Tag Archive: Starbucks

Cause Marketing in the ‘Hood: Starbucks, Whole Foods

Written on March 22, 2010 in Cause Marketing In Action
3 Comments

In my travels this past weekend, I came across two cause marketing programs at two stores my family frequents a lot.

The first was at Starbucks where I saw a display for the new Conservation International Starbucks Card. You load the card with dough and every time you spill the beans at Starbucks through the end of the year five cents goes to CI. I like the program, and as a Starbucks customer I admire the coffee behemoth for supporting CI’s mission to protect the earth.

One program I missed in Starbucks stores this month, however, was their annual Leprechaun Latte promotion to support Boston-based Jumpstart. This was a simple cause marketing program that rewarded Jumpstart with 25 cents for every green latte sold. I reported in 2006 that the program raised $13,000.

This program was a great example of a giant company doing local cause marketing (Leprechaun Lattes were unique to New England). As a local cause marketer it gave me hope that maybe my little nonprofit could one day work with Starbucks. Now, it looks as if I may need to look for my pot of gold elsewhere.

My second stop this weekend was at Whole Foods, a grocer I’ve written glowingly on for their passive cause marketing programs. On this trip, however, I was pleasantly accosted by a passionate young cashier named Amanda. She asked me to support the Whole Planet Foundation, a nonprofit started by Whole Foods to help fuel economic development in poor countries, mainly through microfinancing. You could donate a $1 or $5, but if you chose the latter, Whole Foods included a chocolate bar to sweeten the deal!

I really appreciated Amanda’s enthusiasm, and she shared how Whole Foods had raised $2 million to help victims from the Haiti earthquake.

Like in the passive cause marketing program I reviewed earlier this year, the signage for this program was right near the credit card machine where everyone could see it. “Empower women through micro-credit” was the call to action for this sophisticated, educated shopper. But, as in every other program I’ve ever run, the person at the register makes all the difference.

I wish Whole Foods would encourage more of their cashiers to “make the ask.”

I wish every store had more cashiers like Amanda!

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AMA Presentation: Cause Marketing During Challenging Times

Written on February 24, 2010 in Cause Marketer's Journal, Cause Practices
2 Comments

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!).

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Can Companies Use Cause-Related Marketing to Help Haiti?

Written on January 20, 2010 in Causerants
11 Comments

I think they can, but it needs to be done appropriately and with sensitivity.

As we learned in my post What is Cause Marketing? cause marketing isn’t philanthropy first, it’s marketing. And the situation in Haiti requires philanthropy first. And any company that tries to swap that with marketing will be duly punished by consumers.

But just because the recipe calls for a pound of philanthropy doesn’t mean there isn’t room for a teaspoon of cause-related marketing.

Here’s how it can be added to the mix without ruining the batter.

A lot of companies have already struck the right chord with philanthropy by donating millions to the Haiti earthquake victims. Let’s use Startbucks as the example, which has donated $1M to the American Red Cross.

Additionally, some companies, like Starbucks, have carved out areas within their stores where customers can make donations to Haiti.

But how could these companies add cause marketing?

Again, as you know from my earlier post, I view cause marketing in three tactical ways: point-of-sale, percentage-of-sale, licensing.

For Haiti, I think point-of-sale might be perceived as too aggressive and opportunistic. Conversely, licensing is a tactic that couldn’t be rolled out fast enough to meet the urgent needs of the victims.

Neither will work to help Haiti or the favorability of the company that executes the program.

However, I think percentage-of-sale could work. The Starbucks/Product RED partnership is a model. During the month of December, Starbucks donated five cents for every coffee sold to fight AIDS in Africa. The same could be done for Haiti at Starbucks and at other retailers.

But here’s what every consumer would need to know. Regardless of whether you buy the product or not, the company would donate X dollars, a generous minimum donation, to Haiti. A donation that could go up significantly with the small purchasing choices customers make every day.

I like this option because it’s built off of two solid layers of philanthropy, and a good portion of the percentage-of-sale donation comes from the company, not from the consumer’s purchase. Nevertheless, the program gives the consumer a chance to literally register their support for Haiti and to note the company’s efforts.

I read this post to my wife and she said my idea still sounds like a marketing ploy. Maybe cause marketing has no place in helping Haiti.

What do you think?

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