How To Package A Cause To Sell More Products

What is “cause marketing” anyway? I think it is a misunderstood concept for the vast majority of people. The definition for this type of campaign came from the Cause Marketing Forum. (Note: It is not the endorsement of a product by a celebrity to sell more products.) We will touch more on celebrity marketing and product packaging in a future issue.

When I spoke at the M2W conference about cause marketing to women, I was surprised to find other speakers talking about the same issue. The problem was that all of us used the same example of supporting a cause (breast cancer) in marketing to women. I know breast cancer is an important issue and companies like Yoplait and Eveready have done an excellent job in using this as a marketing tool. Unfortunately, it’s really sad when experts use the same example to illustrate cause marketing. This begs that there are a lot of missed cause marketing opportunities out there.

There are many excellent causes that make great opportunities for enhancing your packaging’s “sale appeal” too. I found a very interesting example from Celestial Seasonings tea packaging. The graphics on packs of two new teas feature woman wearing a designer style red dress icon and provide educational information about women’s risk of heart disease. Additionally, Celestial Seasonings pledges a portion of the proceeds from the sale of new teas to WomenHeart. They also donate up to $100,000 generated from the Red Dress pin offer featured on 17 million tea boxes. In addition, they expanded on the theme with other media events.

What about the message on bottled water? “Buy Water, Help Children.” Does it work for you? Their founders hope so because that’s the idea behind Ethos bottled water. In a crowded marketplace (there are more than 800 different brands of bottled water) Ethos sets itself apart through its social mission. Can this product connect though its product packaging?

Two weeks ago I wrote “The Power of the Package” and discussed how mainstream marketers are losing out with conventional advertising. I offered information on the importance of how your packaging needs to engage, evoke, and engross the consumer with the right marketing message.

Just this week Ad Age reported that a new book reports that 37% of all advertising is wasted. The book by marketing industry veterans, Greg Stuart and Rex Briggs, details a five year research project that tracked $1 billion in ad spending by 36 major marketers and concluded that 37% of all advertising spending is wasted.

I agree that it is wasted. I have been studying this issue for a while and looking at advertising marketing messages (especially on the packaging). I wonder every time I see a new campaign at whom is it aimed. Most the time it’s totally unclear to whom the product is aimed. Despite all that is being written about marketing to various demographic groups, they still don’t get it in the advertising messages. Major demographic markets are overlooked. In fact, I will be speaking about some important demographics at two upcoming conferences.

So think about causes that your company can identify with. Consider causes where there is synergy between the message and the product. Don’t just pick a cause for a marketing gimmick. It needs to complement and expand your brand.

How can you integrate the cause into your product packaging? Can you successfully create a compelling message? Will the “cause” and the manner in which it is portrayed on your product packaging engage the consumer and get them to pick your product up off the shelf?

Cause marketing is a valuable and innovative marketing tool. Successfully utilized it can get expanded media coverage at different times during the year.

So, think about the causes that make sense for your product. Integrate them into your marketing plan. Look at the calendar and see where you can capitalize on your product packaging with branded cause campaigns and plan your marketing accordingly.

About the Author:

JoAnn Hines is the Chief Executive Officer at J.R. Hines International, a firm providing consulting services in the packaging industry. For over 30 years, Ms. Hines has been engaged in packaging trends, forecasting, ideation/brainstorming and implementing innovative new packaging technologies.

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