Getting Started with Cause-Related Marketing

Many nonprofits join forces with companies to conduct campaigns aimed at consumers and potential donors. These efforts generally include a call to action: asking people to cast a vote, share a message with friends, buy a product so a portion of the proceeds will support a nonprofit, or make a direct donation to a worthy cause.

Nonprofits and businesses often reach new donors or new customers who have an above-average interest in a cause or brand. Other mutual benefits include positive publicity, raising organizational profiles, and bringing in more revenue. However, successful campaigns take time, resources, and careful planning.

What needs to be in place to create alliances with companies interested in your work? What steps should you take to get started in cause-related marketing?

Join the Chronicle and three experts to get answers to these questions and more. David Hessekiel, president of Engage for Good, will present an overview of the corporate philanthropic landscape and walk through different kinds of cause-related marketing campaigns and identify pitfalls to avoid.

Maureen Carlson, who has overseen more than $275 million raised through corporate partnerships at the Children's Miracle Network Hospitals, will share examples of marketing campaigns her organization has developed with businesses. She'll offer tips for success at all levels, from regional efforts that raise $25,000 to large-scale national ventures that raise $50 million, drawing from years of experience creating nonprofit-corporate alliances.

And Nancy Curby of Feeding America will share several examples from the scores of campaigns her nonprofit conducts each year. She'll outline emerging trends and explain how her organization has expanded its alliances beyond traditional corporate supporters, such as retailers, restaurants, and manufacturers of packaged goods, and even secured support from industries that only market to other businesses.

Together these experts will share 10 things to increase your odds of success when making corporate deals, including how to start a relationship with a business, assess your nonprofit's value to a company, manage expectations within your organization, and deliver on promises after a deal is struck.

What Will You Learn?

• What companies look for when picking charitable organizations to support
• How to make initial contacts with companies interested in your mission
• Key capabilities a nonprofit must master to win corporate deals

Who Should Attend?

• Chief development officers and development directors
• Fundraisers overseeing corporate relations
• Executive directors

originally Aired: September 27, 2018

This webinar is worth one CFRE credit.