Cause Related Marketing: A Study of Consumer Nonprofit Brand Identification

Abstract

In the past fifty years corporate involvement in the nonprofit sector has gradually changed from a voluntary practice of corporate philanthropy to the current mainstream practice of corporate social responsibility through mutually beneficial partnerships. While these partnerships have become a ubiquitous device in the promotional portfolio of corporate communication departments, the mechanics behind their effectiveness are still not fully understood by practitioners and academics. This thesis sought to better understand how purchase intentions of those active with the nonprofit partner of a cause related marketing program are moderated by consumer-nonprofit identification through a review of academic literature and a survey of graduate students. The results show that nonprofit identification is a good predictor of a volunteer’s or a donor’s intent to purchase cause related marketing products, and that nonprofit identification is moderated by tenure and frequency of interaction with the nonprofit.