The Business Benefits Of Cause Based Marketing

TL;DR? What Is Cause Based Marketing and What’s In It For Your Business?

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Caused Based Marketing or CBM is a powerful way to elevate your brand and tap into the growing consumer trend towards buying from businesses with a ‘purpose beyond profit.’

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• CBM involves publicly aligning your business with a charity and its cause

• By partnering with a charity, your business helps it achieve its mission

• At the same time, your business benefits from a sort of ‘halo effect’

• Cause Based Marketing can help your business attract socially conscious customers

• Your public support for a charity can also help you recruit and retain talent

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Cause Based Marketing: The Basics

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Cause Based Marketing or CBM is a strategic collaboration forged between a for-profit business and a charity or other non-profit, such as a Community Interest Company or social enterprise.

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It is designed to benefit both parties. Unlike simple ‘corporate philanthropy’, which often involves a just a one-way donation or sponsorship, CBM involves promotional marketing activities that visibly tie a business brand directly to a cause.

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The business typically provides funding but also leverages its marketing resources in order to raise awareness of the charity and its cause and, in return, boosts its own public image in a way that helps attract new customers, increase customer loyalty, and, ultimately, grow its bottom line.

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CBM is a ‘doing well whilst doing good’ approach, and appeals to modern consumers who are increasingly making purchasing decisions based on a company’s values.

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For instance, according to research by Cone Communications, 87% of people say they’d purchase a product because a company stood behind an issue they care about. Research has also found that nearly two-thirds of consumers (63.3%) are willing to pay more for brands that support meaningful causes.

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Done properly, CBM is a win-win for businesses and the charities they team up with. 

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For businesses: it’s a powerful differentiator, providing a means of standing out and establishing positive brand associations. Not only that, when customers feel that their purchase is contributing to a cause they care about, it creates deeper emotional connections that boost loyalty and lead to more recommendations. All of this means there are more chances to get noticed, remembered, and make sales. If you’re a Certified B Corp and need a way to demonstrate how you’re living the B Corp values, or you bid for public and private sector contracts that demand evidence of how you create social value, CBM can help.

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For charities: the advantages are just as significant. Not only do they gain a new source of funding, they also receive extra exposure and brand awareness as a result of the company’s marketing channels, helping to reach more people and spread the word about their cause. CBM partnerships help charities to connect with much bigger audiences than they can on their own, enabling them to attract beneficiaries and benefactors alike.

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Examples of Cause Based Marketing In Action

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There are lots of examples of businesses forming partnerships with charities and causes in the UK.

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ZING. Toothpaste x Teenage Cancer Trust

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Certified B Corp, ZING, has introduced a limited-edition co-branded version of its original mint toothpaste. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of this special toothpaste goes to the charity, which provides vital care and support for 13-24 year olds facing cancer in the UK.

Aldi x Neighbourly

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Aldi uses the Neighbourly network to distribute surplus fruit, vegetables, bakery items, and flowers to local good causes, reducing food waste and supporting communities.

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Cause Based Marketing Works Best When Values, Objectives, and Audiences Are Aligned

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In our experience, the best business x charity partnerships are formed when there is an obvious and tangible connection of some sort.

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Where there’s an obvious link:

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A small independent chain of opticians could choose to partner with a sight loss charity. An estate agent might opt to partner with a charity that supports a town’s homeless population. 

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Where there are aligned values:

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A retailer that wants to cut food waste might partner with a surplus food redistribution charity. An energy consultancy with a focus on helping businesses be more energy efficient could choose to partner with an energy poverty charity.

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Where there are shared audience interests:

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A business that sells running gear such as trainers, shorts, and vests, could choose to support a charity that is promoting a fundraising fun run. A supplier of petfoods and pet accessories might decide to partner with an animal welfare charity.

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The more connections there are, the stronger and more successful the partnership will tend to prove. 

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Top Three Mistakes To Avoid When Implementing Cause Based Marketing In Your Business

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There are several things that can make CBM tricky to get right.

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Lack of transparency and no obvious impact

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Just announcing that you support a cause isn’t enough. Savvy consumers want to know the specifics so they can judge for themselves the impact they will be responsible for with their purchasing choices should they buy from you. A major error stems from using overly vague statements about your commitment - for instance saying “a portion of proceeds” will be donated instead of stating a specific amount or percentage won’t pass the sniff test for a lot of people.

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The error: Not being transparent about the support being provided, or how and where money will be used, can lead to the feeling that your CBM campaign is little more than a publicity stunt rather than a genuine attempt to help a good cause.

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Why it doesn’t work: Without clear and measurable outcomes, consumers can’t judge the impact of your CBM partnerships. Not only does this erode trust in your brand, it can also have a damaging effect on the charity by making it look bad for associating itself with you. It can all end up looking trivial, ineffective, and self-serving.

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Lacking alignment and tone-deaf messaging‍

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Even the most authentic and meaningful CBM partnerships can stumble if there isn’t alignment between the cause and your brand values, or if your messaging totally misses the mark.

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The error: Choosing a cause with no logical connection to your business or the values it expresses, or, worse still, where there is clear misalignment - such as a fast-food chain partnering with a healthy eating charity - and campaigns that appear to trivialise serious issues.

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Why it doesn’t work: Today’s consumers and the wider public are smart enough to see through a weak connection, and will often perceive it as an attempt at ‘causewashing’ - forging charity partnerships purely to try and clean up your image. And, if your messaging is tone-deaf, you risk angering the audiences you are trying to connect with, which can lead to a very public backlash.

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Not setting expectations for all parties‍

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Many businesses and charities, and particularly those which are new to Cause Based Marketing, underestimate the time, money, and other internal resources that are required for success.

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The error: Seeing CBM as a transactional relationship rather than a genuine partnership, with each partner having an unrealistic expectation of the other.

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Why it doesn’t work: If you see your contributions - financial or in-kind - as the core of your responsibility, and expect the charity to use its emotional authority and reputation to promote the partnership on its own, generating the positive brand benefits your business seeks, you’re going to be disappointed when that doesn’t happen, leaving you feeling as though the charity hasn’t upheld its end of the bargain. Your chosen charity partner, on the other hand, is likely to see your business as the engine of promotional marketing whilst it focuses on using any funding you provide to fulfil its mission. You can avoid this by setting out respective roles and expectations at the outset so everyone is clear.

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How We Broker Unique Cause Based Marketing Partnerships

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As our work in the third sector has grown over the years since the Covid pandemic, we’ve developed a deep understanding of the funding challenges that charities and other non-profits face. 

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Not only do they compete with one another for donations, they are also competing with businesses who are seeking to tap into the discretionary spend of the same audiences. To make it worse, this is set against a backdrop of declining giving thanks to the ongoing cost-of-living crisis and low consumer confidence. 

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As a result, many charities bid for grants from awarding bodies such as the Charities Aid Foundation (CAF), the Lottery Fund, and philanthropic trusts such as the Joseph Rowntree Foundation. These grants are often intended to cover core costs, but come with strings attached that can be quite limiting - for instance, grant funders often insist that charities seeking support must be able to demonstrate how they will diversify their income so they don’t become overly reliant on grants; but, those same funding institutions do not permit charities to use any of the grant monies they receive for the promotional marketing needed to find additional and alternative sources of income. This apparent ‘catch twenty-two’ is a major stumbling block to charity growth.

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Charities wishing to find extra income will often seek support from the business community, but with no real understanding of what businesses need from such partnerships, there’s a tendency to construct ‘corporate giving’ opportunities that fall flat because there are no obvious, tangible business benefits to be accrued. 

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Recognising these structural issues, we’ve developed a unique approach that delivers for both charities and businesses. It sees us build and manage high-impact Facebook and Instagram ad campaigns for charities that hire us, but where we find suitable, values-aligned brand partners that are willing to meet the costs of these paid social media campaigns in return for their brands featuring extensively in all ads, related landing pages, and any associated email campaigns. 

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The key benefits for charities: Charities that take advantage not only get professionally run ad campaigns to promote their fundraisers, but because the costs are taken care of by businesses with a clear connection to the cause, aligned values, and a shared interest in the same audiences, every £ raised goes straight to where it can do the most good.

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What businesses gain: Businesses that provide support through our scheme obtain tangible and measurable commercial outcomes in terms of audience reach, brand visibility, and engagement thanks to our professionally managed co-branded campaigns, whilst accessing the attendant reputational gains outlined above.

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Right now, we have a number of significant opportunities for the right businesses:

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‍London fundraising walk‍

If you’re an outdoor apparel brand that sells walking gear and would benefit from getting in front of an audience of people with relevant interests, we’re working on a campaign to promote a large and unique walk event in London next spring. It’s raising money to end homelessness in the capital.

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UK virtual ‘Santa Dash’

Are you an independent UK running wear brand? We’re promoting a virtual Santa Dash this Christmas that will be raising money for a national cancer charity so that it can support more of the 1,900 children diagnosed with cancer every year in the UK. We’ll be targeting people across the UK with interests in running, running clubs, running gear, sportswear, and fitness. It’s an opportunity to get your brand in front of more than 19,000 potential customers, whilst benefiting from the positive association with this amazing charity and its cause.

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CIC that’s making a difference to homelessness in Lancashire

We’re seeking estate agents, home renovation and construction firms, and even mortgage brokers that would benefit from associating themselves with a small Community Interest Company that has a unique and practical approach to solving the problem of homelessness caused by high market rates for properties that makes them unaffordable for people with insufficient income, bringing together charities and ethical investors to help close the gap.

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If you’re interested in any of these CBM partnership opportunities, please head to our contact page to start a conversation.

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Key Takeaways: The Business Case For Cause Based Marketing 

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Done well, Cause Based Marketing or CBM is a great way to boost your brand and performance marketing efforts.

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• CBM is a strategic win-win partnership. Cause Based Marketing goes beyond simply making a donation to create a photo-op where your CEO is pictured handing over a jumbo charity cheque; it’s a collaborative approach to strategically aligning your brand with a charity and its cause in order to drive mutual benefits. Your business gains reputational capital, customer loyalty, and a competitive edge (especially when tendering for public and private sector contracts that demand proof of social value creation) while the charity you partner with gets crucial funding and extra reach. It’s a powerful way for you to build your brand by genuinely doing good.

• Authenticity is the most important ingredient. The success of any CBM campaign hinges on authenticity. There needs to be a natural, logical, and obvious connection between your brand and its values on the one hand, and the charity and its cause on the other. Consumers are savvy and will quickly spot a campaign that appears opportunistic or disingenuous. Winning CBM partnerships feel like a natural extension of your brand.

• Non-negotiables: transparency and defined impacts. If you want to avoid a PR backlash and social media ‘pile-on’ then you need to be transparent about your commitment. Vague statements like “a portion of proceeds” won’t cut the mustard, audiences want specifics so that they can see exactly how their purchase makes a difference. This is key to gaining trust and proving that your commitment is real, not just a marketing gimmick or publicity stunt.

• Misaligned expectations are a common pitfall. CBM partnerships can easily fail when the parties see it as a transactional arrangement and each assume that the others are going to do all the heavy lifting. You can prevent this by creating a formal partnership agreement at the outset which clearly outlines roles, responsibilities, expectations, reporting requirements, and success metrics.

• ‍Get started by finding a shared audience. The best way to start your CBM journey is to find a charity or cause that shares a common audience with your business, such as a pet shop and an animal shelter, or a running shoe brand and a 5k charity fun fun. This overlap will ensure that your campaign resonates with the people who matter most to you - your customers - by making the partnership natural and obviously impactful from the start. Talk to us about opportunities we might have available as a result of our unique paid social matching service that sees us execute bring together suitable businesses and charities, then execute high-impact co-branded Facebook and Instagram ad campaigns.

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