corporate benefits of cause branding
Consumer loyalty and engagement: Associating with a feel-good brand engages consumers on a deeper level. If you represent something that makes customers feel good about themselves, you can expect increased loyalty and repeat business.
Top of mind awareness: When your company stands for something more than just products and services, you can begin an emotional relationship with the consumer well before he/she enters the purchasing cycle.
Access to new audiences: Many strategic partners trade lists and contacts as part of an alliance agreement. By engaging such contacts effectively, these can become your new customers.
Increased exposure: Cause branding automatically multiplies the number of times a consumer thinks of your company. In time, any contact with your cause may trigger a positive association with your company.
Positive media attention: In addition to valuable exposure by stakeholders who use social media, alignment with a cause can generate plenty of positive attention in conventional media, too.
Sales tools: A cause-related brand can provide your sales force with more engaging materials, a conversation, a multi-level relationship, and another reason to stay in touch.
Employee loyalty and engagement: Studies consistently show that happy employees are more productive. Companies that offer workplace volunteer programs involving employees in a common cause engage them on an emotional level as they gain leadership and teambuilding skills and bond with their teammates, bringing more overall satisfaction to the workplace.
Brand Ambassadors: When employees are highly engaged, they have something to boast about when asked about their work. Instead of reciting the day-to-day details of their job, they can talk about the company’s involvement with a cause.
Sharing the burden: More and more companies rely on workplace giving to supplement their contributions to the community. Deeper involvement with a specific cause is a gratifying way for employees to participate in workplace giving, so they are often more eager to donate or volunteer.
Employee recruitment: Cause branding is an easy entree into employer branding; recruiting employees who honestly want to work for your company automatically increases your talent pool.