Brands Give Back This Holiday Season

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Tis the season of holiday shopping. Across America, customers are storming malls in force, hoping to check items off on their holiday shopping lists at the best prices available.

But many shoppers are looking for something else in the gifts they are giving this year. According to a recent study by Cone Communications, 94% of consumers are likely to switch brands, about equal in price and quality, to one that supports a social issue. Cause marketing is no longer a nice-to-have for brands. Many are making it a central part of their marketing strategy this holiday season.

Whole Foods Market: While you’re placing an order for your Christmas turkey, you can also make a donation to the “No Kid Hungry” campaign. Through this program, Share Our Strength works with youth organizations, food banks and other organizations to provide food to hungry children. For every dollar donated through their site, Whole Foods Market will match up to $25,000.

Toys R Us: The toy retailer has teamed up with the Marines Toys for Tots Foundation for over seven years. This year, Toys R Us takes it to a new level by introducing Shaq-a-Claus. Basketball star Shaquile O’Neal is this year’s spokesman for the campaign, which will continue to accept cash donations online and at the register through Christmas Eve.

Payless: This campaign aims to give shoes to children in need through local charities and organizations that serve those in need. Payless Gives has pledged to give away 50,000 shoes through December. Unlike many other campaigns, this program does not require customers to donate—it is funded by Payless.

Does a brand’s participation in a charity during the holidays change your perception? Are you more likely to shop at stores like Whole Foods Market, Toys R Us, and Payless given their emphasis on charitable

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Is Your Mobile Marketing Strategy Cute, Cool, or Critical?

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In September, I attended FutureM, a Boston-based conference that explores the intersection between marketing and technology. It was a fantastic event, brimming with energy and enthusiasm about what’s next for cutting-edge marketers.

Though sessions ranged from social media to content marketing to analytics, the word on everyone’s lips was “mobile.” As customers are embracing increasingly hectic lives, they are turning to their mobile phones to make more than calls. They are using them to research products, engage with brands, and even make purchases.

Make no mistake — the mobile era is upon us.

As with any new technology, it can be difficult to figure out how to integrate mobile into your strategy. Many companies have rushed to create apps only to be disappointed with the impact they have on the bottom line. So how do you avoid this kind of misstep?

Make sure that your foray into mobile brings value to your customer.

During one session, John Caron, Senior Vice President of Marketing at Modiv Media, summed it up well. Mobile strategies fall under three categories — cute, cool, and critical.

Cute: These are fun, nifty ways to interact with customers, like check-ins, scavenger hunts, etc. Although check-ins are great, they don’t necessarily lead an increase in activity at the check-out line. Foursquare is a great example. This mobile app encourages users to check-in at retail outlets in exchange for points, badges, and mayorships, but it isn’t clear what these location-based services offer to customers beyond bragging rights.

Cool: This application of mobile gives something unique to its users. It enhances your customer’s experience by bringing tangible value, but it isn’t necessarily changing or greatly improving that experience. LevelUp, a new mobile payments system, is on the right track. When you pay using your LevelUp code and your mobile phone, you get credits you can spend in that store, and incentive to go back as you unlock more and more credits.

Critical: This is when you’ve integrated mobile into your strategy in a way that fundamentally changes how business is done. It brings a whole new dimension to your business that also brings value to your customers. A great example of this is Lowe’s recent decision to purchase 42,000 iPhones for use by employees working the floor. Frontline employees will be able answer customer questions and process purchases on the spot. That’s a game-changer, if ever I’ve heard of one.

Above of all, avoid the “CEO Checklist” approach to mobile marketing. Don’t create an app or buy iPhones for your staff simply because the CEO says so. Figure out which of the three categories it falls into, and map it to your larger strategy.

What company is using mobile well to reach customers? Do you think their approach is cute, cool, or critical to their business?

This post was originally appeared on Beneath the Brand.

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IKEA Introduces Daddy Daycare

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It all starts with the catalog. Every few months, IKEA sends me a catalog that inevitably has me looking around my living room for lamps, coffee tables, or throw pillows that need to be replaced. I begin to plot my next trip to my local IKEA much as a child does her first trip to Disneyland — with anticipation and unbridled excitement.

My husband does not.

He is also not alone. While I am never one for gender-based stereotypes, this one consistently holds true. Women giddily approach IKEA stores while their male counterparts trudge behind like they are being sent to detention. In a very practical sense, this could be problematic for IKEA’s brand. If it becomes too difficult or distasteful for couples to plan trips to their stores, the brand’s image as a fun, friendly furniture store begins to lose its shine.

One IKEA in Sydney Australia is doing its best to counter this by introducing Manland. Think of it as an in-store daycare center for grown men. While their wives and girlfriends pick out new dishes, they can play Xbox or foosball and eat free hot dogs. Just in case one might be tempted to leave their significant other in Manland forever, shoppers are equipped with buzzers that remind them to pick up their partner in 30 minutes.

Your first instinct is to laugh, right? Now think again. This is genius on IKEA’s part. When IKEA came on the scene in the U.S., they had to radically change how people thought about buying furniture. Rather than stodgy heirloom pieces, IKEA offers stylish, affordable furniture with considerate service. They provide you with the tools to make better shopping decisions like tape measures, pencils and shopping lists, childcare — and for lucky Sydney shoppers, Manland.

There is, of course, potential harm that could come of this strategy. Manland has sparked debate about whether or not this kind of “daddy daycare” perpetuates strict gender roles or coddles men. Should this debate continue, this could be problematic for the brand. IKEA would need to expand these centers carefully so as to avoid any negative sentiment.

If IKEA decides to roll out Manland to more locations, I will admit that I am torn. Which will lure me in first — a new entertainment center or the actual entertainment of Xbox and hotdogs? From IKEA’s perspective, it doesn’t matter. Either way I’m in their store, and that’s half the battle.

What do you think of IKEA’s Manland? Should they roll out more “daddy daycare” centers?

This post was originally appeared on Beneath the Brand.

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Is Pink Bad for National Breast Cancer Awareness Month?

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October marks the beginning of National Breast Cancer Awareness Month. This annual event aims to generate awareness for breast cancer and raise money for finding a cure.

This event also is pretty hard to miss. Why? Because it is bright pink. Pink pins are on every lapel. Walk into almost any store in this month and you’ll see pink merchandise that encourages customers to “shop their way to a cure.” A small sample of these products include t-shirts, staplers, KitchenAid mixers, and even aSnuggie. A percentage of the proceeds made from these purchases go back to breast-cancer foundations to fund research.

This is perhaps one of the most effective social marketing campaigns in recent history. According to a new USA TODAY/Gallup Poll, 84% buy pink, breast-cancer tie-in products. Seventy percent have donated money, and 46% have participated in fundraising events. But is it possible that all this pink is doing more harm than good?

According to this same USA TODAY/Gallup Poll, one in three say the intense focus on breast cancer overshadows other worthy causes. Many have accused companies of “pink washing” when there is little correlation between the cause and the products themselves.

But perhaps the most troubling findings on the effects of all this pink come from Professor Stefano Puntoni of the Rotterdam School of Management. According to Puntoni’s research, seeing the color pink actually makes women less likely to think they’ll get breast cancer and less likely to donate to cancer research. Why? Because this color — associated with gender — triggers strong denial mechanisms.

For this reason, I think that the time has come for pink. Though the association is still strong, it is beginning to lose its meaning and therefore some of its impact. If the goal is to get people to take breast cancer seriously, now is the perfect moment for shift in campaign strategy.

But what do you think? Is all this pink a way to support of worthy cause or, as one breast cancer survivor puts it, has it “become more like background noise than the original cry for help?”

This post was originally appeared on Beneath the Brand.

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Levi’s Tries Cause Marketing on for Size

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What do jeans, clean water, and South African orphans have in common? Levi Strauss & Co.

Levi’s recently launched their Go Forth campaign to generate awareness and funding for innovative non-profit organizations. In exchange for fan engagement (be it a like on Facebook, a tweet on Twitter, or a view on YouTube) Levi’s will donate money to a cause. This has helped bring clean water to over 8,000 communities in Africa for life through Water.org, and will contribute to educational programs for South African orphans affected by the AIDS epidemic in their country through Thanda After-School. It might seem like a strange mix, but while it is promoting do-gooders, this could do the Levi’s brand a world of good too.

Levi’s used to be the dominant player in the jeans market, but over the past several years the brand has seen its position as leader erode, caught between cheaper products from overseas and a rise in premium jean brands like 7 For All Mankind. In an attempt to boost their bottom line, Levi’s struck partnerships with retail outlets like Walmart, which increased distribution but may have had some negative long-term effects.

All this has led to a bit of brand schizophrenia. Why do people want to buy Levi’s jeans? What does the brand stand for? And what exactly does clean water have to do with it?

The Levi’s Go Forth campaign is an excellent example of cause marketing. By partnering with non-profits that share its values, Levi’s can emphasize what makes the brand unique. Unlike cheaper competitors, Levi’s isn’t concerned with an unending race to the bottom. And unlike premium brand jeans, Levi’s isn’t for people simply concerned with looking good. Levi’s is the brand for leaders, change-makers, and revolutionaries.

This cause marketing campaign works for two very important reasons:

It reestablishes Levi’s as the brand of choice for pioneers. Regardless of its position in the market, the Levi’s brand has always stood for rugged individualism. The name of the campaign alone speaks volumes. You want to go forth, to take the world by storm. Levi’s gets it. Each organization nominated for support is called a pioneer, a word infused with the same attributes Levi’s is trying to reclaim.

It repositions Levi’s within a global context. These jeans have always been tied to a uniquely American story. Founded by an immigrant and built into an empire, Levi Strauss & Co. embodies what many believe it means to be American — tough, daring, and cool. In an increasing global environment, this could translate to a narrow, U.S.-only view of the brand. So far, the two pioneering organizations spotlighted by Levi’s are operating outside the United States. This helps break the brand out beyond its American roots.

There are, of course, many other great benefits to a cause marketing campaign. Let’s not forget that Levi’s is raising money and awareness for some fantastic organizations that are creating positive change where it is needed most.

Good on you, Levi’s.

What do you think of the Go Forth campaign? Does it change how you perceive the Levi’s brand?

This post was originally appeared on Beneath the Brand.

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