Brand Spirit: How Cause‐Related Marketing Builds Brands

Citation

Dupree, J. (2000), "Brand Spirit: How Cause‐Related Marketing Builds Brands", Journal of Consumer Marketing, Vol. 17 No. 5, pp. 455-466. https://doi.org/10.1108/jcm.2000.17.5.455.4

As a US business professor I found it ironic to be reviewing this book as I flew to and from England on vacation with my family. It was fun to drive by and visit a number of the England‐based businesses that are cited as cases in this excellent text.

I commend the authors for adding the element of the ethical and “spiritual” to the branding models of rational and emotional appeals and the recognition of both the large human dimension of the consumer and the large impact of products on the consumer. This well‐researched, thorough, and clearly‐written book occasionally turns into a Saatchi and Saatchi print commercial as the values, beliefs, and practices of this firm are closely interwoven throughout.

Essentially, Pringle and Thompson suggest that, as consumers have moved through rational and emotional motivations (first and second waves of marketing), they have come to a concern about “what a brand believes in” (the third wave – cause‐related marketing (CRM)). This growing consumer social consciousness creates the opportunity for CRM. The authors argue that, as consumers once bought products for what they did for them or how they made them feel, they now are buying products as an expression of their own social consciousness. This results in a double win – providing a competitive advantage for companies that pick up on it and providing a bottom‐line rationale for doing the right thing in terms of social responsibility.

Well‐documented with multiple examples, Brand Spirit is an excellent source of international, European case studies on branding issues and cause‐related marketing. A very English book in terms of terminology, examples, etc., the USA and Asian‐based professor will find it an excellent supplement. If the 27 chapters seem a bit much for classroom use, I suggest that the reader should view it more as a seven‐chapter (parts) book, with the chapters as subtopics. Each short, pithy chapter is capped with one or more case study applications of content. Each case study concludes with a few paragraphs integrating chapter content.

In Part I, “Cause‐related marketing” (CRM), the authors argue for the strategic value of cause‐related marketing in defining a product’s “territory” through a brief discussion of the concept and a single case study of American Express’s “Charge against hunger”.

Part II, “The pre‐conditions for cause‐related marketing”, uses four chapters and as many case studies to make the argument that the use of CRM is an effective way to retain customer loyalty and diminish or delay the “commodity” effect that overtakes most brands at some point. CRM also cuts through the communication clutter that marks so much of marketing communication. For example, Procter & Gamble successfully overcame the basic commodity nature of its Dash detergent with its ACTIONAID program to supply good drinking water to Ethiopians. The authors use Maslow’s hierarchy, an approach to human behavior currently under heavy questioning in the USA, as proof of the evolution of consumer behavior to its current concern with causes. Unfortunately, they make no reference to the serious questioning of its continuing viability as a model. In the final chapter of this portion of the book the authors discuss the tapping of consumer sentiment/emotions through CRM, using the UK’s own ties to Princess Diana, her work with landmine eradication, and her death.

Part III, “The third wave of branding”, consisting of Chapters 6‐8, develops the premise of the book, that the first and second “waves” of marketing –unique selling proposition‐based marketing and the emotional selling proposition – are being replaced by the “third wave”, a “spiritual selling proposition”. This new proposition exists because what a brand signifies has moved from image or emotion to value. The power of branding comes from the personality the consumer attributes to it. The focus of this personality is now spiritual. Pringle and Thompson explain the rational school (first “wave”) and the emotional school (second “wave”) of marketing. In this relatively lengthy chapters in this pithy book, the authors draw on both American and European examples to make their case. It is here, slightly less than one‐third of the way into the book, that the authors begin to make their case for the emergence, beginning in the 1980s, of the third “wave” of spirituality and ethicality. “The third wave of branding” closes with an explanation of the power of belief systems and their effect on brand personality and customer perceptions. An interesting twist here is that Pringle and Thompson offer that one key to the success of a brand is the personality and risk‐taking of the entrepreneur/founder. It is the power of his/her belief, communicated to the consuming public, that builds their belief in the brand. No case study is offered, but rather numerous examples of companies such as McDonald’s, ASDA supermarket chain, 3M, etc.

The authors’ concern that some might confuse CRM with charity marketing, leads them to spend four chapters differentiating the two in Part IV, “The essentials of cause‐related marketing”. The primary distinctions seem to be the duration of the marketing effort, the fit between the cause and the company, and the company’s real commitment to the cause. Essentially, CRM in its best form builds a long‐term relationship between its brand and the cause, has a high degree of commitment to the cause, and integrates the cause and the brand. Commitment equals giving a larger portion of corporate budgets to single causes, rather than “hedging one’s bets” by spreading funds among numerous largely unrelated issues. The authors contend that the historical benefit of establishing foundations – essentially guaranteeing that funds will be available – is now offset by the nature of foundations concealing the corporation’s true contribution to society. Also, the authors get into the sociological issue of “old money” and “new money”, in terms of status. While this is an interesting sociological “study” it seems to diverge from the focus of the book. The authors laid the groundwork for a commercial reason for CRM earlier, but it is in Chapter 11 that they make their full defense. To this point the discussion has been largely qualitative. The authors now bring quantitative study after study to bear on this issue, building a strong empirical case for the wisdom and bottom‐line impact of CRM. A firm’s CRM may take one of three forms: partnership with an established charity, providing the funds directly to the cause, or a hybrid.

Parts I‐IV are helpful in understanding the origins and distinctives of CRM, and Parts VI and VII make an argument for the enduring value of CRM. But it is here at slightly more than the mid‐point that we finally get the meat of implementation of a CRM campaign in over 80 tightly written pages in Part V, “Creating a CRM campaign”.

The authors’ suggestions regarding the initial steps of establishing a campaign are straightforward and not especially CRM‐related. It is in establishing the “territory” of the brand that Pringle and Thompson bring home the distinctives of CRM. It is the overlap of the three elements of a brand – the “product truth”, the consumer’s perception, and the brand character – that define the values and beliefs niche incarnate in the brand. Developing the CRM concept and its campaign is fairly straightforward, being distinguished only by an emphasis on the involvement of stakeholders for input and implementation. The choice of media venues for the campaign is much the same as for any other brand marketing effort. Key here is the consideration of the timing of promotional efforts with the spiritual or religious calendar of the target market. As the marketer seeks to emphasize the “spirit” of the brand, close attention must be paid to the spiritual element of the marketing environment. The choice of media, the timing of the campaign, and the form of the message all convey a “corporate body language” which must be consistent with the brand and its cause. While consistency between corporate image and product is always important, it is critical to the credibility and ultimate success of CRM. In a nod to the millennium and increasing dependency on technology, the authors attempt to relate the digital revolution to CRM by discussing the tendency of the Internet to reduce brands to commodities due to consumer price shopping. But since the Internet’s impact on the continuation and form of traditional retailing is universal to marketing and not particularly an element of CRM, this effort does not seem all that necessary or germaine.

The concluding two sections – Part VI, “Getting down to it”, and Part VII, “CRM’s past and future” – consist of two elaborated case studies and an argument that CRM will be an enduring future trend in marketing. Chapters 21 and 22 offer the case study of a large‐scale implementation of CRM by Liz Claiborne, and a smaller scale effort by Norwich Union and St John Ambulance, both of which are Saatchi clients. Pringle and Thompson conclude with an impassioned argument for the value and enduring nature of CRM. They argue that the combination of a “charity culture”, the growth of philanthropy in importance and dollar volume, and the increasing interconnectedness of people and institutions makes CRM a viable, powerful, long‐term marketing tool as well as a benefit to society. Hamish Pringle apparently believes in what he writes, as he has formed his own consultancy called Brand Beliefs Ltd. Marjorie Thompson continues in her role as Director of Saatchi and Saatchi’s Cause Connection.