To say that it’s been a big month for CreateAthon is an understatement. When CreateAthon officially became a 501(c)3 last month, we knew big things were coming. But, I don’t think anyone at Riggs Partners could honestly say they knew just how huge November would be.
We’re only halfway through the month and CreateAthon has already traveled to Washington, DC to help launch the A Billion + Change initiative. There they joined forces with companies like Starbucks, Capitol One, and Microsoft to promise to create $1 billion in pro bono services by 2013. To add to this already incredible month, AIGA highlighted CreateAthon in their Design for Good movement as a way to get involved in pro bono designing. The support from these two initiatives will do wonders in helping spread CreateAthon’s message.
Welcome to the team, Andrea!
Just when we didn’t think November could get any better, Peyton Rowe, CreateAthon’s Chief Evangelical Officer, brought Andrea Goulet Ford to our team. It has only been a few weeks since Andrea joined us, and she already has our heads spinning with her amazing ideas. With her help, CreateAthon is on the path to even greater success.
It’s exciting to see how much CreateAthon has grown this year. What’s even more exciting is seeing how many people want to help CreateAthon succeed. Today is only November 15 and I am overwhelmed by how much support our program has gained this month. I can’t wait to see what the rest of November has in store for us.
by Jody Piland
Twenty-four hours have passed since Peyton Rowe and I attended the launch event for A Billion+ Change, the national campaign to mobilize pro bono services. To say we are still reeling from it all is the understatement of the year. All day long, we tried to talk about what was going on around us, and we could barely form a sentence. The words simply would not come. You know when Teresa and Peyton are rendered speechless, something big has happened.
And large it was.
Teresa Coles, panelist at the Billion+ luncheon
We were asked at the end of the day to share an interesting takeaway. I’ll start with my response to that question, but I just can’t limit it to one. Instead, here are five takeaways that illuminated the day for me:
- There now exists a whole new professional sector of people who are trained and committed to seriously pursuing corporate social responsibility, not just managing donations. I think that’s amazing.
- The opportunity to experience the vibe that exists among these people. It’s unlike anything I’ve ever seen, other than CreateAthon: open, selfless, joyful. “Let me know what I can do to help” ended every conversation.
- The willingness to readily connect with others. Never have I been approached by so many people who wanted to trade cards, connect online, stay in touch. There’s a sense that we can all benefit by upholding each other, and it’s readily embraced.
- The chance that pro bono can become a permanent fixture of corporate culture. Jean Case stated it repeatedly, and I had never thought about it in those terms. Imagine if pro bono service became a given in every company in America.
- The grace that filled every corner of the room, be that a handshake, a smile, a hug. The opportunity to meet and develop relationships with so many incredible people dedicated to doing incredible things will carry me for the days and weeks to come.
in pretty good company
My heart beats a little faster today with the promise of so many good things to come through A Billion + Change, as well as the opportunities for CreateAthon. I truly believe the new relationships that have been formed will impact our ability to help CreateAthon grow in leaps and bounds. Today, Peyton and I are off to tell the CreateAthon story to friends at the ONE Campaign. Just imagine where that conversation could go: CreateAthon International?
Not once in the last 14 years did I ever dream of doing what I’m about to do: Go to Capitol Hill to talk about CreateAthon. It comes in the form of the launch event for A Billion + Change, a national campaign to mobilize $1 billion of pro bono services by 2013.
This morning, I will attend a kick off breakfast in the Russell Senate Office Building hosted by Sen. Mark Warner, honorary chair of the initiative. Later on, I’ll participate in a panel discussion alongside leaders in corporate social responsibility from companies who are also involved in the program. I’ll be asked to share our experiences with CreateAthon as a model for how a small business can generate large-scale probono impact.
Teresa
So how does a Billion + Change work? Participating companies define a pledge amount toward the cause and report on their progress throughout the initiative. A majority of the companies involved are major corporations with significant CSR programs, like HP, Microsoft, IBM, Walmart, and Discovery Channel.
On behalf of CreateAthon, we’ve pledged to more than double the number of partner agencies, universities and professional organizations involved in the program. Our estimates tell us if we reach this goal, we will move from generating approximately $2.3 million in pro bono services each year to an annual impact of $5.6 million.
As if it couldn’t get any better, I’m joined today by none other than Peyton Rowe, Chief Evangelical Officer of CreateAthon. She’s just in from Richmond, and we are truly beside ourselves with the prospect of meeting so many folks who are committed to sharing professional talents for social good.
So know that today, the CreateAthon story will be told from the one place in America that was most meant to inspire servant leadership. Who knows? Maybe some good karma will rub off down the street.
Occupy Wall Street is proving to be the definition of persistence. Meanwhile, the European debt crisis continues one week after the next. In a better world, crises would at least be short, especially such severe ones. The congressional stalemate continues despite national frustration. I can’t imagine anything worse than being on a “Super Committee.” A regular committee is painful enough.
Meanwhile, Coca-Cola does something beautiful. They turn their cans white for the World Wildlife Fund . This profound gesture reminds me why I love the business of branding. Amidst all the chaos, Coke’s Arctic Home campaign feels like a refuge. A company doing something good, just because it is a good hearted company.
Coke’s white can inspired our marketing strategy for our client Moe’s Southwest Grill. Moe’s is incredibly supportive of schools and children’s charities, and we’re working on ways to further deepen their support at a neighborhood level.
Moe’s reminds me that we have to continually raise the bar. They are constantly tweaking their menu. They were the first retailer in town with Coke’s incredible new Freestyle machine. Better training, improvements to the prep line, and monitoring measuring customer feedback all followed a discussion about marketing strategy.
As the economy continues to strain business, brands easily fall into a mentality of persistence spawned by risk avoidance. I would argue that today’s challenging business climate demands constant improvement and innovation. I invite you to share a Coke with a colleague and start exploring how you might change things for the better.
With our somewhat tepid economic recovery, consumers are continuing to reconsider every purchase and pattern. To that end, I suggest a shift in mentality and language from “leading brand” to “incumbent brand.” As people continue to trade-down and flock to house brands, incumbent brands have to justify their customers’ ongoing preference.
One way to do this is through corporate social responsibility.
Maxwell House’s “Drops of Good” campaign highlights their commitment to building stronger communities. The program, which concludes later this month, has had 1.9 million people participate thus far. Maxwell House has localized a national brand, and given coffee drinkers a reason to continue to choose Maxwell House over less expensive alternatives.
Nonprofits have much to learn from incumbent brands. Many fall into the trap of a marketing strategy solely based on direness of need. The point is that you are helping. People follow organizations that make an impact, not organizations that are causes unto themselves.
All around, I see budding social responsibility efforts. It’s one of the positive outcomes of the Great Recession, and one I believe will last.
My oxford shirt no longer lines the pockets of the folks at Brooks Brothers, it also supports St. Jude’s Children’s hospital. Outback Steakhouse just launched a “Red, White and Bloomin’” menu. Order from it during March and all proceeds will benefit Operation Homefront, a nonprofit offering emergency and morale assistance for US troops and their families. Riggs Partners is working with Moe’s Southwest Grill on a special $1.99 burrito day, with $1 for every burrito sold on April 20th benefiting the Medical College of Georgia’s children’s hospital.
While these efforts seem tailor-made for retailers, business-to-business and corporate marketers needn’t be sidelined.
Jim Rogers, Duke Energy’s visionary CEO, recently called his alternative energy plant construction “purpose driven capitalism.” Rogers has long been a proponent of seemingly counter-intuitive initiatives such as the Alliance to Save Energy. He sees green power as the way his company, soon to be the largest utility in the nation; will help to solve the growing carbon emissions crisis.
In today’s business climate, every business, even a regulated monopoly, would be smart to align itself with worthwhile objectives. In doing so, they’ll be moving toward the type of brand affinity that will buoy them against future market turbulence.
Russ Meyer, columnist at Fast Company, recently released news that Nike, Inc. has plans to distribute a multi-million dollar proprietary technology called the Environmental Design Tool among its competitors. For more, check out his article here.
Nike, Inc. is not a company known for its congeniality. For a time, the Swoosh notoriously leveraged underpaid and underage laborers to produce its vast quantities of overpriced sportswear. Furthermore, Nike resides in an industry that not only caters to competition, but also is embroiled with it at the corporate level. Competition is fierce for market share in the lucrative and ever-expanding universe of sports equipment, especially with powerful newcomers like Under Armour bursting onto the scene, not to mention the recent entry of Chinese giants like Li Ning into the U.S. marketplace. Considering all of these circumstances, why would Nike choose a time like now to begin sharing a proprietary technology that took seven years to develop with its rivals?
That’s correct: Nike has announced a plan to give away a $6 million technology it calls the Environmental Design Tool. Why? This cutting edge technology optimizes the production of synthetic fabrics from recycled plastic, providing a significant benefit to the environment. If all the world’s sportswear manufacturers use Nike’s tool to amp up recycling and cut down on waste, the result is a cleaner planet.
Nike’s newfound benevolence is another tremendous step in the growing trend of corporate social responsibility. The question is, if this competitive behemoth of an organization can alter its practices for good, why can’t yours? Corporate good: Just Do It!
- Pete Anderson
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR), is a fancy name for the acknowledgement that businesses, as well as individuals, have an important role to play in bettering the world around us. Our friends at the Hilton Head Island VCB have embraced the concept and are one of the first corporate destinations in the country to offer a customized CSR component to their Meetings and Groups packages.
It works like this. A company plans a meeting, or retreat, on Hilton Head Island. A community service project is incorporated as part of the event package, and the group is matched with a participating United Way of the Lowcountry organization. During their time on Hilton Head Island, the group of 10 to 100 people works together on the specified project, such as a Habitat build.
Our assignment was to package, and promote, The Hilton Head Difference.
The Hilton Head Difference direct mail, sent to meeting planners
