Cause Talk Radio: The Cause Marketing Podcast

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Peter Strebel, Chief Marketing Officer at Omni Hotels & Resorts, about Say Goodnight to Hunger ([#SayGoodnightToHunger](https://twitter.com/hashtag/saygoodnighttohunger)). This action-triggered donation program feeds a family of four dinner for an entire week whenever guests book a stay directly at [OmniHotels.com](http://omnihotels.com/ "OmniHotels.com"). Since the programs launched in June, Omni Hotels has donated 3 million meals. Donations support Feeding America and local food banks in the 42 communities where Omni's 60 hotels are located. On the show, Megan, Peter and Joe discuss: - Joe's love of Boston Cream Pie and its connection to the Omni Parker House in Boston. - How Omni Hotels got involved with Feeding America and the kick-off ofSay Goodnight to Hunger in June. - How Omni Hotel employees have supported the program in their communities. Feeding America's local footprint made it a perfect nonprofit match for Omni! - How the program is geared toward Millennial customers and employees. 45% of Omni employees and 25% of Omni customers are Millennials. - How being the father of a Millennial (who works at TOMS!) inspired Peter to take the next step in Omni's social responsibility efforts. - How support for this program began at the very top of the Omni organization. - What has surprised Peter the most since the launch of the program. - What Feeding America brings to the table as a partner of Omni Hotels. - How Omni Hotels is communicating with employees about the program to show the impact of their efforts. **Links & Notes** - [Omni Hotels Say Goodnight to Hunger](https://www.omnihotels.com/about-omni-hotels/say-goodnight-to-hunger) - [Omni Hotels on Facebook](https://www.facebook.com/omnihotels/)

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Leslie Engle Young, Director of Impact at Pencils of Promise (PoP), about how the how organization has become a top philanthropic brand by smashing its goal of increasing access to quality education for children in the developing world. On the show, Megan, Leslie and Joe discuss: - How Leslie got involved with PoP - and she owes it all to Bob Dylan! - Why PoP created a position specifically focused on impact. Should other nonprofits have this role? - What metrics does Leslie measure to determine PoP's effectiveness? Focus is on outcomes not outputs. - How important is data to PoP? - How PoP moves a new program from Pilot to Beta toIntegration. - PoP's quarterly transparency report and why an annual reports wasn't enough. "We want people to see where we are succeeding and where we are struggling." - How PoP communicates with its stakeholders. - PoP's WASH program that teaches kids about WATER, SANITATION and HYGIENE. "If you're not healthy you can't/won't go to school!" - The challenges of being a metric-focused and data-driven organaztion that works in the Third World. - What are PoP's 2017 goals? **Links & Notes** - [Pencils of Promise](https://pencilsofpromise.org/ "Pencils of Promise") - [Cause Talk Radio 88: Pencils of Promise Founder Talks About Building Schools, Cause Marketing](http://rashpixel.fm/causetalkradio/88 "Ep88: Pencils of Promise Founder Talks About Building Schools, Cause Marketing") - [Care Counts School Laundry Program Exposes Link Between Clean Clothes and Attendance](http://www.whirlpoolcorp.com/care-counts-school-laundry-program-exposes-link-between-clean-clothes-and-attendance/ "Care Counts School Laundry Program Exposes Link Between Clean Clothes and Attendance")

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Chris Fuller, Executive Director at the Arby's Foundation, about the chain's first PurposeFULL report highlighting progress across its Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) platform. With 3,300 locations around the world, Arby's is the second largest quick-service chain in the world! On the show, Megan, Chris and Joe discuss: - Why Arby's is releasing its first CSR report now - What Arby's is doing to share the report with stakeholders. - The four pillars of the report:YouthFULL, SkillFULL, ResourceFULL & FlavorFULL. - Arby's focus on youth empowerment and its contribution of over $76 million. - Customer donations at the register - last year that totaled $3.6 million. - How Arby's puts the "FUN" in fundraising and gets 75 percent of its restaurants to participate in fundraising programs. - The structure of Arby's point-of-sale fundraisers and importance of having an employee "champion." - How Arby's picked childhood hunger as its cause. - How's Arby's is working with its nonprofit partners to maximize social impact through innovation. - Arby's plans to work with Dipjar on a pilot program for year-round "passive fundraising." - Chris' thoughts on the importance of cause marketing to brands. **Links & Notes** - [Arby's Foundation](http://arbysfoundation.org/ "Arby's Foundation") - [Arby's CSR Report](http://arbys.com/purposefull "Arby's CSR Report") - [Restaurant Execs: Cause Marketing, Employee Engagement Drive Bottom Line](http://www.selfishgiving.com/blog/cause-marketing-restaurants "Restaurant Execs: Cause Marketing, Employee Engagement Drive Bottom Line") - [Cause Talk Radio 165: Retailers Have a New Option. DipJar is a Donation Box for Credit Cards](http://www.selfishgiving.com/blog/dipjar-donation-box-for-credit-cards "Ep165: Retailers Have a New Option. DipJar is a Donation Box for Credit Cards")

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Chris Noble, CEO of Matchfire, a marketing and technology company for business and social impact, about key trends in cause marketing, including the power influencers, content marketing and employee engagement. On the show, Megan, Chris and Joe discuss: - How Matchfire brings four different agencies together (StudioGood, Kompolt, Patron & Matchfire) that were once "Brand Soup." The commonality with all these entities was social good and technology. - Matchfire's work with the Muscular Dystrophy Association on #LiveUnlimited, a bold initiative to reach a new, younger audience for the charity. - How #LiveUnlimited focused on 150 online influencers to drive traffic, interest and donations to the campaign. - Trends in cause marketing: Snapchat, Pokemon Go!, Employee Engagement. - The critical role content marketing has and will play in cause marketing, and how people confuse it with digital marketing. - How the language we use to describe corporate responsibility (cause marketing, purpose, CSR etc.) can either empower or confuse our employees. **Links & Notes** - [Matchfire](https://matchfire.com/ "Matchfire") - [MDA's #LiveUnlimited](https://liveunlimited.mda.org/ "MDA's #LiveUnlimited") - [Chris on Twitter](https://twitter.com/cfnoble "Chris on Twitter") - [Cause Talk Radio Ep 5: Homeless Hotspots Roam SXSW, Austin for Money. Is it Right? (Chris' last appearance on CauseTalk Radio)](http://rashpixel.fm/causetalkradio/5 "CauseTalk Radio Ep05: Homeless Hotspots Roam SXSW, Austin for Money. Is it Right?") - [Cause Talk Radio Ep 143: Call of Duty Endowment Enlists Gamers, Retailers for Mission to Help Vets](http://rashpixel.fm/causetalkradio/143) - [Cause Talk Radio Ep 171: Nationwide Puts Cause Content to Work for Safety's Sake with 'Make Safe Happen'](http://rashpixel.fm/causetalkradio/171)

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Lisa Lewis, Director of Marketing at Formation Data Systems (FDS), a startup data storage company, about an interesting cause marketing partnership with Oxfam involving giving goats to families in need! On the show, Megan, Lisa and Joe discuss: - How FDS was looking for a marketing program that was affordable but impactful when Lisa discovered Oxfam after a friend gave her a goat as a gift! - How the program works. If you demo FDS' product through Oxfam they will donate a goat to a needy family in a third-world country. - The power of goats! They are a fantastic animal to donate because almost singlehandedly they can lift a family out of poverty. - How FDS has used See a Demo, Get a Goat outside outside a trade show (that they couldn't afford to attend!) with great success! - Are goats the next household pet?! - How FDS has incorporated goats into a series of videos called GoatBusters that links the craziness of goats with the disorganization of most company's storage efforts. - Two unexpected lessons from the program. First, employees love it - especially their younger employees (Millennials!). Second, the program is so "sticky." Prospects remember the goats! - Is this cause marketing program driving sales? - FDS' partnership with Oxfam. What do they think of the program and its success? - What is the key takeaway from this program? What can other B2B companies learn from it? - What's next for the goats? **Links & Notes** - [What a Goat Can Teach You About Cause Marketing](http://www.triplepundit.com/2016/08/goat-can-teach-cause-marketing/ "What a Goat Can Teach You About Cause Marketing") - [Lisa Lewis on Twitter](http://twitter.com/LLewisFDS "Lisa Lewis on Twitter") - [Formation GoatBusters on Youtube](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpyH1FyiuPhLrpcTa6sP3Gg "Formation GoatBusters on Youtube") - [Formation Data Systems](http://www.formationds.com/ "Formation Data Systems") - [Just Like Dogs, Goats Will Look You In The Eye When They Need Your Help](http://www.theverge.com/2016/7/7/12116142/goats-eye-contact-dogs-communication "Just Like Dogs, Goats Will Look You In The Eye When They Need Your Help") - [Goats Fight Weeds in Local Cemetery](https://www.pinterest.com/pin/8866530492985933/ "Goats Fight Weeds in Local Cemetery") - [Skyhill Farms](http://skyhillfarms.com/ "Skyhill Farms")

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Katrina McGhee, a nonprofit leader and entrepreneur who has more than 25 years of experience in progressive leadership roles, including chief marketing officer for Susan G. Komen for the Cure. On the show, Megan, Katrina and Joe discuss personal branding for causepreneurs. We cover: - What is personal branding? - Why causepreneurs have a difficult time focusing on personal branding. - How personal branding is critical to career success. It's portable and helps you become an "A" player. - Katrina's process for defining your personal brand. - How to do a "personal audit" on yourself. - How to tell what's a distinction and what's a distraction in your personal brand. - The importance of generosity in your relationships. - How to build strong relationships with people. It's better to go deep than wide. - Katrina's top five tips for personal branding. **Links & Notes** - [Katrina's Website](http://www.katrinamcghee.com/ "Katrina's Website") - [Katrina on Twitter](https://twitter.com/kdmcghee "Katrina on Twitter")

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Bill Spae, CEO of Vasari LLC, a Dairy Queen franchisee with 76+ locations in Texas, New Mexico and Oklahoma. Vasari is the second largest franchisee in the DQ system! Vasari leads several cause marketing programs, including a fundraiser for Share Our Strength that raised $335,000 since 2014. On the show, Megan, Bill and Joe discuss: - How Joe met Bill at the National Restaurant Show in Chicago where they were both speaking on behalf of Share Our Strength. - How DQ got involved with Share Our Strength. It's not a national program for DQ, but a regional program for Vasari LLC. - How DQ kicked off the program in 2014 and Share Our Strength supported their efforts with their deep experience in cause marketing point-of-sale. - How much the program has grown since 2014. The goal this year is $200K+. - How DQ changed its ask from a dollar amount to a meal amount and raised more money. - The power of incentives to solicit donations. - Joe shares a painful DQ regret. - Does DQ ask for specific donation at the register, or do they let the customer decide? Key takeaway: don't pressure people. - What employees think of the program, and how Vasari has grown their engagement with communication, storytelling and swag. - Why DQ doesn't ask for donations through the pinpad. Employees do all the asking. - How DQ avoids donor fatigue. - The business benefit of supporting a cause. **Links & Notes** - [Vasari LLC](http://www.vasarillc.com/ "Vasari LLC") - [Restaurant Execs: Cause Marketing, Employee Engagement Drive Bottom Line](http://www.selfishgiving.com/blog/cause-marketing-restaurants "Restaurant Execs: Cause Marketing, Employee Engagement Drive Bottom Line") - [Cause Marketing Limits Raise More Money](http://www.selfishgiving.com/blog/cause-practices/how-set-ask-amount-for-your-cause-marketing-program "Cause Marketing Limits Raise More Money")

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Risa Sherman, Manager of Philanthropy & Cause Marketing at The Boston Beer Company, about the company's signature cause initiative, Brewing the American Dream. This innovative program champions the great ideas and dreams of small business owners nationwide who are pursuing their passion in the food and beverage, hospitality, and craft brewing industries. On the show, Megan, Risa and Joe discuss: - An overview of the halo-award winning Brewing the American Dream. The initial goal was to add value to the community beyond just writing a check. - The three legs of the program. First, access to capital. Second, access to mentors. Third, access to new customers and markets. - The focus of the program over the past year? One word: Impact (and tracking it!). - What's the business impact of Brewing the American Dream? A close connection to innovation helps Boston Beer stay nimble in its own business. - How much Boston Beer employees enjoy working with other entrepreneurs. - Risa has worked on the agency side and the brand side. What's the difference? What advice would she give agencies? - The importance of involving the whole company in cause marketing. - What is Boston Beer planning for the program in 2017? **Links & Notes** - [Brewing the American Dream](http://btad.samueladams.com/)

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Stephanie Bagley, COO at Charity Miles, about the new Pokémon Go game and how it can be used to raise money for good causes. On the show, Megan, Stephanie and I discuss: - What is Pokémon Go? And what the heck is augmented reality? - How Charity Miles is leading the charge to use Pokémon Go for GOOD. - How Charity Miles launched a challenge to users to play Pokémon Go for a purpose. - The explosion in users and downloads that Charity Miles has seen since the launch of Pokémon Go. A 2000+ surge in new users of the app. - How different businesses and nonprofits are usingPokémon Go. - Is Pokémon Go a fad or the future? **Links & Notes** - [Charity Miles App on iTunes](https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/app/charity-miles/id505253234?mt=8&at=11lrTo) - [Walk for a Dog App on iTunes](https://geo.itunes.apple.com/us/app/walk-for-a-dog/id643857704?mt=8&at=11lrTo) - [Charity Miles](http://www.charitymiles.org/ "Charity Miles") - [116 Examples of Digital Cause Marketing on Pinterest (Includes AR Examples!)](https://www.pinterest.com/joewaters/cause-marketing-digital-programs/ "116 Examples of Digital Cause Marketing on Pinterest")

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Brittany Hill, Co-Founder and Chief Innovation Officer at Catalist, an agency focused on providing corporate partnership professionals tangible and sustainable tools to meet their fundraising goals. Megan, Brittany and Joe discuss Catalist's recent report,Revelations at the Register: A Look Into Sector Specific Consumer Giving Preferences at the Register. On the show, they cover: - How Catalist defines "Checkout Charity." What does it include? - What were the goals of the study? - How checkout charity drives customer loyalty. - What consumers want after they donate at the register. Is a simple thank you enough? - While two-thirds of respondents said they've given at the register, one-third had not. How can this group be engaged? - The importance of brand recognition at the register. What should you do if your nonprofit brand isn't well known? - Consumer feelings on donating through PIN pads. Do consumers prefer to be asked verbally or electronically - or both? - How much do consumers want to donate at the register? Why haven't round-up programs taken off? - Are paper pinups on life support? Do consumers still like to see them hanging in stores? What will become of Joe's reputation as the "Pinup King"? - Brittany shares what she thought was the most interesting finding of the study. **Links & Notes** - [Revelations at the Register](http://gocatalist.com/insights/) - [Take That Critics: Consumers Like Donating at the Register](http://www.selfishgiving.com/blog/consumers-like-donating-at-the-register) - [Brittany Hill on Twitter](https://twitter.com/brittanyhhill)

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan, and Joe talk to Elicia Azali, Associate Vice President at insurance and financial services provider Nationwide. We discuss their cause initiative Make Safe Happen, which seeks to reduce accidental injury at home, the number one cause of death among children. On the show, Megan, Elicia, and Joe discuss: - How Nationwide's commitment to safety initiatives and Make Safe Happen got started. It began decades ago! - Make Safe Happen is a comprehensive platform. Elicia offers some examples of how Nationwide is helping to keep kids safe. - The challenges of creating a comprehensive site that addresses so many safety issues. - The focus this year on four injury areas: furniture/TV tip overs, poisoning, water and fire safety. - Nationwide's partnership with Nationwide Children's Hospital and Safe Kids Worldwide to bring Make Safe Happen to life. - Nationwide's business objectives for Make Safe Happen. - The channels (social, earned media, influencers) Nationwide is using to promote Make Safe Happen. - The feedback Nationwide has gotten on the platform. **Links & Notes** - [Make Safe Happen Web Site](http://makesafehappen.com/ "Make Safe Happen Web Site") - [Promise To Make Swimming Safer](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kj6YpvokrfE "Promise To Make Swimming Safer [VIDEO]")

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Matt Hodges, Vice President of Public & Investor Relations at GameStop, about the gaming chain's first-year fundraiser for Autism Speaks that raised a whopping $1.2 Million. On the show, Megan, Matt and Joe discuss: - Why GameStop chose Autism Speaks. - How did GameStop survey employees to find out what their favorite causes were? - What's GameStop's process for evaluating charities before they partner with them. - The benefit of partnering with Autism Speaks because they share GameStop's international footprint. Megan is hearing this more! Companies want nonprofit partners with international reach. - What are GameStop's current best practices when it comes to executing successful point-of-sale fundraisers? GameStop continues to make it personal and relatable to employees. - How GameStop communicates autism stories with customers, both through internal assets and social channels. - News Flash: Is a GameStop candle for Autism Speaks in the works? - Adding Autism Speaks to the GameStop roster of causes gives them a full plate. What's next? - Matt discusses GameStop's holiday campaign for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital, which tripled the dollars raised the previous year. **Links & Notes** - [127: GameStop Quadruples High Score, Raises Over $1M for Make-A-Wish](http://www.selfishgiving.com/blog/gamestop-cause-marketing) - [CMF's Webinar with GameStop](http://www.causemarketingforum.com/site/apps/nlnet/content2.aspx?c=bkLUKcOTLkK4E&b=6423029&ct=14841091 "CMF's Webinar with GameStop")

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to frequent guest Mollye Rhea, President of For Momentum, an Atlanta-based cause agency. On the show, Megan, Mollye and Joe discuss For Momentum's survey of U.S. nonprofit executives responsible for selling cause partnerships in the Nonprofit Partnership Sales Cycle Research. We cover: - For Momentum's new research takes on the number one question people ask about cause partnerships: "How long will it take?" - The survey included interviews with 50 nonprofits with corporate alliance teams. - The survey looked at sponsorships, integrated fundraising and employee directed partnerships. - Nonprofits need to give themselves up to 18+ months to close a larger partnership. The more money involved, the longer the sales cycle. Warmer leads can reduce close time. - Mollye's advice on how to work with prospects, especially your warmer leads. - How the sales cycle is impacted by your nonprofit's brand and mission fit and readiness. - Why do companies turn down a cause partnership? The #1 reason surprised Mollye! But she has some good ideas on how nonprofits can address this. - Mollye's advice on how nonprofits need to stay proactive, top-of-mind, creative and flexible when pitching cause programs to companies. - Should you ask a company to commit to a minimum level of support? How much? **Links & Notes** - [Cause Partnership Sales Cycle Research](http://formomentum.com/resources/cause-partnership-sales-cycle-research/) - [For Momentum's Cause Marketing Resources](http://formomentum.com/resources/) - [For Momentum on Twitter](http://twitter.com/formomentum "For Momentum on Twitter") - [Joe's Latest Post on For Momentum](http://formomentum.com/pitch-cause-marketing-program-thinker/ "Joe's Latest Post on For Momentum") - [For Momentum's 2015 Corporate Partner Survey](http://formomentum.com/resources/corporate-partner-survey/ "For Momentum's 2015 Corporate Partner Survey") - [126: What Companies Want from a Nonprofit Partner](http://www.selfishgiving.com/blog/what-companies-want-from-nonprofit-partners "Ep126: What Companies Want from a Nonprofit Partner") — See the show notes for this show for other podcasts with Mollye!

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Julie Cottineau, founder and CEO of BrandTwist, a brand consultancy, and creator of Brand School Online, a learning program that teaches small business owners, entrepreneurs and non-profits how to create powerful brands that break-through crowded markets. Julie is also the author of a new bestseller: _TWIST: How Fresh Perspectives Build Breakthrough Brands_. On the show, Megan, Julie and Joe discuss: - Julie's career path to branding expert, including her unacknowledged invention of the Pet Rock and a stint with Sir Richard Branson. - How Julie defines Brand and a Brand Twist. - When is it appropriate for organizations to Twist? And why it's okay to turn off some people! - How you find your twist in the marketplace by looking both within your own brand story and outside your industry. - The importance of failing harder and developing focus when it comes to brand development. - The incredible opportunity nonprofits and businesses have to promote themselves and build their brands. **Links & Notes** - [BrandTwist](http://brandtwist.com/ "BrandTwist") - [Julie on Twitter](https://twitter.com/jcottin "Julie on Twitter") - [Julie's Free Brand Health Check](http://brandschoolonline.com/brand-health-check/ "Julie's Free Brand Health Check")

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Linn Jordan, Director of Retail Marketing for Walgreens, about its efforts on behalf of Red Nose Day, which is dedicated to raising money to help children who are most in need, both in the U.S. and in some of the poorest communities in the world. Walgreens has sold more than 12 million Red Noses and raised $18 million since kicking off their campaign on March 28th — twice the amount sold during the entirety of the campaign last year! On the show, Megan, Linn and Joe discuss: - What is Red Nose Day? It's a cause import from the UK that has raised $1 billion over the past 30 years. - How Walgreens got involved with Red Nose Day. Having a CEO from the UK helped! - What does Red Nose raise money for? How is the money divided up among the charities? - The challenge of adding a physical product, like a red nose, to the checkout area. - Why Walgreens decided to sell other products to support Red Nose Day. - How Walgreens employees had fun with the program with "Red Flair Fridays." - How Walgreens worked with vendor partners to grow the program. - How Walgreens balanced having fun with addressing a very serious issue? - How much did Walgreens raise with the program? - Other cause programs Walgreens is involved in and the focus on the customer and employee experience. **Show Notes** - [Red Nose Day](http://rednoseday.org/) - [Red Nose Day / Walgreens](http://www.walgreens.com/topic/promotion/rednoseday.jsp) - [See How Red Nose Day Came Alive in Your State!](http://www.walgreens.com/topic/promotion/rednoseday.jsp)