green!
This article was very interesting to read. I learned a lot about cause-related marketing from this article. I didn't know before that there were so many types of cause-related marketing, but now I know there are six different types. I disagree in the article when it says that some CRM partnerships might be more harmful than helpful regarding the non-profits. I thought it was a win-win situation but now I realize that some companies lie about what they donate for more profit and publicity and I think it's sad that companies can do this, but if they are willing to donate money, at least it's something. As long as the cause in need of funding gets money donated to them, then I really don't see much harm in companies helping them out, even if it brings them positive publicity.
ReplyDeleteI found an example of a licensing type of cause-related marketing, which is where businesses pay to use a charity logo on its products or services. The American Heart Association's stamp of approval is on Cheerio's products to show consumers that that product meets the Associations' low-fat and low-cholesterol standards. It makes consumers want to eat healthy to avoid heart disease in the future. This campaign is definitely cause-related. This campaign is very successful because not only have Cherrio's sales increased, but the Cheerio's name is linked with a positive organization dedicated to a great cause. I think this is a great cause because people can live longer and healthier if they know just what they're eating and if it's healthy or not.
http://www.cheerios.com/forAdults/hearthealthyeating/hearthealthyeating_home.aspx
This comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteAfter learning briefly about cause-related marketing in class, this article was helpful in that it went it to greater detail about specific aspects of this form of marketing. I did not realize that there are different types of cause-related marking arrangements, but the six different types all make sense to have and seem like traditional aspects within a business organization. The part of the article I found most interesting was when it said that since CRM is driven by the need to increase the return a business receives from an investment, that the causes businesses often select is based on the free publicity and increase sales that might come along as a result of affiliating with a particular cause. It seems practical on the business to do this because they want to be more profitable, but as a consumer I want to associate with a business that is linked with a charitable cause because they want to help a cause, not just try to increase their profits or create a better reputation.
ReplyDeleteAn example of cause-related marketing is the RED campaign which is linked to several well-known and established businesses. The RED campaign provides money to fight AIDS in Africa and Starbucks Coffee is supporting the cause which would be considered to be purchased-triggered donation since something must first be purchased before the business makes the donation. Starbucks has a RED gift card which allows customers to prepay for their coffee and each time they use their card, five cents of the purchase gets donated to the RED campaign. Starbucks also shows their commitment to their cause by purchasing their coffee supply from ten different countries in Africa. With Starbucks furthering their commitment with purchasing the coffee from Africa, I believe that this is truly cause-related because Starbucks is standing behind their cause.
http://www.joinred.com/Learn/Partners/Starbucks.aspx
My first impression before reading this article was that most companies and businesses are only linking themselves to these causes to boost their sales and publicity by attaching their name to a charitable organization. After reading this article, I still have the same pessimistic view towards certain companies, but a more optimistic one now that I've read about organizations that actually benefit a cause in this article. As the article began to name the six different types of CRM arrangements, I began to think about commercials, advertisements, clothing stores, etc. that I encounter everyday that actually fall under these categories. When it comes to certain companies, as I stated in the beginning of my comment, I am skeptical as to whether their purpose is genuine. I definitely agree that the company should benefit when partnering with a certain cause, but this benefit is most effective when the company is focused on maintaining a more positive image, and where making money comes second. It seems pretty obvious to me, as a consumer, that when a company with a bad reputation connects with a charity, it is just trying to clear its name, and I won't buy their products. For example, I rarely, if ever,shop at Walmart because I've seen the way that they exploit their workers overseas, and the way that they neglect the environment. I would rather pay a little more somewhere else then shop at Walmart because I don't want to participate at all in funding the Walton family's next house purchase.
ReplyDeleteAn good example of CRM is Toms Shoes. This company is definitely a cause-related business because the man who created this company used his own experience of traveling to Argentina, and witnessing the poor children living with absolutely no shoes. This company's motto is One for One. For every one pair of shoes that a person buys, another pair of shoes is sent to a child in need. This is what makes Toms Shoes a purchase-trigger arrangement. I believe that this is definitely a successful marketing endeavor because it is unique, and is actually backed up by a story of personal experience. Also, I find that I hear more and more people talking about this company when before, I hadn't even heard of it. I think this is a very genuine cause, and I would definitely support Toms Shoes.
http://www.tomsshoes.com/content.asp?tid=227
ReplyDeleteI found the "Cause-Related Marketing": Why Social Change and Corporate Profits Don't Mix article to be rather informative, and insightful. I was made aware of one type of cause-related marketing that I had never heard of before, that being facilitated giving. I do think, however, that it's a good idea to have that type of cause-related marketing, as those that are receiving the help are others in the company (shown in the example of Ameren, customers can pay extra on their bills to help those in need). In that sense, there is a notion of teamwork being brought up, as those who are a part of the same company can work together, especially in times of financial drought. The last aspect of the article I found particularly interesting was the idea of why businesses make decisions about what cause to team up with. For as long as cause-related marketing stays around - and it's here to stay - tere will always be a debate regarding why a company chose to partner up with a cause. Is it to further profit? Or to genuinely promote the interests of their cause? Either way, we can easily see (through viewing T.V commercials, walking around your local mall, or looking at the example below) that the impact of cause-related marketing has the potential to be enormous for both parties.
ReplyDeleteThe type of cause related marketing example I found is of the sponsorship variety. It involves Nike's involvement in Live Strong, a foundation that's founded by seven time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong. Armstrong's foundation strives to fund cancer research, as Armstrong is a survivor of cancer himself. Through their cause related marketing effort with Nike, Live Strong has been able to generate a massive amount of sales, having sold over 50 million yellow "Live Strong" wristbands worldwide. I would suggest that Nike's pitch with Live Strong was a true cause related effort, but the debate can be made either way. Nike ended up profiting big time with Armstrong's partnership, and it's safe to say Nike assumed their partnership would be profitable as well, especially considering how popular of an athlere Armstrong is. Regardless, Nike ended up greatly helping Armstrong's foundation, way more than Nike itself was impacted (due to the simple fact that Nike was already a well known brand, unlike Live Strong). When all is said and done, this CRM example can be considered a win-win for both parties involved.
www.coastal.edu/hkss/research/nikelivestrong.pdf
www.livestrong.org/site/c.khlxk1pxhmf/b.2660611/k.bced/Home.htm
While reading the article, I thought it was interesting the author said that companies could address vital social issues through cause related marketing, but instead they stick to issues that will bring the company profit. One such case that was mentioned was that of how American Express had a campaign to raise money to fix the Statue of Liberty when they could have been using that money for aids awareness, which at the time was a taboo subject. In this manner, I think cause related marketing is not being utilized to its fulest and is instead being used as an outlet for companies to get people to buy their product.
ReplyDeleteAn example of cause related marketing that I have seen is the box tops for education program, which is linked to serveral companies including General Mills. The box tops for education program gives money to schools k-8 who turn in box tops from specially marked packages. This is most likely a form of advertising because I don't believe that General Mills is donating any money to box tops for education and in order for schools to get any money, the box tops have to be cut off and turned in. This is cause-exploitative becasue I don't know anyone who really sits down and cuts off box tops and turns them in and the schools don't really ask students to go home and collect box tops.
This article brought to my attention things that I had not really noticed before with CRM. Before reading this article i could only thing of a few ways that companies could use CRM, however, after reading i now know that there are six different kinds of CRM. i would say that the most popular would be either advertising along side a specific cause or purchase triggering donations. many companies get you to buy things just because you think it may benifit a specific charity. some companies may pull thru on there end and some others might not, it's kind of an unknown territory. thats the one problem i see with this is that companies have to remain faithful to their supporters in order for CRM to truthfully work.
ReplyDeleteOne example that i have is a local Pizza Shop that i do alot of business with as well as personally knowing the owner. the Pizza shop would donate a canned good to the local food pantry for every pizza that was bought at the shop for a three month span. this would fall under the purshased triggered donation. this idea was done out of good cause and not to just sell pizzas the ownder does alot with the community which is why i feel as if this was a great idea, a way to give back to the community, as well as make money doing it.
Although we covered this topic in class, and although I felt that I knew exactly what CRM was, this article gave me a better understanding of CRM, of it's advantages and disadvantages, and the complexity of this method. When reading the article I kept thinking of products and companies that use CRM. I now realize that CRM is much more prevalent than I originally thought. It's everywhere. I didn't know there were six different kinds of CRM before reading this article. A lot of them seem to intertwine and work together. The profits made from utilizing CRM practices is outstanding, and I had no idea that CRM was so effective.
ReplyDeleteAn example of CRM that I found is Ford's "Warriors In Pink" campaign. Ford uses the sponsorship kind of CRM. Ford has a 16-year sponsorship with Komen Race for the cure. Ford has donated more than $105 million to the cure. In addition to donating money, Ford has recognized that it is awareness that leads to the early detection of breast cancer, which saves lives. To help raise awareness, Ford used the advertising type of CRM and created over one billion media impressions.
http://www.fordvehicles.com/warriorsinpink/commitment/
Before reading this article my impression of case related marketing was that it was a great marketing tool that not only was an opportunity for companies to look good in the public eye by putting their name with a charitable organization, but also a way to benefit different types of organizations. After reading this article, I have to say that some parts of it, I agree with. Before reading this, I had no idea that there were so many different types of case related arrangements. But what I took out of this article the most was that companies may be trying to do the right thing by donating a small percent of their sales to charitable organizations, but they are only doing it to make themselves look better. In the article it mentions that businesses attach their name to a popular organization, like a cure for breast cancer, to gain more business because the public can connect with this organization. What companies should be doing is helping out with something broader like the healthcare system because we all know that our healthcare isn’t exactly stable. If businesses contribute their case related marketing to this cause, it could prevent a lot more issues from even occurring in the first place, for example breast cancer because it could be caught early if people could afford the right healthcare. Although it may sound like I am against cause related-marketing, I am not. I think that if any business puts forth an effort to help charitable organization is great, but sometimes it makes you think if the business is really for the cause, or just for the money.
ReplyDeleteAn example for CRM is Cellino and Barnes’ involvement with juvenile diabetes. Out of the six CRM arrangements this is considered to be sponsorship. Cellino and Barnes have partnered up with Derek Roy of the Buffalo Sabres, and for every goal he scores during the current season, they will donate 1,000 to help fight juvenile diabetes. Not only is Cellino and Barnes offering to make a significant contribution to the fund by donating 1,000, but there is no trick behind their efforts. The fact that they have teamed up with the Buffalo community and a well loved Buffalo sport puts them in a positive spotlight as well. But instead of it some companies who try to trick customers into their business by saying their helping out a good cause, Cellino and Barnes really is because they are putting forth a large amount of money. Derek Roy is not just any player on the Sabres, he is one of the leading scores, which means more money is going to be donated towards the juvenile diabetes cure.
After reading this article it kind of refreshed me memory on what cause-realated marketing was. Its main focus is to link together corporate industries and nonprofit organizations so that in the end, they both benefit. I never realized that there are six different types of CRM. I think each one plays an important part when marketing a certain product or cause because each one requires something different. The example of the program called Upromise was a great idea I think. As consumers, I think its really smart to look at things your buying and think how you can benefit from them. I'm not taking about just the benefits of the product itself, but other benefits like a return on your investments like in the case with Upromise.
ReplyDeleteOne example of CRM that I found is Poland Springs water bottles. Their whole thing now is about going "green" and also showing that they are by all the advertising they do on their products. They advertise that their water bottles are made with 30% less plastic, their labels are one third of what they used to be, and most recently that their caps use up to 25% less plastic to make. I think this company is very smart for marketing such an important issue as going "green" because most people are becoming aware that the plastic bottle is no good for the environment. I think this can be both cause-related and cause exploitative just because when a company first decides what to market, it first thinks about what will make them the most money. The they take into consideration all the other benefits to the cause like saving the planet and discouraging waste.
http://www.polandspring.com/DoingOurPart/EcoShapeBottle.aspx
From reading the article I became aware of the concept CRM. Companies benefit from CRM in various ways. For example its a tax deductable and free publicity. These factors increase company sales while saving money on advertising and promotional expenses. There are six types of CRM arrangement include four standard corporate practices advertising, public relations, sponsership, licesing, direct marketing. Also CRM facilitates customer donations to charities and purchase trigger donations. The article describes popular areas where CRM is practice for example in educational areas and breast cancer awarness. Also I dislike the fact that companies may have a small perscentage such as 1% to danoate from sales. The articles example of a family having to buy 100,000 dollars in goods in order to receive 1,000 for college seems not worth while. CRM has become very popular over the years incresing an annnual amount of 1 billion dollars. Companies are using new technologies such as the internet to practice CRM which has facilitated the process
ReplyDeletehttp://www2.kelloggs.com/General.aspx?ID=1978
Kelloggs feeding America is facilitaes giving to charities. Kelloggs is donating 3.5 million pounds of cereal worth 10millin dollars to food banks acroos the United states.It is facilitating donations because when customers donate their first 5 dollars to feeding America they will receive 5 dollars in coupons towards kellogs cereals. This is cause related with out being exploidaitive. Thy do not have to buy the product in order for kelloggs to contribute to the charity. In fact they will receive the same earnings in coupons if partitie donate 5 dollars to feeding america.
This article brought to light many aspects of CRM that I was unaware of. I had no idea there were six different ways that companies attach themselves to causes. I was also unaware at just how many companies use and have used CRM's to boost sales to boost the prestige of the brand name by attaching it to a cause. My eyes are open now, and I'm starting to realize just how many commercials and advertisements that I see on a daily basis are CRM's. Ethically I believe it is wrong for any company to attach their name to a CRM unless they really are devoted to helping that cause more than just increasing profits.
ReplyDeleteOne example of a CRM that i found is the NFL's PLAY 60 campaign. The NFL is actively trying to shape the youth of this country and tackle obesity which is a major problem for U.S. youth. Their campaign isn't to raise money as much as it is to boost the prestige of the NFL from a public relations perspective. This CRM is a sponsorship because the NFL is funding this Play 60 program.
http://www.nfl.com/news/story?id=09000d5d80b4a489&template=with-video&confirm=true
I learned a lot from this article about Cause-Related Marketing. I remembered what we had talked about in class but I didn't know that there were six different types of CRM's. When looking at the six different types of CRM's I could think of companies or organizations that were based on either advertising, public relations, and sponsorships. My initial thought to the donations and money given to charities was that these companies were good. They were doing this out of kindness and that it was something to feel good about. But when reading this article my reaction changed. I found that companies just do it to gain the non-profits clients, trustees, donors, and staff. This is all just to make more money and spread the word about their company. Not all companies have this mind set but, some do. I think it is disappointing to see what a company will do just to make more money. The other fact I found interesting in this article is that iGive.com has offered customers a way to shop on over 400 stores and get up to 39 percent of every purchase. This website has helped to distribute over 2 million dollars to charitable causes and I think that is great.
ReplyDeleteI think that the Audi A3 TDI clean diesel displays the CRM arrangements. They use advertising. The Audi A3 TDI is a clean diesel car that uses a commercial that shows the “green police.” The green police are a group of people who go around to individuals who are not using eco-friendly products such as light bulbs, water bottles, and disposing batteries. This commercial shows that the company not only that diesel cars can help the environment, but there are also a lot of easy ways to help out as well. This commercial is supposed to show what consumers can do to clean up the environment. The ad also shows a beautiful Audi which is more affordable and more echo-friendly. It is very appealing to the public eye and is a car that looks more appealing to the less wealthy who would like an Audi.
This article turned out to be very informative. I was surprsied to find that their were six different types of cause-related marketing. After thinking about the different types I started to realize just how popular they are in todays advertising world. In most cases companies have at one time or another used CMR's in order to gain publicity for their product and to increase their sales revenue. When you first think about all the money going to nonprofit organizations or other good causes you feel that these companies are really trying to do something good here. I was surprised though when i read further into the article to learn that this is not always the case. Looking at the situation between AMA and Sunbeam which was described in the article you get to see both sides of CRM's. It is not entirely hard to believe that a company would do anything within reason to try and boost their sales.
ReplyDeleteAs of right now Pepsi is doing a cause related marketing campaign. They are doing the refresh everything, which is were they promise to give money to various organizations in order to "refresh the world" The more sales they have the more money they contribute
http://www.pepsi.com
I learned a lot about Cause Related Marketing. I knew quite a bit from marketing class but I didn't know there were six different types of cause related marketing. I feel like a lot of companies use cause related marketing for the wrong reasons. Companies may look like they care about the cause but they just use this so it makes them look better. By doing cause related marketing, it gets their name out their which can lead to making more money and that is all they are about. I don't like how families have to donate some much money to receive such a small percentage in a scholarship.
ReplyDeleteI like the example of TEDDI that is held right at our school. It is through Camp Good Days which is for children with cancer and special needs. This cause may not be known through out the country but it is well known through out Rochester. Even in Syracuse I hear about this cause. They have really good sponsors such as the Buffalo Bills and Wegmans. I see a lot of Bills commercials in Rochester and I have noticed that at the end of many of their commercials they have a camp good days logo. This cause has raised a lot of money over the past and Teddi has been going on at Fisher for 28 years. Its a great cause and gets a lot people on campus involved.
After reading this article I now better understand Cause Related Marketing. Even though we covered the topic in class this article helped me understand the topic better. There are six different types of Cause Related Marketing, such as; public relations, licensing, sponsorship, advertising, direct marketing, facilitated giving, and purchase-triggered donations. The most interesting part of the article to me was reading about the CRM efforts of Visa’s 1997 “Read a story” campaign. I think it is really interesting and a great thing to hear about a company donating money to a group that needs it. In Visa’s case they donated to a group called “Reading Is Fundamental” for each card holder’s transaction. When a company does things like this is tends to grab more consumers attention. The fact that a company is giving something away when they are gaining something shows that they care. Consumers tend to be drawn to companies that show they care, whether for the environment or for a small group.
ReplyDeleteAn example of a company using Cause Related Marketing is Walt Disney. They have a program where you can help out at local charities and get a free day in any Disney park. The program is called “give a day, get a Disney day.” This program would be more of a Public Relations part of the Cause of Related Marketing. By having people volunteer they can get a free day at a Disney park, this grabs the consumers attention and gets people interested in the idea. Everyone knows that Disney parks are expensive places to visit and getting a free day would help cut down on a family’s cost. The program began January 1st, 2010 and will continue until December 15th, 2010. You can find different types of volunteer work that can be completed at the following website, along with all the rules and everything the program has to offer.
http://disneyparks.disney.go.com/disneyparks/en_US/WhatWillYouCelebrate/index?name=Give-A-Day-Get-A-Disney-Day
Some types of programs are painting, cleaning up a church, volunteer at a pantry and many more.
This article was very interesting and informative. I didn't know much about cause-related marketing before this course so this article was beneficial for my knowledge of marketing. One example that stuck out to me was purchase triggered donations. This is very cause exploitative. When I see signs that read for every item purchased, they will donate a certain amount or percentage to a charity, basically says to me that they wont donate unless you purchase their product.
ReplyDeleteOne example of CRM is Wegmans Food Markets and their attempts to raise money for the Red Cross for the Haiti Relief Effort. The cashiers at Wegmans are instructed to ask every customer if they would like to donate to the Red Cross. I believe this is a good idea. This CRM is very successful because so far Wegmans has raised over 1 Million dollars for the American Red Cross. This is a good example of Cause-relared Marketing.
http://www.wivb.com/dpp/news/local/Wegmans-shoppers-help-people-of-Haiti
Prior to reading this article I was unaware of the six different kinds of cause related marketing arrangements, advertising, public relations, sponsorship, licensing, direct marketing, facilitated giving, and purchase-triggered donations. I believe CRM is both good and bad. It is good because the company gets the publicity and the charity gets the funds, but it is sometimes viewed as bad because not often but some of the time the company will lie about how much they actually donate. Another interesting part of the article I read was the section about how The American Express campaign to restore the Statue of Liberty. The company contributed one cent for every card transaction and a dollar for every new card issued. The company benefited a lot from the press coverage and the free publicity.
ReplyDeleteAn example of the cause-related marketing is Cookies for Kids Cancer campaign. In this particular article, it is an advertising practice, where a business, in this case Lord and Taylors, aligns itself with a particular cause and uses ads to communicate the cause’s message. It was not a successful marketing tool for the company because they had the wrong slogan, “Buy a Cookie, Save a Life”, people were turned away because they knew buying one cookie would not save a life. It was definitely a cause related marketing campaign. I feel appalled by the campaign because their slogan is turning people away and giving people the wrong impression that buying one cookie can honestly save a child with cancer life.
http://causerelatedmarketing.blogspot.com/2008/08/exploitive-cause-related-marketing.html
While cause related marketing can have several "faces" such as advertising, sponsorship, PR, licensing, direct marketing, facilitated giving, and purchase triggered donations, one of the main objectives
ReplyDeleteis linking corporate identities, with non profit organizations; thus forming relationships with these partners as well as the consumer. While this seems like a worthwhile, almost noble cause, there remains social, political and ethical questions as to the integrity of this method of marketing.
While it is essentially a business deal in which each party benefits; the lines of integrity become skewed when the corporate entity and non profit organization don't complement one another, or they misrepresent the intensions of the campaign.
While social responsibility seems to be at an all time high, thanks in part to media, internet and social networking. People are more informed and aware of the needs of those less fortunate. This may be a reason that many struggling non profit organizations are willing to change tactics to join forces with CRM partners.
http://www.homeforthegames.com/news/2009/08/non-profit-sees-fundraising-chance-olympics
Home for the Games is a non profit organization that has partnered with home owners who are renting out their homes for the winter Olympics. Home for the Games is an internet based organization. Homeowners who register their homes for rent to guests for the Winter Olympics in Vancouver agree to donate at least 50% of their rent received to 2 local charities that help the homeless. This is an example of purchase triggered donation. With Home for the Games; a company (home owner) pledges to donate at least 50% of its rent received to 2 local charities.
This article was a great break down of cause related marketing. The six types of CRM; advertising, public relations, direct marketing, sponsorship, licensing, and purchase-triggered, we clearly explained. I did not realize how complex cause-related marketing could be. I also didn’t really think about how often it can be exploited either. It is amazing how great CRM can be if it is used properly. The 1.7 million dollars that American Express raised was a huge deal. That was just in a year. It is a shame that companies like Ameren use CRM to help themselves out. I hate to be cynical but I am sure that a lot of companies using CRM are cause-exploited, intentional or not.
ReplyDeleteAn example of a company who is a great example that uses purchase-triggered donations as cause related marketing is Build-A-Bear Workshop. They have several stuffed animals that if purchased, a $1 goes towards the charity associated with that animal. The chosen charities are the Human Society, the Word Wild Life Foundation, First Book, and Children’s Wellness. I think that this is truly cause-related. Build-A-Bear does not advertise this or have huge signs saying “buy this bear save the wild life!!!” It is simply stated on the tag of the bear as well as the sign displaying the bear.
This article definitely helped me understad the variety and details with cause-related marketing. The fact that many of the cause related marketing strategies are expoited the way they are is disqusting. I believe the at the beginning of the article when it spoke of America Express that the company should of used there cause related marketing for a better cause such as HIV/AIDS awareness and they had discussed. If they believe that the link with homosexuality and the repair of the statue of liberty are that more important then saving lives then they shouldn't be looking into cause related marketing. Cause related marketing should be used wisely and to honestly help those in need. For the companies that use cause related marketing for taz deductibles more than just extra profit is where my example comes from. Panera Breads Cafes donate all left over food at night to their local soup kitchens and food pantries. This is most definitely cause related because for the most part it is not profitable for them just good morals. And also it shows that the company's food is fresh in the morning.
ReplyDeleteThe article was very informational as to understanding what CRM is all about and the different methods companies use. I thought the fact that companies pick and choose which organizations they want to partner with to fit their corporate "image" was disturbing due to the fact that their are other programs that could use more attention but get turned away because of this image. Many companies today have turned to CRM to get attention from consumers and the media as the increase in CRM continue to rise.
ReplyDeleteAn example of a CRM a company has used is JCPenney. Just last month, JCPenney has use their "pennies from heaven" ad campaign to help donate money to schools in JCPenney store areas to help create after school activities for children. They use advertising to get the message across that they are donating to communities that they are within. So far they have donated over $100 million dollars to different communities for after school activities for children.
The article “Cause-Related Marketing: Why Social Change and Corporate Profits Don’t Mix” was interesting. I became more knowledgeable on the different types of CRM arrangements. After becoming familiarized with these different types of arrangements it was interesting matching them with the different examples presented in the article. Before reading this article I did not think that this type of marketing could cause any negatives outcomes for the charities, but only potential negativities for the company. The article then informed me of fact that CRM marketing also has the potential to harm these charities more than help them. This was not something that I ever thought about, but I found interesting.
ReplyDeleteProduct Red is an example of cause related marketing. Product Red’s goal is to raise awareness and the funds necessary to eliminate AIDS in Africa. Many different companies are currently involved and have been involved over the past six years. These companies include Gap, American Express, Motorola (cell phones), Dell, Apple, and many other companies. A portion of money from the sales went to (RED). The type of CRM used in purchased-triggered donations. For example Apple would give $10 for ever (RED) Ipod Nano that was sold.
Cause-Related Marketing was very interesting article and made me aware of the many CRM arrangements that exist. They are advertising, public relations, sponsorship, direct marketing, facilitated giving and purchase triggered donations. Companies have comprised a successful formula which includes, compassion and charitable ideas into a branding strategy. I had not realized how beneficial it could be for a company to partake in CRM.
ReplyDeleteAn example of a CRM campaign is serving up supper for kids. Kohls partakes in this and has renewed its partnership with Hunger Task Force. The program provides needed meals for kids during the summer when school and other programs or unavailable. They contribute with facilitated giving, Kohls has their own garden and they donate the vegtables grown in the garden to the Hunger Task Force. Kohls has also donated $75,000 to food drives.