Cause Marketing: The Difference Between a Great Success Story and an Epic Fail
More and more brands are using cause marketing to position themselves as socially conscious businesses. There is general consensus that consumers favor companies that are socially minded. They are more likely to purchase from companies that do good and even pay a price premium for products that are tied to a social cause. Cause marketing has tremendous potential to elevate a company’s brand and revenue, but it’s not an easy path to navigate. Consumers don’t blindly respond to any social cause championed by any company. Consumers respond (positively) only to those they perceive to be sincere.
#HugeSuccess
One example of a tremendously successful effort is Always’ #LikeAGirl campaign. Here’s the video that launched the ongoing and now international campaign:
The video, which was launched in 2014, has 61M YouTube views and are changing the way people react to the phrase “like a girl”. According to D&AD, Always’ brand equity saw double digit growth while most of its competitors saw declines. The #LikeAGirl hashtag continues to be used globally to express the empowerment of women. It has also become an integral part of the Always brand. By all measures, this campaign was a #HugeSuccess.
#EpicFail
In contrast, Starbucks’s valiant effort to engage the public in racial conversations through a #RaceTogether campaign, which included having Baristas write “Race Together” on your caramel macchiato, was an #epicfail. Here are a few sample responses from the public:
#Why
Both are established brands, addressing important social issues. What’s the difference between these campaigns? I argue there are two major differences that drove one to success and the other to a “learning experience”.
First and foremost is brand consistency. It’s so important that I’ve developed a framework for it.
Who the company is, what it does, and what it cares about need to be consistent to be believable to the consumer. Always has a long history of commitment to empowering girls through puberty education. Given that they are a female hygiene company, girls empowerment is consistent with their brand. What they care about reinforces who they are and what they do. The cause comes from the core of the company and is easily perceived by the public as sincere.
Starbucks, on the other hand, chose a cause that is not core to who they are and what they do. The company does care about race and equity. Howard Schultz is a champion for corporate social impact and is committed to having open racial dialogues. The reasons behind the campaign were sincere. However, the lack of coherence between their identity as a coffee provider and their advocacy for racial dialogues generated the perception that this was opportunistic rather than sincere. Starbucks should care about racial equity; their organizational culture and policies should reflect that; but that is not something for them to launch a public cause marketing campaign about. That is just not what they do.
The second differentiation is execution. Always launched the campaign with a video made by Lauren Greenfield, an award-winning Sundance Film Festival, that challenged the meaning of a commonly used phrase “like a girl”. It was relatable. It was remarkable. It blew people’s minds. It was share-worthy, and it went viral. The video spurred conversations across the world and became a movement.
Starbucks launched with a full page ad in the New York Times, USA Today inserts, memos to Baristas to write “Race Together” on cups, and a video (that few have seen) of Howard Schultz discussing why race is important to Starbucks and why they’re launching this campaign. Everything was pushed onto the consumer. Nothing sparked inner remarkability. All the direct advertising reinforced the perception that this was just another advertising ploy rather than a sincere stance for a social cause.
#TheEnd
There you have it, the difference between creating a movement and a teachable moment. It’s important for companies to really understand the concept of “picking your battles”. While there are many causes that a company (and its executives) may feel passionate about, they should create campaigns only for those that are consistent with their identity and brand. Otherwise, consumers may perceive it as an insincere marketing ploy.
