How to Support Charities and Make Money Doing It
Charity events rank as the number two reason brands show up in social media mentions from DIY Consumers (1).
There are a number of ways your brand can get involved with the greater good, just make sure to utilize some of the strategies below to make the most of your generosity.
Sell Products that Make a Difference and Tell a Story
Cause-marketing has been around for years, and is growing in popularity. Companies are partnering with non-profits to co-brand products and share the profits.
While TOMS Shoes is not a textbook example of cause-marketing, they are a great example of how a product with a purpose and a story will get consumers hooked.
The secret to TOMS’s success, or one of them, includes the difference the shoes make and the stories they can tell. Because the purchase of TOMS is directly linked to a tangible donation, consumers are both inspired to purchase and inspired to share about their purchase with anyone that compliments their shoes.
FEED USA at Target is another great example of cause-marketing in action. Consumers can purchase totes, shirts and accessories to help feed hungry kids in the US. Each product includes it’s own story of how it was made and lists the “impact” purchasing that product will have on those in need.
For example, buying a bracelet provides 5 school meals for hungry kids, and buying a tote bag provides 1 child with school meals for a full year.
Again, it’s the tangible relationship between the product and the donation that make this charity campaign resonate with the consumer.
Go BIG on Social Media
Selling products that also give back have a naturally added incentive for consumers: they are easily shareable on social media. Consumers can buy your product and immediately post a picture of them eating, wearing or using the product.
We recommend creating unique hashtags for your charity involvement, so consumers can tweet (or post) both at your company and include your brand’s hashtags to double the awareness.
Your social media pages should be filled with all the need-to-know information about your charity event or involvement.
Here is some of the info that should be included:
- Are you matching donations?
- Is your company planning to make a large donation?
- What physical goals are linked with your charity drive (completing a building, supplying clean water to 1,000 people, school supplies for 1,000 kids)
- Background information about the charity you've chosen and why
Social media is also a great forum for sharing why your brand is interested in the charities you support. Encourage consumers to post their experiences or passions for the charity to bolster awareness and donations.
Update your pages frequently with stories of the day, and how much you’ve raised so far. If you have a goal, let them know how close you are, and what you need to meet it.
As a bonus, consider posting follow-up pictures to demonstrate where donations were used. Letting consumers see tangible evidence of their money in action is a powerful incentive to give (or purchase) again.
Let your product give consumers a story to tell.
-Mike Zimmerman, Contributing Editor success.com
Pick a Charity that Will Resonate with Your Consumer Set
Similar to native advertising, when choosing a charity, you’ll want to align with one that will hit home with your target consumers.
You could go the way of your brand, and choose a charity that is directly related to your company. For example, home improvement companies could support Habitat for Humanity or contribute to disaster relief organizations.
In fact, the home improvement industry has a huge opportunity to create charitable events by donating their products to refurbish, rebuild or build from scratch for those in need.
The great thing about building-based charity events is it allows the whole community to take part, which will help keep your brand on the top of their minds for their next home improvement purchase.
If your brand isn’t quite a niche market, you can align with any number of charities that will hit home for multiple consumer sets: disease or cancer research, education funding, clean water aid and the Make a Wish Foundation are all popular options that can easily appeal to multiple types of consumer sets.
You might also consider thinking outside of big national charities. Donating to local charities, such as your local food bank, homeless shelter or after-school programs has the potential to really be supported by the community’s consumers.
We know that all large charities are not bad, but big charities with high paid execs have received a lot of bad press in the last few years. DIY Consumers are conscious of the world around them, and may be wary of big-name-charities with questionable ethics.
To combat this possible donation deterrent, you could tell consumers up-front what their donations will support. For example, “Donate $5, feed a family for a day.” Just be sure that you can deliver on what your promise.
Be Genuine
DIY Consumers will be able to sniff out phony or gimmick charity support in an instant.
Make the charity your own. I don’t mean start your own charity (although you could), rather, whatever charity you do choose to support, make sure it fits into the narrative of your company.
Show the consumer that the charity you chose is important to you for more reasons than just the tax write-off. Include a short narrative about why your brand feels connected with the cause your supporting on your website, and on all of your social media outlets.
We’d love to hear from you. Post some successful charity events you’ve been apart of in the comments below, and tell us why those charities are important to you.
Resources
1. Mintel Group Ltd. (2013). DIY Home Improvement and Maintenance - US. Chicago: Mintel Group Ltd.
