Goodwill hunting? Influences of product‐cause fit, product type, and donation level in cause‐related marketing

Abstract

Purpose

Cause‐related marketing (CRM), the practice of donating money to a charity for each consumer purchase, has become an important part of corporate philanthropy. This research seeks to explore two types of product‐cause fit in CRM, and examine whether the selection of consistent‐fit and complementary‐fit causes could be influenced by product type and donation level.

Design/methodology/approach

An experiment in conjoint design was conducted based on a computer‐based survey involving 512 choice‐based conjoint interviews.

Findings

It is found that consumers are more likely to choose a hedonic product offering a donation with a complementary‐fit cause. In contrast, individuals tend to prefer a utilitarian product with a consistent‐fit cause. Beneficial effects of a complementary‐fit cause are enhanced when the donation level is high.

Originality/value

This paper is one of the first to present comprehensive qualitative analyses of consumer behavior with regard to product‐cause fit with diversity of products and situations. It provides more fruitful results than simple willingness‐to‐buy studies or direct inquires into people's attitudes toward CRM used in previous research, since less socially desired answers are obtained by taking an indirect approach to discovering consumer preferences. The paper raises concerns over the understanding of product‐cause fit and how exactly it works, especially with regard to sponsoring a cause that is complementary to the product image.

Citation

Chang, C. and Liu, H. (2012), "Goodwill hunting? Influences of product‐cause fit, product type, and donation level in cause‐related marketing", Marketing Intelligence & Planning, Vol. 30 No. 6, pp. 634-652. https://doi.org/10.1108/02634501211262609