Thanks to everyone who came out to the AMA Boston event on Cause Marketing During Challenging Economic Times. It was a great event.

As promised, below are links to some of the topics I discussed.

What is cause marketing. One thing that was clear from everyone on the panel is that Bonnie, Erica Vogelei from Cone and I all had a different understanding of what cause marketing is. Here’s my perspective. If you’re a cause marketing skeptic you may want to check out my post on Defending Cause Marketing. Be sure to read the comments under both posts as they are very helpful.

The Power of Pinups. My cause marketing efforts revolve around two key areas, point-of-sale and percentage-of-sale, especially the former. For a primer on point-of-sale, or pinups as I like to call them, check out this post, which has lots of links. My last pinup program was with Ocean State Job Lots. But I’ve also posted on other programs by Hannaford Supermarkets and New Balance.

If you’re interested in learning more about percentage-of-sale programs, read this post about Starbucks & Product (RED).

Cause marketing and social media. One of my favorite topics. Be sure to connect with me on Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin, etc. on the right sidebar! Here’s a good sampling of my posts on the subject. Also, check out my post on Foursquare and Harvard and how the latter can school cause marketers on how to raise money with location-based social media.

This presentation didn’t have any slides, but if you’re a PowerPoint-aholic check out these slides from an event I spoke at just a couple weeks ago.

Three final things.

First, if you have a question, leave a comment and I’ll reply to you. I might even write a post on your question! And you can make sure you never miss a post by subscribing to my email newsletter, which goes out twice a month.

Second, I’ve posted a whole series on Selling Local Sponsorships for Nonprofits that explores the selling process and how to prospect, pitch and close. It’s helpful if you work in nonprofit sales.

Finally, speaking of pitching, let me leave you with one. The team at BMC is available for hire.

Thanks again for listening. I hope my accent wasn’t too thick (a problem sometimes even for a Boston crowd!).

For some time Hannaford Supermarkets has been a friend of local providers of eggs, fruits, vegetables and other goods to its customers. Hannaford’s program, Close to Home, spans five states, aids local businesses and reduces its carbon footprint.

The grocer saw the opportunity to extend their work with local growers with Keep Local Farms, a broad effort to stabilize and enhance milk income for dairy farmers in the Northeast.

Hannaford will support the initiative in three ways:

• Promotional materials on the program in its 171 stores.
• A passive point-of-sale program that will allow consumers to donate $2 or $5 to the cause.
• Ten cents of every reusable bag sold will benefit the cause.

I really admire Hannaford’s commitment to local growers, and this program will take it to new heights. While I’m not a big fan of passive point-of-sale programs (as opposed to active programs which involve an “ask” at the register), I think Hannaford’s commitment to local farms and shopper familiarity with Close to Home will drive donations.

Hannaford is a good-size grocer here in New England and could partner with any cause they want. Not long ago I even pitched them on a health-related cause marketing program for my charity. But they’ve stayed true to their values and focused on the environment and local agricultural and husbandry.

The seeds they have sown have reaped rewards for local growers, their customers and, I’m sure, their business. Keep Local Farms is a great example of how a regional grocery chain and nonprofit are working to make a big difference in their communities.