The session was another indication of how far apart the corporate and non-profit sectors really are. On the one hand, the social issues non-profits are addressing are escalating and the financial resources available to them from the public and private sector are harder to come by. In this context, there’s a realization among non-profits that a collaborative partnership-based approach is needed. On the other hand, non-profits are wary of getting too close to corporations and aren’t familiar with how corporations operate.

Corporations are in the opposite position. They need more alignment with social issues and the credibility that a partnership with a non-profit brings is invaluable and essential. However, working with non-profits is very different that working with business partners (decision-making is more complex, objectives are different, and measures of success aren’t always clear) and most “partnerships” are actually strategic donations.

I believe corporations and non-profits do need to work together as partners. In order to do this, they need to take the time to map out shared objectives, identify and leverage existing complementary resources, and have a means of measuring social and business outcomes.

In the “age of responsibility” your corporation’s values are more important than ever and cause marketing programs are a way of amplifying these values and benefiting the bottom line.

Here are 10 reasons to initiate or continue cause marketing in a down economy (excerpted from an article by Massachusetts-based Causemedia).

1. Drive sales. 

In 2003, a Cause Evolution Study found that 87 percent of Americans would switch from their current brand to one associated with a good cause if price and quality are similar. 

Five years later, Duke University’s Behavioral Cause Study verified this finding. In the study, 182 consumers were exposed to cause-related and traditional corporate print ads for one of four brands in a regional magazine, then were sent to shop in a mock store featuring 150 products. The result: Consumers bought brands associated with causes. A shampoo brand with a cause marketing ad saw a 74 percent increase in sales while a toothpaste brand experienced a 28 percent lift. 

The bottom line: cause-related marketing helps drive sales while creating good public relations for your company.

2. Differentiate from Competitors. 

Strategic business partnerships between corporations and non-profits provide a positive ROI for the business and raise money and visibility for the cause. 

3. Re-Build Trust.  

Bailouts, CEO golden parachutes, corporate greed and scandals continue to be headlines.  Cause programs can help re-build your corporation’s brand image and help re-establish trust among your employees and external stakeholders.

4. Make meaningful connections. 

Cause marketing is an opportunity to link your brand to the wants, needs, lifestyle and interests of your stakeholders. Doing so will help you connect with them in a way no other marketing tactic can. 

5. Be accountable to consumers.

A Snider, Hill & Martin Study (2003) found that 82 percent of respondents believe that firms should engage in social initiatives, while 76 percent believe these initiatives would benefit not only society but also the firm. These findings were confirmed in the Cone Cause Evolution Study (2007), which reported that 83 percent of Americans believe companies have a responsibility to support social causes, and 92 percent value companies that positively impact social issues more than those who do not. 

6.  Improve employee recruitment and retention.

In 2007, Harris Interactive found that 87 percent of college students want to work for companies that support charitable causes. That trend isn’t just among Millennials. A 2004 Deloitte Touche Study found 72 percent of all employees in the U.S. want to work  for companies that support charitable causes. 

Your company can leverage the power of motivated, passionate employees for profitable growth and employee recruitment, retention and productivity.

7. Increase employee engagement. 

Numerous studies have shown the positive effects of volunteerism — not just for the cause or nonprofit but for developing superior leadership skills and encouraging cross-function teamwork among employees. Like your consumers, your employees are also looking for meaningful connections. 

8. Help your employees become brand evangelists.  

Your employees can be your brand’s best spokespersons and boosters, and cause marketing can help your workforce become more engaged in the business. The result: Your employees work for you not because they have to, but because they want to. This is especially true with larger retailers that have historically have high turnover rates. 

9. Benefit from positive ROI

Proctor & Gamble has practiced cause marketing for decades, executing both brand specific and corporate-wide programs here and abroad. P&G would not continue supporting and increasing cause marketing efforts if the returns did not perform at least as well as their other efforts. 

10. Make an authentic contribution to the community. 

Communities will reward the brand heroes that made a true connection with them and cause marketing is win-win tactic for the corporation and the social cause or non-profit. The cash infusion from corporations into the non-profit sector is critical, especially today given continued cut-backs in public sector contributions, and an anticipated drop in private sector contributions.

There are a number of interrelated drivers for this shift including pressure from securities regulators and large institutional investors, more stringent purchasing guidelines among mass retailers and other corporations, and a new zeitgeist among consumers of all ages that places as much priority on values as on value.

One of the key questions posed by Ms Maxwell is “With all this talk of measurement and disclosure, what has happened to the social dimension?” Some interesting examples are cites including programs by Unilever that foster economic development and sustainability for communities where it operates (see: Unilever commits to sourcing all its tea from sustainable sources.)

However, it finding the sweet spot remains challenging – largely because the management tools used in corporations are almost always quantitative and social outcomes involve behaviour change that, if successfull, lead to qualitative change with respect to issues including health, health care, environment, education, and so on.

At Impakt, we’re faced with this challenge on a daily basis. Recently, we developed a new tool that is a first step towards helping CSR managers understand the value of their social purpose programs. We call it the Partnership Valuation Tool and its essentially a cost/benefit analysis for community programs that involve significant investment but have largely qualitative benefits/outcomes.

I  think that finding the convergence of financial and social returns can and should be done in a more disciplined way. However this is territory that will always depend on good judgment by corporate managers and community leaders. As the sign in Einstein’s office at Princeton read “Not everything that counts can be counted, and not everything that can be counted counts.”