Cause Marketing/Corporate Partnerships

Toyota is set to deliver the first three vehicles to winners of its “100 Cars for Good” program. 100 Cars for Good is a major new philanthropic program from Toyota that is awarding 100 vehicles to 100 nonprofit organizations over the course of 100 days, based on votes from the public.

Toyota kicks off the vehicle deliveries by awarding vehicles to representatives of the Community Soup Kitchen and Outreach Center, Laura Recovery Center for Missing Children and Sol Collective.

Nordstrom is opening a full-priced store in Manhattan called Treasure&Bond, with all profits of the store committed to charity.

Nordstrom says its charity efforts will go further than competitors who team up with nonprofit groups for campaigns. And all proceeds from the rather expensive merchandise go to children’s charities, Nordstrom says.

In addition, there are no plans to make it a for-profit store, said Peter E. Nordstrom, executive vice president and president of merchandising at Nordstrom. But he added that the company remained committed to opening a department store in New York City.

When brands exhibit inconsistencies, consumers find it hard to swallow proclamations of corporate social responsibility (CSR), according to a forthcoming Journal of Consumer Research study.

Researchers found that CSR messages from brands associated with excitement and openness (Apple) or tradition and conservation (Aunt Jemima) are swiftly understood and accepted. On the contrary, when brands that suggest luxury, power, or status (Rolex) espouse their good deeds, their efforts aren't as well-received.

The Enumclaw Regional Healthcare Foundation is partnering with Macy’s to invite customers to participate in Macy’s sixth annual Shop for a Cause charity event Aug. 27.

Customers can purchase tickets now through Enumclaw Regional Healthcare Foundation members or at the office.

Macy’s Shop for a Cause is a one-day-only shopping event created to support local charities’ fundraising efforts. The event has helped raise more than $38 million for charities across the country since 2006.

While ninety-six percent of Americans say they can identify two to three causes that are important to them personally, only 37 percent of Americans actually have purchased a produced associated with a cause in the last year, a new survey says.

And 74 percent of 1,000 adults age 18 and older who took an online survey conducted by communications company MSLGROUP agree there often is too much of a disconnect between the causes companies support and the brands and products they sell, while 67 percent believe companies only support causes to sell products.

Forty-four community organizations around the world will receive a total of $6 million in grant awards from The Coca-Cola Foundation, the philanthropic arm of The Coca-Cola Company. The grants, approved during the second quarter, support community initiatives aimed at improving education, fitness and nutrition programs, community recycling and access to clean water.

Since the beginning of the year, The Coca-Cola Foundation has awarded more than $38 million to 123 organizations. Of the $6 million allocated during the second quarter, approximately $5.4 million support the Foundation's community investment priorities, including:

McDonald’s has teamed with Keep America Beautiful to invite kids to “Smurf the Earth” by choosing Apple Dippers in their Happy Meals. Those Apple Dipper packages feature a digital code, and when that code is entered at HappyMeal.com, McDonald’s and KAB will plant a tree (up to 100,000) in needed or devastated areas within national forests across the country.

Celebrating the release of "The Smurfs," McDonald's worldwide Happy Meal program promotes the importance of good environmental stewardship and family togetherness.

Last week, Southwest Airlines announced its first set of 10 winners for the 1,600 ticket giveaway in honor of Southwest’s 40th anniversary to spread the LUV even further to the communities we serve. The second set of 10 winners were announced: American Association of Blacks in Energy, Home Front Hearts, Aguila Youth Leadership Institute, National Federation of the Blind, Association of Fraternal Leadership & Values, 1N10, National Park Foundation, Pacific Asian Consortium in Employment, Team Rubicon and Urban Health Plan.

In order to ensure the effectiveness of corporate philanthropy programs, executives should apply the same prudence to giving decisions that they do to other business activities, according to the Director Notes report released by The Conference Board, the global business research and membership organization.

The report, Making the Business Case for Corporate Philanthropy, provides practical recommendations to companies and boards for ensuring the legitimacy of their corporate giving programs. It also discusses the role of institutional investors and questions surrounding disclosure, and highlights examples of corporate giving successes and failures.

Harbinger Group Inc. has joined with long-time Starkey Hearing Foundation supporter Rayovac to help further the foundation’s mission to foster greater understanding among people through hearing care by focusing on awareness, education, protection and treatment.

Following the Starkey Hearing Foundation’s 11th annual So the World May Hear Gala, which took place on July 24 and raised a record-breaking $7.2 million, Harbinger Group pledged its support together with Rayovac to ensure that the foundation’s goal to bring the gift of hearing to those in need all over the world continues.