Cause Talk Radio: The Cause Marketing Podcast

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Steve Scheier, author of a new book, "Do More Good. Better." Steve is also founder & CEO of Scheier + Group, a consultancy that shows non-profits and social impact companies how to make the most of the people they have so they can better deliver on their mission.

Today on CauseTalk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Maria Redin, General Manager and Strategy Lead at GOODcorp, a social impact consultancy that grew out of GOOD Media. GOODcorp has worked with top brands such as Pepsi, The Gap, Starbucks and Dick's Sporting Goods. Dick's won two "Halo Awards" at last week's Cause Marketing Forum conference in Chicago! Megan, Maria and Joe discussed a newly released insights from phase one of a three-part research project that explores “goodness” in brands and how consumers perceive what truly makes a brand “good.”

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Todd Krim, President & CEO of The Krim Group, a Los Angeles-based agency that connects charities with celebrities. Todd, Megan, and Joe discuss how nonprofits can choose the right celebrity for special events, personal appearances and cause marketing campaigns.

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Jon Bromley, Founder & CEO of Canadian-based Chimp, an online giving tool. They discuss the advantages of online savings banks for giving and how companies can and should join individuals on a platform that is effective and efficient.

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to David J. Neff, author, speaker, and consultant for PwC. Dave is also the founder of Lights. Camera. Help., a nonprofit that is dedicated to encouraging cause-driven organizations to use film and video to tell their stories.

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Gary Zarr, Partner, at Phil & Company, a New York-based cause marketing agency, on their new report on Mobile Cause Marketing and Millennials & Generation Z.

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Phil Haid, Co-Founder and CEO of Toronto-based Public Inc. about Starbucks controversial cause campaign: Race Together. While aimed at starting a conversation around race issues in America, the campaign has drawn a lot of criticism. Naysayers call Race Together ill-timed and self-serving. But our guest Phil Haid has a different perspective. He describes the campaign as a bold and ambitious effort by Starbucks that while not perfectly executed is unflinching and a great example of a company "walking the talk."

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Buddy Teaster, CEO of Soles4Souls.  Nashville-based Soles4Souls is a global not-for-profit focused on fighting the devastating impact and perpetuation of poverty.  Soles4Souls advances its anti-poverty mission by collecting new and used shoes and clothes from individuals, schools, faith-based institutions, civic organizations and corporate partners. They distribute those shoes and clothes both via direct donations to people in need and by provisioning qualified micro-enterprise programs designed to create jobs in poor and disadvantaged communities. Soles4Souls is fortunate to have many corporate partners, but the two we discuss today are Stride Rite and PUMA. While both of these companies are known for their outstanding footwear, Buddy and his team know them best for taking bold steps to support Soles4Souls' mission.

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Mollye Rhea, President of For Momentum, an Atlanta-based cause-related marketing agency. With Mollye, we tackle one of the toughest issues for nonprofits — how to identify, sell and close new corporate partnerships. It's not easy! Fortunately, we have one of the best partnership experts in the business on today's show. Since Mollye founded For Momentum in 2003, she's helped over 60 clients with projects ranging from setting strategy to valuing campaign ROI. She and her team have created and grown more than 75 partnerships, raising tens of millions for non-profit clients and directing millions in support to corporate clients.

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Mason Wartman, owner of Rosa's Fresh Pizza in Philadelphia. Over the past several months, Mason has become a media darling for his efforts to feed the homeless in his neighborhood. He's even appeared on Ellen! Like all great ideas, Mason's is simple but powerful. When customers buy a slice of pizza they can buy another for someone in need. Rosa's walls are lined with sticky notes and well wishes that the homeless can redeem for a free slice. Since the program began last year, Rosa's has given away 11,000 slices in a neighborhood that needs all the extra dough it can get.

Today on CauseTalk Radio, Megan, and Joe talk to Maureen Carlson, President, and Brittany Hill, Vice President of Research and Insights at Good Scout, a social good consultancy, about their 2015 Cause Alliances Trend Report. Data-Driven Cause Alliances. The use of the data we produce and collect will be more important than ever to building effective cause alliances. "Data is really the foundation for your amazing, smarter story," said Maureen. "It's about words and pictures AND NUMBERS." Emerging Industries. Certain industries, like shared economies, wearables, brick-and-mortar e-commerce and consumer healthcare, are growing at record rates, providing immense opportunities for cause alliances in 2015. "With e-commerce going brick and mortar this opens up a new category for nonprofits to target as business partners," explained Brittany. Franchise Growth. Franchise corporations have long been great supporters of nonprofit causes. Unexpected franchise categories like healthy fast food, fitness & wellness and

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Alison DaSilva, Executive Vice President, Cone Communications about how to start a career in cause marketing. Alison, Megan and Joe get calls and emails every week from people who want a job in cause marketing. Most of them are recent college grads, or already have a job in fundraising, marketing, advertising or public relations. What they all share is a desire to work at the intersection of philanthropy, marketing, and business.

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Tanya Coventry-Strader, Managing Director of Bear Marketing Communications at Build-A-Bear Workshop about their Share Your Heart program to benefit Make-A-Wish. For the second year in a row, Build-A-Bear will commemorate Valentine's Day by asking customers to donate a dollar or more at checkout in their stores or online. Last year, the fundraiser raised $440,000. Since the first Build-A-Bear opened in 1997, the chain has donated $41 million to charities.

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Ken Ungar, Founder & President of U/S Sports Advisors. Ken is a "newsjacking" expert and author of the book Ahead of the Game: What Every Athlete Needs to Know About Sports Business. Newsjacking, which Ken defines as When a brand takes advantage of a popular story or topic and inserts itself in the news cycle, is becoming an increasingly popular tactic for companies that want to ride the wave of someone else's popularity. But can newsjacking work for nonprofits and causes?

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Michael Hoffman, CEO of See3 Communications. See3 is a Chicago-based firm that provides strategy, video and web services to nonprofits and social causes.

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and I talk to Joe Hamlin, Director, Corporate Development at Cleveland Clinic about the growth of the hospital's cause marketing program from zero to $750,000.

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Clark Sweat, Chief Corporate Partnership Officer at Children's Miracle Network (CMN). Clark has had two tours of duties with CMN. Between his time at CMN, Clark spent four years at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital running its signature Thanks and Giving campaign. Today, Clark is back at CMN overseeing 85 corporate partnerships that raised $205 million in 2014. Ninety percent of those dollars come from point-of-sale programs (pinups, round-ups, register programs, etc.). And 50 percent of that money comes from just one program: pinups!

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to.....each other! For the first time in a long time, we had a show just with each other as we talked about two important developments. First, Cause Marketing Forum's announcement of the Golden Halo winner. Second, Selfish Giving's release of its annual Best Cause Marketing Promotions of 2014. Tune in as we get to the bottom of this year's winners and expand on why our picks are the best of the best!

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Pinterest expert Jason Miles. He's a 20-year veteran of the nonprofit world and the author of three books, including Pinterest Power. Jason and his wife are also the founders of Sew Powerful, a nonprofit that teaches sewing and tailoring skills to women in Zambia.

Today on Cause Talk Radio, Megan and Joe talk to Russell Sparkman, CEO, Content Strategy for FusionSpark Media about new research on the content marketing practices of nonprofit professionals. With Blackbaud and the Content Marketing Institute, FusionSpark Media has published its second annual Nonprofit Content Marketing 2015: Benchmarks, Budgets, and Trends. Russell, Megan and Joe discuss what is content marketing, the key to its success, the elements of a content marketing plan and why content is the future of fundraising success! Content marketing is a strategic marketing approach based on creating and distributing content that is relevant, valuable and consistent to build and engage with an audience. The goal is to drive a specific action.