securing corporate partners by matt scelza

Securing Corporate Partners and Sponsors

Presented by Matt Scelza

Director, Incite Los Angeles

November 7, 2013

Today’s Topics

1. What is cause marketing and what kinds of campaigns work?

2. What is the right amount of time and resources to devote to cause marketing for my NPO?

3. What are examples of cause marketing that fit my organization?

4. How do I find and solicit cause marketing partners?

5. How do I set up the financial details so that my nonprofit benefits?

6. Instruction and coaching on preparing and delivering a winning pitch.

Today’s Agenda

1. Cause Marketing Basics

2. Brand, Audience and Access

3. Who are Possible Partners?

Incite is a social impact marketing firm that uses marketing for good. Deeply rooted in the media industry, Incite connects people and resources to drive positive change using local media and grassroots engagement. Incite has offices in New York, Los Angeles, Austin, Indianapolis and St. Louis.

Incite

Today’s Question

How are you meaningful and uncommon?

Definition of Cause Marketing

Partnership between a for-profit and a non-profit for mutual benefit

Why Cause Marketing Matters

Marketing is about consumer engagement.

Causes engage consumers in meaningful and uncommon ways.

Why Cause Marketing?

89% of Americans are likely to switch brands to one associated with a good cause

54% has bought a product with a social or environmental benefit in the past 12 months

65% has already donated to at least one cause this year

Source: 2013 Cone Communications Social Impact Study

The Evidence for Cause Marketing

Consumer Expect Marketing with Purpose Globally – Eighty-six percent of consumers around the world believe that business needs to place at least equal weight on societal interests as on business interests. 2010 Edelman goodpurpose

Marketing Experts Agree - Two-thirds of brands now engage in cause marketing (up from 58% in 2009) and 97% of marketing executives believe it is a valid business strategy. 2010 PRWeek/Barkley PR Cause Survey

Communication is Key - 90% of consumers want companies to tell them the ways they are supporting causes. Nearly two-thirds (61%) don’t think companies are giving them enough details about their efforts, including the amounts donated and the length of the promotions. 2010 Cone Cause Evolution Study

Hispanics and African Americans Respond to CM - One-third of Hispanic and African American consumers report that they almost always choose brands that support causes they believe in, compared to just one in five Non-Hispanic Whites. Yankelovich MONITOR Multicultural Study 2010

Three Key Types of Cause Marketing Campaigns

A partnership between a for-profit and a non-profit for mutual benefit

1. Point of Sale

2. Action-Triggered

3. Digital/Social Media

Point of Sale Example: MDA and Menchie’s


Using a “pin-up” available for $1,

MDA raises revenue and

Menchie’s gains wall art

that displays community involvement.

Important Lesson from Menchie’s: Think About Your Partner


From Joe Waters’ blog:Menchie's pinup program is packed with heart, but [CEO Amit] Kleinberger used his head when he chose MDA. Menchie's senior management team didn't have a personal connection with muscular dystrophy. No one had a stricken daughter or son, or an ailing spouse or parent with Lou Gehrig's Disease -- perhaps the most well known form of muscular dystrophy.

With no clear choice, Kleinberger treated the process like a hiring and interviewed three charities. [emphasis added]

"MDA was very professional," he said. "They understood our business and what we were trying to accomplish. After meeting with them, we all believed that MDA had tremendous potential to do good in the world."

Point of Sale Example: Thought Starter


“Pin ups” cost $.03--$.10 each, depending on order size. Could you get your local dry cleaners to offer them to customers in a certain month or season? What about the local Jiffy Lube or auto repair shop?

Can you get local stores to put a donation canister on their counter to support your organization?

Three Main Types of Cause Marketing Campaigns


Action-Triggered

When a consumer makes a purchase, part of the money made from that purchase goes to the nonprofit

Source: SelfishGiving.com

Action-Triggered Example: Bon-Ton and Goodwill Industries


Consumers either donated their used clothes at Bon-Ton stores to benefit Goodwill or donated to Goodwill and then registered with BonTon.com.

All donors receive discounts at any of Bon-Ton’s stores or online, along with a chance to win $25 and $50 gift cards instantly and be entered into the Grand Prize sweepstakes for a $1,000 Shopping Spree.

Action-Triggered Example: PIzzaHut, Hulu, and World Hunger Relief


Consumers who donated $1-$10 to the Pizza Hut World Hunger Relief Campaign received a free subscription to Hulu Plus for two weeks.

Hulu also donated up to $ 8 for each customer that retains a subscription to Hulu Plus for two months or longer.

Action-Triggered Example: Thought Starter


Could you get your local pizza place to donate $1 for every pizza ordered during a certain month or time period?

Could you organize an independent movie theater night where local theaters donate the proceeds from a particular showing to your organization?

Three Key Types of Cause Marketing Campaigns

1. Point of Sale

2. Action-Triggered

3. Digital/Social Media

How to Promote Conversation: Video

DDB New York took a

trending Twitter topic,

#FirstWorldProblems,

and created a video.

How to Promote Conversation: Video

http://www.buzzfeed.com/benbeath/the-10-best-social-media-campaigns-of-2012-88is?sub=1931184_766590

How to Promote Conversation: Twitter


A good cause marketing example!

Rubicon Property, a real estate brokerage firm, hosted a cause marketing campaign called “Get Dirty” in celebration of World Water Day on March 22nd.

Rubicon asked participants to take a picture of dirty water in a glass or bottle and share it via social media in exchange for a $1 donation to charity: water up to a maximum of $5,000. All images appeared on the firm’s ‘Get Dirty’ Pinterest Board.

Action-Triggered Example: Digital/Social Media


Could you call five ad agencies and ask for pro bono help?

Could you find a local filmmaker to donate his/her time to film a video?

Do you have $1,000 to hire Youth Speaks Media Solutions to create a :60 video for you?

Important Question for Your Nonprofit


What do you offer

a cause marketing partner?

Three Good Answers


1. Your Brand

2. Your Audience

3. Your Access

Your Brand

Refers all the way back to differentiating among cattle.

Now “brands” have value and equity of their own.

Most succinct definition:

The perception(s)that customers orprospects haveabout you.

Your Brand

Do you feel the same aboutthese twocompanies?

Your Brand

Your Brand

What do you think of when you see these brands?

Your Brand

Your Brand

Worksheet #1

10 minutes in pairs

BREAK: 5 MINUTES

Your Audience

Worksheet #2

10 minutes

in pairs

Your Access

Worksheet #3

Quick quiz

STANDING BREAK: 2 MINUTES

Another Important Question

What do you want from a for-profit partner?

Good Answers

1. Money

2. Volunteers

3. Visibility

The Best Answer

What the for-profit can offer

How nonprofits need to present themselves


MDA and Menchie’s

A professional decision made with the head,

not the heart.

Characteristics of a Successful Partnership

1. Reciprocal

Smart cause marketing efforts have the same target audience


2. Communication

Regular, effective and meaningful


3. Measurement

Quantitative and Qualitative

Finding Cause Marketing Partners

1. Identify Potential Partners2. Research3. Approach4. Conduct an Initial Meeting5. Propose

A Real-Life Example

“Luck is preparation

meeting opportunity”

--Branch Rickey

How an in-person meeting with Health Care Company (HCC) took 27 months and four approaches

January 2011: 1st Approach

Gina Smith is a friend and she suggested that I contact you. She heard about what my company, Incite, does and she thought that we might be able to partner on some projects.

I know that the Affordable Care Act will mean significant changes in health outreach and promotion for HCC over the next couple of years. My company, Incite, helps organizations attract new customers while promoting important causes. For another health care company, we recently added an additional 550 members to their customer database in less than two weeks while encouraging increased exercise.

I attached an overview of Incite and I hope to hear from you soon. If we don’t speak before, I will follow up with you next Wednesday morning. Thank you for your consideration.

Three weeks later….

Image: myhealingisaboutme.blogspot.com

Response…

Spring 2012: 2nd Approach

Summer 2012: 1st Email Pitch

Image: mlb.com

Image: metsblog.com

Response…

Fall 2012: 3rd Approach

Image: writtenimage.com

Spring 2013: 4th Approach

After a week or so….

Image: www.accounting-and-bookkeeping-tips.com

At the meeting…

Image: www.psychology.illinois.com

Lessons To Learn

A few recommendations

1. Cause Marketing Forum; best overall site for information and resources

2. Edelman annual surveys

3. Joe Waters, whose blog is SelfishGiving.com and who is the author of Cause Marketing for Dummies.

Thank You


Matt Scelza

Director, Incite Los Angeles

818.238.6646

@CausesLA

[email protected]

securing corporate partners by matt scelza

Government & Nonprofit