Cause marketing is a collaboration between for-profit and non-profit brands. By working together, businesses and non-profits achieve a variety of goals that generate impressive benefits for everyone involved.
By contributing to a cause, businesses drive customer loyalty, reach new segments of their target audience, increase revenue, and much more. Meanwhile, non-profits streamline brand awareness and drive donations.
Let's take a closer look at the way a successful cause marketing strategy can benefit your business.
1. Increased Sales
If a brand resonates with customer values, it's likely to drive loyalty and retention. This streamlines the customer value journey. Consumers who feel that they are contributing to the cause spend more money on the company's products.
A recent survey demonstrated that over 70% of consumers want to spend more money at a business that supports a positive social or environmental cause.
Besides gaining value from buying a product they need; consumers feel satisfied with contributing to an important cause.
2. Enhanced Brand Reputation
Building a positive brand reputation is an integral part of a successful brand awareness campaign. Studies show that 87% of consumers have a more positive image of a business that supports social or environmental causes.
If you manage to position your company as a "brand that cares," customers start feeling good about collaborating with your business. This improves brand reputation and encourages word-of-mouth marketing.
3. Increases Customer Loyalty
If consumers are involved in the cause supported by your brand, their loyalty increases. Since they contribute to something important by buying from the company, customers are less likely to shop around.
Finding a brand that cares for the same cause as a consumer isn't always easy. That's why when it happens, customers want to remain with the company for a long time.
4. Employee Engagement
Similar to consumers, employees are often motivated to work for companies that support important causes. Meanwhile, businesses that work on employee engagement can do more than double their odds of success.
Engaged employees stay with the company longer. High satisfaction and engagement lead to better productivity and have a positive impact on the company.
5. Positive Impact on Society
By participating in a cause marketing campaign, your business can make a positive impact on society. You can raise awareness, encourage donations, and help people change their behavior.
Besides helping your company earn money, this positive impact can make the world a better place. For example, by packing products in recyclable packaging, you don't just attract customers, who care for the planet's future. You are making a real difference in improving this future for the next generation.
6. Differentiation from Competitors
By choosing to support a unique cause for your marketing campaign, you are standing out from the crowd. No matter how highly competitive your industry is, an opportunity to differentiate yourself from other brands can turn you into an industry leader.
Consumers who share the same values and support the cause are likely to switch from competitors to your brand. Meanwhile, new leads are more likely to turn into loyal customers.
7. Cost-Effective Marketing
While some cause marketing methods can be taxing for a company's budget, it's possible to choose cost-effective options. You don't need to make direct donations to take advantage of the cause's marketing benefits.
Some examples of cost-effective cause marketing are employee volunteering and message-focused campaigns.
8. Partnership Opportunities
When you choose to contribute to a special cause, you can discover a wide variety of partnership options. Collaborating with other businesses that support the same cause can create excellent revenue-generating opportunities.
These partnerships help you discover new audiences, set up more efficient workflows, enjoy higher productivity, and take full advantage of the learning potential.
9. Improved Customer Insights
Cause marketing creates an opportunity to improve customer communication and relationships. This, in turn, generates more data that you can use to analyze customer behavior.
The more you interact with the engaged audience, the more information you gather about its needs and preferences. Later, you can use it to design more effective sales and marketing strategies.
10. Increased Employee Retention
Amidst the Great Resignation, when millions of Americans are quitting their job, employee retention is more important than ever.
When your business supports a cause, employees who share the same values are more likely to remain with the company.
Implementing a Cause Marketing Strategy
A successful cause marketing strategy can improve your company's bottom line and turn you into an industry leader. The key to designing a successful campaign is choosing the cause that resonates with your customers, employees, and brand values.
At Mid-West Family Southwest Michigan, we can help you design an effective cause marketing strategy that aligns with your cause marketing goals. To learn more, please contact our team at any convenient time.
