Our fall cause marketing pinup program is one of our most successful because it involves one our best partners, iParty.

iParty stores are packed in the weeks and days leading up to Halloween as they are a major destination for costumes, decorations and everything else you might need to celebrate the season.

Here’s a coupon from iParty to help you early Halloween shoppers!

Since we started working with iParty on cause marketing programs in 2005, they have raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for the hospitals.

This year’s campaign will take place at 62 iParty stores throughout New England. This includes a bunch pop-up stores iParty opens just in the fall to meet the Halloween demand.

Two things about this year’s pinup.

We included a QR code. For smartphone savvy shoppers this will link them directly to the HalloweenFest web site.

HalloweenFest? What happen to Halloween Town? We’ve combined forces with the Prudential Center’s annual PRU BOO to create a special kids event at The Shops at the Pru. This will be a smaller-scale event than Halloween Town, but the less expensive overhead will be a big boost to our bottom-line.

Pinup programs–which are also referred to as point-of-sale–are a staple of our cause marketing program. And if you plan to do cause marketing they should be a key part of your program too. They’re lucrative, effective and relatively easy to execute. Pinups also play well with other fundraisers like events (e. g. HalloweenFest).

To learn more about how to execute these programs, check out Six Figure Cause Marketing. We’ll be announcing dates for the next session very soon.

Our newest cause marketing program is Phantom Gourmet Meal Deals. It teams up a popular Boston TV and radio show with two of our best cause marketing partners, iParty and Ocean State Job Lots.

Here are the highlights.

The program starts this week! At least at iParty stores. It will begin at OSJL stores in July. Both programs will run for two to four weeks. Proceeds support our Food Pantry, which last year fed 75,000 people.

This is our first coupon book. It was surprisingly economical, especially compared to a die-cut pinup with coupons. The coupon book will sell for a buck and includes lots of valuable coupons from area restaurants and businesses.

We broke an old rule. We produced register signs. If you’ve been through the Six Figure Cause Marketing program you know that signs, posters, pins–not to mention belt buckles, hats and temporary tattoos–are just props for cashiers to hide behind so they don’t have to ask the all important question: “Would you like to donate a dollar to help _________?” However, we printed register signs at the request of Phantom Gourmet, who was confident they would further promote the campaign. We felt the signs presented little risk of undermining the program as these two seasoned partners wouldn’t use them as a crutch.

Phantom Gourmet added some great value to the program. Phantom Gourmet is a hit TV and radio franchise here in Boston. They will promote the “Meal Deals” program and our partners on their various media properties. This keeps our partners happy and PG welcomes the added exposure they get in iParty and Ocean State Job Lot stores.

If you live in New England be on the lookout for “Meal Deals” at iParty and Ocean State Job Lot stores!