By Russ Stoddard
As a marketing guy who’s spent a large portion of a long career forging connections between companies and causes, I’ve been doing a lot of thinking lately about the state of cause marketing.
And I’ve come to the conclusion that cause marketing needs to die.
Harsh words from someone who’s generally congenial, but here’s why: Cause marketing, which next year celebrates the 40th anniversary of its advent as a campaign between Marriott and the March of Dimes, has become so transparently transactional and self-serving in nature that it’s less and less meaningful to those who make it work — people like you and me, a growing segment of people who seek meaning and social good from the relationships they form with companies and their brands.
Cause marketing: A victim of its own success
In some ways, cause marketing has become a victim of its own success. It’s ubiquitous. Practically every new restaurant that opens or big brand with a product line extension promotes the “buy now and we’ll make a donation to …” mantra. The spectrum covers the full range, from a majority that’s well-intentioned to those that carry the whiff of near-shyster.
This occasions a superficial abundance of one-offs, intended primarily to juice short-term sales. If beauty is skin deep, then so too is the commitment these types of cause marketing activities demonstrate.
Enough. Me and my credit card, we’re so over it. (Sorry about that, American Express, which, by the way, actually trademarked the term “cause related marketing” after its pioneering campaign to restore the Statue of Liberty in 1983.)
People want more than one-night stands
I don’t think this approach flies with people anymore. People – I won’t call them consumers here – are looking for deeper levels of commitment in every aspect of their lives, including their purchases.
That’s why it’s time for a different take on traditional cause marketing.
We need to change the dynamic from “if you buy something” to “when you buy something … or even if you don’t.”
The good news is that corporate behavior is already starting to change and giving rise to new type of company, a purpose-driven one.
