Size Doesn’t Matter—Brand Does!

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One only need look around to see that brands carry influence and potency. Large companies, with large marketing budgets, have the wherewithal to saturate the market with their brand and their messaging, but what about the small business that doesn’t have that large marketing budget?

[jbox color=”orange”]Your logo is NOT your brand! Your brand is the umbrella that encompasses and conveys your company’s vision, values, personality, positioning, and image—your brand is the sum experience prospects and customers have with your company.[/jbox]

Running a business in this day and age can be a daunting task. Thanks to the explosion of e-commerce opportunity, the global marketplace is just as available to a microbusiness (defined as less than five employees) as it is to large corporations. Regardless of size, having a strong brand is critical to success in today’s economic landscape.

So what is a brand anyway? A brand is much more than simply an image or a catchy slogan — a brand is the umbrella that encompasses and conveys a company’s vision, values, personality, positioning, and image; it is the face of the company or product it represents. A brand is comprised of every aspect of a company; but especially anything that touches the external world. Your brand is your message, your actions, the actions of your employees, where you show up and where you don’t show up; it’s the promises you make and the ones you keep, and so much more. In a nutshell, a brand is the big picture—it’s the idea or image of a specific product or service that consumers can connect with.

A successful brand is built with intention, a solid foundation, and a well thought-out strategy. Without these, it doesn’t matter how much money is thrown at it, if the brand is built haphazardly, it will eventually fail. Today’s interconnected global marketplace is a platform where people are more than statistics—they are able, willing, and even demand to be able to engage and interact with the brand, to be a part of the process and the story. Brands fortified with a solid foundation are better able to not only allow, but encourage and grow as a result of this engagement.

What constitutes a solid brand foundation? There must first and foremost be a well-defined vision and purpose for the brand which shows that those forming the brand have an understanding of the target market and how the brand will address the market’s needs. The vision and purpose of the brand must be coupled with a clear and believable differentiator that sets the brand apart from its competitors. The differentiator is critical to leveraging the brand’s market potential. Without a differentiator, the brand has no real leg to stand on, and all that remains is a company forced to compete on price.

The differentiator, once defined, needs to be refined into a clear and concise value proposition which conveys to the target market the company’s vision, purpose, and differentiator in a compelling and contrasting way. Finally, the brand needs to be visually communicated to the market. This requires an effective visual representation—an easily recognized logo—which speaks to the brand’s vision, purpose, and value proposition in a way that engages prospects and customers.

Your logo is an extremely vital part of your brand foundation. It is the single element that your audience uses as the key recognition factor when identifying your product or service. Your logo, regardless of where it appears, whether it is in full color, or black and white, imprinted in one color, or embossed with no color, should always be consistent in its overall look and feel.

To build a successful brand, think of it as a composite of many elements, most of which the company is able to determine and control through intention and strategy. But keep in mind, that in today’s social media landscape, there are elements outside of company control such as media, bloggers, consumers, and all of the myriad conversations they have separate of your marketing efforts. The trick is helping to guide these outside elements by providing clear, concise, compelling, and contrasting brand messaging that conveys your value proposition, and then living up to the promises your brand has made so that those outside elements don’t feel the need to change the message.

The absence of communication only leaves room for rumor and innuendo. Hence the importance of developing a strong foundation for your brand, and then employing good marketing strategy to communicate the message to your target market.

Cause Marketing: Building a partnership between a nonprofit and a for-profit for mutual benefit

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Cause marketing is a partnership between a nonprofit and a for-profit for mutual benefit.In a nutshell, cause marketing, or cause-related marketing, is a public relations strategy by which doing good also means doing well.

The benefit in cause marketing comes in two forms.

  1. Non-profit: stands to gain in increased donations, more volunteers, greater visibility and brand awareness, and increased public/political support/advocacy.
  2. For-profit: adds potential for greater favorability with consumers because it adds an additional layer of value for customers, improves customer loyalty, improves employee morale and retention, more favorable and longer media coverage, and, potentially, increases sales.

The premise is simple—consumers prefer to buy from companies they like and respect, and statistics have shown that cause marketing is a conduit to earning favor among consumers.

  • In 2010, Cause Marketing was a $1.62 billion industry, up from $120 million in 1990.
  • According to IEG’s numbers, corporate cause marketing was approximately $1.68 billion in 2011, and is estimated to increase to $1.73 billion in 2012.
  • In a 2011 Cone/Echo Global CR Study, 93% of consumers want to know what companies are doing to make the world a better place, and 91% also want to be heard by companies. Unfortunately, 71% also report not understanding the message companies are using to talk about their efforts, or the impacts those efforts are making.
  • In American Millennials: Deciphering the Enigma Generation (a report from Barkley based on research conducted as part of a joint partnership with Service Management Group, The Boston Consulting Group and Barkley), research showed that Millennials, more than Non-Millennials, prefer active engagement in cause campaigns, such as volunteering their time (31% vs. 26%), cause-support purchasing (37% vs. 30%), encouraging others to support a cause (30% vs. 22%), and participating in fundraising events (27% vs. 16%).
  • 37% of Millennials also report being drawn to products co-branding with cause campaigns where their purchase is a form of support, (i.e. Tom’s Shoes One for One Campaign).
  • Nearly half the consumers in one study said that companies should focus on issues that impact local communities.
  • In 2006 the Cone Millennial Cause Study cited that 89% of Americans (aged 13 to 25) would switch from one brand to another of a comparable product (and price) if the latter was associated with a “good cause” they could relate to.
  • 50% of consumers would pay more for products from brands that support causes.
  • 71% of consumers are currently giving as much, or more, as they were before the economic downturn.

And, as government funding decreases, the Cause Marketing industry only stands to grow exponentially in relevance and popularity.

Cause marketing is not to be confused with general marketing efforts for social and other charitable causes, including in-house marketing efforts by non-profit organizations, and especially not general corporate philanthropy.

CAUTION! Your cause marketing campaign is only as strong as the strategy it’s built upon.

A good cause marketing strategy:

  • creates a story that serves as the foundation for a successful media campaign
  • appeals to, and encompasses both, traditional and new (online and digital) media
  • has a story with evolving appeal, keeping the cause related campaign ongoing, or until a determined climactic conclusion, whichever is applicable
  • is timely and relevant to the consumer
  • is easy and/or fun to participate in

How to Choose Your Cause Marketing Program

Win-win is the absolute essence of a cause marketing program. If you don’t have a win-win program, it’s not cause marketing!

There are several methods which can be applied to a cause marketing strategy:

  • Point-of-sale program: A request is presented at the register for a donation either by a cashier (active) or by prominently displayed signage encouraging the shopper to donate (passive). Common examples include pinups, coin canisters, and electronic donations via a register credit card machine, very common at grocery stores and other retailers.
  • Purchase or action-triggered donation program: A purchase-triggered donation is when a consumer purchase (product or service) is made and prompts a donation to a specific cause. An action-triggered donation program is when, instead of a purchase, a donation is made when the consumer performs some type of action. Examples: Starbuck’s new Create Jobs for USA bracelets campaign (purchase-triggered), or Macy’s holiday campaign where they donate a dollar to the Make-a-Wish Foundation for every letter to Santa dropped into their special store letterboxes.
  • Common message promotion program: In this type of program, a business employs its resources to promote a cause-focused message. For example, a company has or uses outside production and advertising resources to create and air a 30-second commercial, newspaper ad, or radio schedule for a cause partner in place of a regular sales spot. Example: American Furniture Warehouse does this on an ongoing basis with various nonprofits it partners with.
  • Employee service/engagement program: In this program, a company leverages its workforce for social good. Companies don’t just want to give money and product to causes; they want to engage their employees in meaningful work that helps the cause and promotes customer loyalty. Example: Vestas’ employees working on trails at Rocky Mountain Bird Observatory at Barr Lake State Park in a match situation for paid versus employee volunteered time.
  • Digital programs: The web, social media, wireless text-based technology, and especially location-based services have dramatically impacted cause marketing and changed the way the other types of cause marketing programs are executed. To leave out a digital program is to leave out an important aspect of cause marketing, and how cause and companies are able to partner. Example: text special code to donate $ programs, or “check-in” at a location and a specified amount will be donated.
  • Product licensing, certification, endorsement program: In a licensing program, a company pays a fee to use a nonprofit’s brand on its product. Licensing may include a certification process by the nonprofit before the company is allowed to use the logo. Because a cause needs major brand appeal to execute a licensing program, it’s generally practiced by larger causes with the marketing muscle and legal staff to roll out a professional program. Licensing is not a tactic for your average or local cause. Example: Susan G. Komen pink ribbon campaigns employed by several large brands.

Another very well-known and successful cause marketing program is General Mills’ Box Tops 4 Education campaign. Similar to the Pink Ribbon campaign, the genius is in the fact that it is an “action-triggered” campaign in terms of triggering the actual donation, but General Mills has been able to capitalize on increasing sales by adding the campaign branding to their product packaging. That cause marketing campaign branding is a compelling sales tool, but it’s been shown that even though many purchases are inspired by the program, only a percentage of the Box Tops coupons are actually turned in.

How to Find a Partner for Your Cause Marketing Program

A business in search of a nonprofit/cause to partner with should look for the following:

  • A cause that isn’t cause-centric: If your prospective nonprofit partner shows little or no interest in the benefits to your business, and is only concerned with picking up a check, keep looking. A true win-win benefits both parties and the nonprofit partner needs to be equally concerned about the benefit to your business.
  • A cause that gets it: Your nonprofit partner needs to be savvy about what makes cause marketing work. A good grasp of public relations and experience with marketing causes, corporate philanthropy, and corporate sponsorships makes all the difference.
  • A cause that shares a natural connection with your company: Common ground (complimentary demographics, products, or purpose) between the missions of both the business and the nonprofit make for a stronger partnership. Example: a beauty salon partnering with a nonprofit who provides natural hair wigs for women undergoing chemotherapy treatment.
  • A cause that is relevant to the business’s audience and timely: On occasion, a business might be in a unique position to respond to unusual circumstances. Example: Tide’s Loads of Hope program where trucks filled with washers were sent to help Hurricane Katrina victims clean up.
  • A cause that understands technology and social media: Mobile and social media is playing an increasingly important role in cause marketing, both in terms of visibility and transactions. To capitalize on the benefits cause marketing has to offer both parties, partner with a nonprofit that has proven proficient in social media.

Getting Your Cause Marketing Program Online

The Internet, social media, and mobile devices have changed, and continue to change every aspect of society as more and more people join the migration to smart phones. It’s also changing the nature of how cause marketing programs are developed and executed. Online cause marketing programs tap into a whole new set of tools for raising money and building awareness for cause and company brands.

Some suggestions to get your cause marketing campaign online:

  • Facebook Likes: Using Facebook Likes to raise money and awareness is a digital version of the action-triggered donation programs. The company agrees to make a donation for every Like it receives on either its or the nonprofit’s Facebook page.
  • Hashtags: Hashtags (#) are similar to bookmarks and allow people to easily search for tweets pertaining to a particular issue or topic. Hashtags could be used for an action-triggered cause marketing campaign the same as Facebook Likes. The company commits to making a donation to the cause each time the chosen hashtag is used in a Tweet. One of the most successful hashtag fundraisers is #beatcancer, an ongoing partnership between PayPal and SWAGG to raise money for cancer charities. Launched in 2009, the #beatcancer campaign has set a Guiness world record and raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for Live Strong/Lance Armstrong Foundation, Stand Up to Cancer, and BeBrightPink by tracking the hashtag usage on Twitter, Facebook, and blogposts.
  • Group-buying sites: Group buying websites like LivingSocial and Groupon are most known for selling products and services, but, on occasion, they have also worked for causes. Gaining access to key plays on these more established sites is very challenging, and not generally available to small nonprofits. As the concept grows, however, more and more locally-based group buying sites like Deal Chicken can provide a platform for combining cause with commerce and contacts.
  • Foursquare: Location based services are growing in popularity. It combines the feel of gaming with commerce, providing a platform for businesses to promote offers to people in their vicinity, encouraging them to “check-in” and earn badges. Using this service, a donation could be triggered by a check-in, or by taking advantage of a particular deal.
  • Online auction programs: Companies have created programs to help sellers and corporations donate a percentage of their sales to a nonprofit organization through the use of auctions.

Some other examples of successful cause marketing campaigns: (source: Wikipedia)

  • One example of cause-marketing would be the partnership of Yoplait‘s “Save Lids to Save Lives” campaign in support of the Susan G. Komen for the Cure. The company packages specific products with a pink lid that consumers turn in, and in turn Yoplait donates 10 cents for each lid.
  • An example of a nonprofit certification of a product (business) includes the American Heart Association‘s stamp of approval on Cheerios, the popular breakfast cereal. The American Heart food certification program grants use of its “Heart Check” icon and name to dozens of cereals and juices meaning that that product meets the Associations’ low-fat, low-cholesterol standards[12]
  • In 2007, Singapore Airlines launched a cause marketing campaign attracting over 35 million unique visitors across 23 countries to bring awareness to Doctors Without Borders. With the launch of the world’s first A380, Singapore Airlines—with the assistance of Vonality Inc—launched an online auction for all seats on the historic first flight all in support of charity.
  • Launched in early 2006, Product Red[13] is an example of one the largest cause-related marketing campaigns to date given the number of companies and organizations involved as participants as well as its reach worldwide. It is also an example of a cause marketing campaign that is also a brand on its own. Product Red was created to support The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis & Malaria (aka “The Global Fund”) and includes companies such as Apple Computer, Motorola, Giorgio Armani, and The Gap as participants.
  • Since 1998 the UK-based AquAid Water Coolers has been donating 5.5% of turnover to supply clean drinking water to people in Africa via the two charities Christian Aid and Pump Aid. To date they have donated more than £5,000,000 and their business success has led to a number of their competitors setting up other schemes to bring water to people in the Third World.

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Dare to be unique!

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Colorado Marketing Chick can help you define and refine your unique value proposition and then help promote it in a way that helps increase your sales.Remember back in the ’90’s when Pass it On cards were all the rage? There were literally thousands of them to choose from, all filled with your choice of positive, upbeat sentiments, or humorous sayings. For a time I was a buyer for a small book and gift store and we had a rack of them that I kept well stocked. Over the three years that I managed that store, I personally collected upwards of a hundred of those little cards myself. Now, nearly 15 years later, I have one that has stuck with me because the message on this card truly resonated with me, both on a personal and professional level. It reads…

“Never be content with someone else’s definition of you. Instead, define yourself by your own beliefs, your own truths, your own understanding of who you are and how you came to be. And never be content until you are happy with the unique person you are.”

Anyone who knows me will undoubtedly agree that I have followed this advice in my personal life, though of course, I’m still a work in progress. But as I mentioned, this quote also resonated with me on a professional level, and today, as part of my marketing consulting business (Griffimages Photography & Design, LLC, dba Colorado Marketing Chick), I stress to my clients that it’s absolutely imperative they identify what makes their business unique from other similar businesses. In marketing lingo, this is referred to as your “value proposition” or “differentiator“, and it is what will help your business develop brand loyalty. This is especially important for small businesses with limited marketing budgets who don’t have the funds to advertise everywhere and saturate the market. Of course, this only works if you have first determined that your unique attribute is something that resonates with your prospective customer.

So, as we all struggle with the concept of making our new year’s resolutions, might I suggest that if you haven’t already done this with your business, or haven’t done it in a while, that you allocate some resources in the coming weeks to identifying, defining, and refining just what differentiates your small business from the next, and then finding the most cost-effective methodology for communicating that to your prospective customers. If you don’t feel you are equipped to do this on your own, then give me a call. I believe you’ll find that your ROI (return on investment) will be worth your while.