Win-Win-Win Marketing
by Fred on 22/07/07 at 4:01 pm
No comments
For the past 8 or so years I’ve been involved with a charity called Autism Western Cape. I’m on the board as their marketing advisor. Since 2002 Gerhard Pieterse, the chairman of AWC, and his partner Julie have built up the organisation from a disjointed effort into a well-known organisation in South Africa.
Our board now includes a team of luminaries such as Aletta Pearce, once of the smartest educational people in SA, Susan Vosloo (the heart surgeon successor to Christiaan Barnard), and Derek Watts, of Carte Blanche. We also had Ferdinand Rabie for a short and colourful stint, but that’s a story for another post.
We met last week to discuss their marketing strategy over the past year, and it was interesting to note that their challenges are exactly the same as the ones we face in small business.
The concept of ‘Win-Win-Win Marketing’
One thing I think is very different, however, is the concept of ‘Win-Win-Win Marketing’, an idea unique to charity. It’s sometimes also called ‘Cause Related Marketing’ (don’t even start on the acronym). Anyone who is interested in fundraising for charity needs to start by understanding this fundamental concept within social investment. It’s the way the big benefactors think, and it’s often how their accountants determine where they get full value for their buck.
Marketing in a business context is all about ‘Win-Win’ – i.e. a value exchange. This is where the business wins and the customer wins. The charitable version, ‘Win-Win-Win Marketing’, is all about the Charity winning, the Cause winning, as well as the benefactor winning.
The benefactor wins by glowing in the positive publicity that is generated by association, in addition to the goodwill created by giving to a worthy cause.
Add to this the fact that recent studies have shown that people will choose Brand A over Brand B if they know that Brand A is a socially conscious company*.
You are personally invited:
And so, in the name of winning, all round, I’d like to invite anyone who’s interested to partake in the Autism Western Cape annual golf day. Click here to contact Gerhard and book your place. It’s only R2000 for a 4-ball. World Wide Creative will be there in full force, so you’re welcome to join us.
And, yes, it’s tax deductable, and you’ll get to meet famous people, and probably end up in the newspaper.
So, what are you waiting for?
*I’m too lazy right now to search for a link to verify this. You just going to have to believe me for now.
Fred Roed is the marketing guy in the Ideate crew. He runs a web marketing company called World Wide Creative and loves writing about people out there doing marketing right. View more articles by Fred.
