Continuing the Spirit of Giving

The key to successful strategic philanthropy is making it strategic. A non-profit has collaborated with a for-profit that provides a winning strategy for all. The Women’s Foundation for a Greater Memphis was looking for a way to say thank you to its donors. They came up with the idea to load a Kroger gift card with five dollars. The strategic part being, when the donor goes grocery shopping, they load the $5 gift card with their grocery money, and after paying for the groceries with the card, Kroger donates 5 percent of the total amount spent to the foundation. Thus, each time the donor grocery shops, they are giving to the foundation.

This strategy is highly effective for cause related marketing for both the for-profit and non-profit organizations. The for-profit benefits by aligning itself with a non-profit that the consumer cares about, while the non-profit aligns with a for-profit that helps them easily generate donations.

Typically, for-profits will give cash (which is a non-profit’s favorite type of gift), but this strategy is effective because it is a continual circle of giving that creates a positive relationship between the sectors and the consumer.

Click here to read the article, http://www.memphisdailynews.com/news/2011/nov/24/cause-marketing-fulfills-circle-of-giving/.

Advertising that matches Brand Messaging

Amnesty International has been known for its creative ad campaigns. This one is strikingly different as it ties the brand message to its advertising seamlessly.

The campaign illustrated the effects of human bondage by placing advertisements in iPad magazine apps. When a user is flipping through a digital magazine and comes to the Amnesty International ad, the screen bounces as if it won’t let the user through, but then after a few tries, it pops up with the message “Torture disappears only when one is doing something about it.”

It is important to match the brand’s message through various types of advertising. It is even better when you can convey the message in a way that makes users stop and think about your ad, and have a strong call to action at the end. This ad is a great example that demonstrates an effective way of using interactive media to communicate the brand’s message.

Location Based Ads: The Future of Advertising?

Location-based ad targeting is a growing trend in the advertising industry. These ads are sent to mobile users via text or Tweets as soon as an individual checks into a store or location using Facebook or Foursquare. LocalResponse is a new company that has received $5 million from venture capital investments, according to an article by AdWeek. The article discussed that there are two types of location-based ads, explicit and implicit. Explicit is when someone checks-in via Foursquare or Yelp, and implicit is when people tag photos when they are at different locations.

According to the article, LocalResponse has software that allows them to tweet replies to a user’s check-in with a link to that business’s site or an offer. They say this has received an average of 40 percent clickthrough rate. This trend will most likely increase during the holiday season as advertisers and businesses like Macy’s are using QR codes and location-based targeting to reach customers. If effective, this should increase sales significantly.

Another interesting use of location-based targeting was used by Verizon. When people would check-in at competing cellphone companies or post complaints about a company, Verizon would respond with a tweet offering $100 to switch services to Verizon. According to the article, this campaign generated a 135 percent clickthrough rate. Location-based ad targeting will likely increase in the next few years, but there may be issues of privacy. Not everyone enjoys the idea of people knowing exactly where you are and what you’re doing; however, there are those that have boarded the technology train that will empower this type of advertising.

To read a few articles about this topic visit:
http://www.adweek.com/news/technology/location-based-mobile-advertising-real-135758
http://www.adweek.com/news/advertising-branding/dreaming-mobile-christmas-136213

This article counters mobile advertising and says that social media marketing is the future:
http://www.adweek.com/news/technology/facebook-brand-exec-rip-traditional-marketing-136326