Cause It's Good

There is no doubt that cause marketing is important. In fact, almost all (95%) Canadians agree that it is a good idea for companies to support causes. It turns out it is also a smart business move. According to results of a recent study conducted by Ipsos, the vast majority (84%) of Canadians claim that they would likely switch to a brand affiliated with a good cause if price and quality were similar.

As Canadians, we see ourselves as socially responsible, and we are increasingly loyal to brands that "do good," such as supporting causes. This shows that consumers in Canada are becoming more interested in how companies are contributing to society and giving back. To take advantage of this trend, the key opportunity is to find how to connect with people in a way that presents the cause in a personally relevant and unique manner.

The data reveal that 45% of Canadians consider themselves loyal to brands that support good causes - an increase of 6 percentage points since last year. Further, 39% of Canadians say that a company's affiliation with good causes is `Extremely Important/Important' to them when making purchase decisions.

In the 2015 research, the companies that are most top-of-mind for supporting good causes are Canadian Tire (13%), Tim Hortons (11%), and McDonald's (7%).

The study examined which type of causes Canadians feel companies should support. There really is a cause for every business and organization. Top causes for Canadians are poverty (61%), environment (58%), child specific (56%), and mental health (54%). Even those causes that do not make it into the top tier are still of interest to approximately half of Canadians.

Cause marketing can take many forms, too. The preferred methods of engagement are having a portion of proceeds go to a cause (33%), donating at the cash (24%), and a buy one/give one offer (22%). Whatever the method, stories that have a local connection are significantly preferred (50%) over a national (37%) and international causes (13%).

Marketing causes has a lot of similarities to "traditional" marketing. Success lies in finding a relevant and meaningful way to share the cause's story, and doing so in a unique manner that resonates with Canadians. That's what this research seeks to provide - line of sight into the idiosyncrasies specific to cause marketing to find this relevance and unique message.

For more on this topic, please read our article in Marketing Magazine.