I read an article today called “The Cause” by my friend and fellow marketer, Tony Rubleski.  Today he gave Ten Great Benefits of Cause Marketing.  The #1 benefit being, “You’re helping an organization that you truly believe in.”  After reading the article I wondered how a business would go about selecting a non-profit organization, so I prepared a list of…

Seven Steps to Choosing a Non-Profit Partner You Believe In

1. Make a list of local non-profits.  Rank each of them according to your affinity to them.  The ones with the highest ranking should be the ones you believe in most.
2. Select the ones you like most. and write down the person in charge of publicity, make note if you know the contact or know someone who can introduce you to them.
3. Identify their past events and promotions and with whom they partner.  This will give you a good idea of what kinds of partnerships they are already open to, which could help you narrow your list based on what you are willing to do.
4. Compare their audience with yours.  Make sure you share common influence.  It is best if you share the same audience so you can get maximum exposure to your promotion and benefit all involved.  Holding a rock concert for the Old Mission Senior Ladies Bridge Club would probably not be popular, but hosting a Big Band concert just may work. (Unless the old ladies like Ozzy!)
5. Join their advisory board as a volunteer!  Nothing works better to get to know a cause than getting involved.
6. Meet with your Non-Profit to discuss their objectives and timeframes.  Timing is everything. If you are launching a new prouct and they are expanding into a new area that might be the right opportunity to partner.
7. Brainstorm promotion ideas that would benefit all parties.  Look online and outside the area for ideas and promotions: here a few ideas to get you started:
• Create a community cookbook.   People love to cook and share the stories around their favorite family recipes.  Invite local celebrities, chefs and local people to contribute recipes.
• Roast a local celebrity or community leader.  Roasts can be a lot of fun if you have can generate media buzz if you choose the right person.
• Do your own Dancing with the Stars.  People love this TV show and love to see local luminaries dancing and prancing with each other for a good cause
• Host a local chef cook-off.  Again you can’t go wrong with anything food related, especially if you charity is food or hunger related like a food pantry or meals program.
8. BONUS!  Know the law regarding charitable giving.  Check Standard from the BBB Wise Giving Alliance Standards of Charity and Accountability.  Standard #19 instructs cause marketers to:
• Clearly disclose how the charity benefits from the sale of products or services (i.e., cause-related marketing) that state or imply that a charity will benefit from a consumer sale or transaction. Such promotions should disclose, at the point of solicitation:
• The actual or anticipated portion of the purchase price that will benefit the charity (e.g., 5 cents will be contributed to abc charity for every xyz company product sold)
• The duration of the campaign (e.g., the month of October),
• Any maximum or guaranteed minimum contribution amount (e.g., up to a maximum of $200,000)

Can you think of a cause you could to get behind?  It could benefit many people and could help your business grow too!  Take action to get the ball rolling, it is never too late to get involved to help people in your own community!

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