Marketing With a Cause: Ep. 31 of Red Sky Fuel for Thought Podcast

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

o  What’s the current state of cause marketing?

o  The implications of cause marketing on a company’s relationship with its employees, community and clients/customers

o  What should brands and nonprofits consider before entering a cause marketing relationship?

In this month’s episode, hosts Linda Descano, CFA^®, and Lara Graulich speak with nonprofit leaders and advisors Arlene Fortunato, Katy Sherratt and Dr. Merary Simeon to explore cause marketing, including whether or not it’s still relevant and what brands and nonprofits should consider before entering a cause marketing relationship.

To kick off our conversation, Arlene Fortunato, founder of Fortunato Consulting Group and interim chief development officer at YW Boston, thinks of cause marketing as a vehicle that companies can use to engage existing and future employees—something particularly important in light of the Great Resignation and tight labor market. 

She then describes the essential ingredients for a successful cause marketing initiative: “It’s all data-driven. Corporations know who their customers are and what they care about, and they’re looking for relationships with nonprofit organizations that are going to deliver on those promises. The key on both sides is authenticity.”

“The cause marketing partnership is more than the money,” concludes Arlene. “Establishing relationships with companies at the leadership level can create opportunities for thought leadership and networking that wouldn’t have been possible otherwise. The more that you can knit together the two entities, the more value there is for the nonprofit and the corporation alike.”

Next in our discussion, we speak with Katy Sherratt, CEO of Back on My Feet, and Dr. Merary Simeon, vice president of human resources at PepsiCo and member of Back on My Feet’s board of directors. Back on My Feet is a Red Havas client.

“It’s important for your customers to feel that it’s a genuine relationship, integrated into more than just the marketing sphere,” says Katy. “If your core values align and you're looking to make meaningful impact that helps both communities and individuals, then it's a natural partnership.”

“It’s about transforming lives every day,” adds Merary through the lens of Back on My Feet. “We go out every day and find those powerful stories in the community — it isn’t just finding one story and using it for the rest of the year.”

Next, both guests describe what it takes to establish a successful partnership.

“Successful partnerships are multifaceted — integrated at every level of the organization,” says Katy. “It takes a village. We need, as every nonprofit does, all the support we can get to continue to have impact and to grow.”

“You must have a passion for investing in humanity and for making meaningful changes in society,” says Merary. “These are human lives — fathers, sons, brothers, sisters, mothers, daughters. They aren’t just a box to check.”

Closing out our discussion, both guests offer advice for nonprofit marketers and communicators to consider when forming partnerships.

“Don’t go blindly into partnerships — do your homework,” says Merary. “You have to be clear on what you're offering in your cause marketing relationships, not just for the communities you’re working to benefit, but also for the organizations themselves.”

“Be selective about the partnerships you do take on,” concludes Katy. “Take a step back and reassess if you feel unsure about their commitment to the work you’re doing. Ask more questions, and make sure that you're on the same page about what this partnership means for both of you.”

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