CMO Council launches fundraising campaign

The corporate social responsibility (CSR) campaign has the potential to direct as much as 10% of the US$18.9 billion spent on market research worldwide to numerous non-profits. It aims to create a global community of millions of research-ready and receptive panelists willing to take part in online surveys and market feedback studies.

How it works

By responding to, and completing research, opt-in panel participants could enable funds to be channeled to certain causes, charities, and foundations. For participating businesses, "Pause for Cause" aims to lower research costs, shorten fielding times, heighten response rates, and encourage more active year-round participation in market feedback, engagement and listening programs.

The international campaign was developed by Ed Martin, director of international insight and new methods at The Hershey Company. Non-profits, market research groups, advertising and marketing associations that have registered so far include the Business Civic Leadership Center of the US. Chamber of Commerce.

Participant benefits

"Market researchers typically earmark substantial funds to field research and reward panel and survey participants through incentives, rewards, giveaways and other gifts that gain or induce response," noted Donovan Neale-May, the executive director of the CMO Council. "By formalising and linking survey fielding and response to non-profit donations, corporate marketers and researchers can add a powerful altruistic appeal and ensure that market research dollars produce real social value and meaningful improvement to brand image and perception."

Fundraisers and foundations will anchor the program, enabling global marketers to access a large, diverse and motivated research panel. This can enable surveys to be fielded more cost-effectively and efficiently, and will also improve response rates among hard-to-reach demographics. Among those committed are the American Red Cross, Special Olympics, March of Dimes, Malaria No More, Feed the Children, Marine Toys for Tots Foundation, DonorsChoose.org, American Kidney Fund and the Humane Society of the United States.

The campaign website is live at www.surveyforgood.org. Three important, back-end panel registration/selection, cause verification and donation processing partners - Peanut Labs, Charity Navigator, and Network for Good - will enable global execution, compliance, visibility, transparency and scalability. Zooppa.com, a social network for creators of user-generated advertising, will spearhead public service campaign development with an online competition to its 42,000-member community to produce ads, videos, banners and rich media messages. Participating media partners will run these in online, print, electronic and outdoor channels.

Pause to Support a Cause model

"The Pause to Support a Cause model will be driven by word-of-mouth in social networks and non-profit communities where members can talk up this innovative way to fund raise," stated Patricia Goldman, chief marketing officer of March of Dimes, one of the non-profit advocates of the program. "Its real power lies in enabling people do something for a cause which they specifically care about with minimal time, effort and no out-of-pocket expense."

Each supporting company or market research firm will design their studies, create their survey instruments, and specify which audiences they would like to target and engage. The nature of the research, type of respondent and length of the questionnaire will determine how much is donated to the cause. Panelists will need to go online to www.surveyforgood.org to opt-in to the program, profile themselves, and specify what topics and frequency of research they are willing to undertake. They will also be able to specify their favourite causes where donations will be directed based on survey completions.

"Pause to Support a Cause will also resonate with more difficult-to-reach consumers and research audiences and will give non-profit partners a simple and effective way to increase their visibility, attract additional funding, and connect with new donors and contributors," noted Edward G. Martin of The Hershey Company, who leads the campaign as a senior fellow of the CMO Council. "We are confident that Pause for Cause will be rapidly embraced by the business and non-profit communities because it connects people to causes for which they have great passion."

Corporate advisors, supporters and underwriters include The Hershey Company, Procter & Gamble, Ford, Farmers Insurance, MTV, AmFam, Ipsos, Lieberman, Think Vehicles, and AOL, among others.