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Marketing for a Cause

Submitted by Mitch Seigel on Tue, 1/22/2013

I was involved in a presentation this week to the management team of one of my accounts. While the main presentation was from cable and radio vendors, it was the other marketing ideas that took the spotlight.
• Taking advantage of location near a freeway and location near a mall.
• Recycling customers through direct mail and hosted mixers.
• Being involved in causes.

In this particular case this client is deeply involved in the American Cancer Society, specifically fighting breast cancer through awareness during October. It worked so well this last year that there wasn’t even a question to repeat it again this year.

It doesn’t always run as smooth as it did for my client this past year. Yet it can for you too. You’ve just got to have all your ducks in a row. It starts with planning ahead, as they are doing in January for an October event.

Then it’s a matter of developing a timeline, action plans during that timeline, and assigning responsibility to those involved in making it happen. The cause event organizer needs to set an agenda of regular meetings from now through post analysis, with increased attention in the final three to four months before the event. The key is staying on track so changes do not have to be made in the plans.

While there are many worthwhile causes to support, to start you may want to select one that will not take too much of your time or the time of your employees to implement. Once you get a gauge on how well your staff can perform, you can try new ideas in your second attempt. Whichever cause you select to support, have fun with your partnership development with the cause, and just do the best you can. The people you are supporting will thank you for it.

What are your challenges when it comes to cause marketing? I look forward to hearing your comments. Until next time…