Your Competition Wins if They Support a Charity (Any Charity…)

A whopping 80% of buyers will jump from their brand loyalty to another product?if?that product meets one and only one criterion. Right now, you’re thinking that you know what it is. It’s the money factor, right? The second one is cheaper. You would be wrong.

The second brand GIVES. It has a charity or a cause associated with it. As a matter of fact, not only will the customer jump from their normal product that they like and is a known commodity in their lives to the charity-endorsed product, but they will jump even if the second one is more expensive (as long as it isn’t prohibitively more expensive).

The Cone Communications Report that studied this still had more to teach, however. The 80% rule seems to be a feel-good status that the donating product gives an emotional double-coupon day. You needed the macaroni/shampoo/olive oil anyway, so you might as well buy the one that?also?does some good. The funny thing was that it didn’t have to be the buyer’s cause. It was simply?a cause. You might give to the United Way, but the spaghetti gives water to puppies in Iraq. Who doesn’t like puppies? Your family always participates in an Alzheimer’s fundraiser, but this frozen pizza donates to homeless Vets. We like to feel like we are making good and healthy choices, so we brand jump to the one that is doing the work to make the world a slightly better place.

The 80% rule doesn’t apply to everyone though. If you are a mom or a millennial, it’s 90%. Right now, you should be rethinking your entire business plan. Moms do the vast majority of the shopping for entire households (a thankless job according to me who just so happens to be a mom and the shopper for our home). Millennials also are known to be the primary purchasers, and they will pay more for the items they like and that’s not just kale chips and beard oil.

In the back of your mind, you know this. It’s why we’ve seen shifts in the corporate world speaking more and more openly about their giving. You’ve seen it on cereal boxes, and in commercials, I even got a flyer at an Arby’s drive-thru (don’t judge me), about their support of feeding children who don’t get a lot to eat. Earlier you thought you knew the answer, and that it was money. You were right. It’s just that people like that their money is doing some good.

So, what’s your company supporting? And are you letting people know?

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Doing Good Is Good Business

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