My mom sent me this article about the actor Paul Haggis taking a stand—ultimately denouncing a larger cause. I might add, it took him 35 years.
Last night I attended a 'think tank' comprised of an array of marketing specialists. On the panel was a travel agent and a rep from a world renowned—and highly revered—department store. The travel agent was vehemently defending a business which has almost certainly seen its last day—that of a travel agent. The other rep from the store spoke in sobering truths.
One of the issues was about cause marketing. Cause marketing is defined by Wikipedia here:
Cause marketing or cause-related marketing refers to a type of marketing involving the cooperative efforts of a "for profit" business and a non-profit organization for mutual benefit. The term is sometimes used more broadly and generally to refer to any type of marketing effort for social and other charitable causes, including in-house marketing efforts by non-profit organizations. Cause marketing differs from corporate giving (philanthropy) as the latter generally involves a specific donation that is tax deductible, while cause marketing is a marketing relationship generally not based on a donation.
This type of marketing psychology, however, is exactly the same type of delusion that actor Paul Haggis denounced. (I don't doubt that there are some that have excellent intentions)
At what point does the emperor have no clothes? At what point does a yellow wrist bracelet or a pink ribbon become just a piece of jewelry? I don't know the answer, but I'm certain that anyone who is quick to tell you everything about what they know and slow to find out anything about you is drinking Kool-Aid—the purple kind.
