Corporate Social Marketing Stimulates Good Behavior and Profits, According to Article in Stanford Social Innovation Review.

Business Editors/Education Writers

STANFORD, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--March 16, 2004

Wildfire prevention. Water conservation. Oral hygiene among low-income children. When three different corporations undertook to change people's behavior on these respective issues, they generated more than just goodwill; they impacted their own bottom line.

Of six categories of corporate social initiatives, corporate social marketing (CSM) is the most powerful in terms of not only raising awareness of a cause and a brand but changing people's behavior as well. Yet, according to the lead article in the Spring issue of Stanford Social Innovation Review, the strategy that uses marketing principles and techniques to foster behavior change in a target population is often fundamentally misunderstood, leading to design flaws and unskilled execution of corporate behavioral change campaigns.

Based on a combined 40 years of research and consulting work in social marketing, co-authors Philip Kotler, a faculty member at the Kellogg School of Management, and Nancy Lee, president of the Seattle-based Social Marketing Services consulting firm, assert that over time, "CSM is one of the surest ways to have a measurable impact on a social issue, because it actually increases the number of people who act in a way that benefits society."

Kotler and Lee demonstrate how by detailing three case histories. In the aftermath of a 1996 wildfire in Bend, Oregon, Safeco, a personal and business insurer in 44 states, funded a campaign, FireFree, promoting 10 steps homeowners can take to prevent or mitigate fire damage; the campaign eventually took wing and became self-sustaining without further funding from Safeco. In September 2003, Arizona's 40 Home Depot stores participated in a Water -- Use It Wisely conservation campaign that at one point drew 3,120 consumers to weekend workshops on water conservation; and Crest toothpaste burnished its brand in 2001, when it began a partnership with the Boys & Girls Clubs to create "cavity-free zones" in a network of neighborhood-based facilities serving 3.6 million economically disadvantaged young people.

"CSM campaigns are best when they're based on a healthy dovetailing of interests between what society needs and a company's goals and objectives," Kotler and Lee conclude.

The Stanford Social Innovation Review (www.ssireview.com), published by the Stanford Graduate School of Business, continues to provide provocative insights and research from leading executives and experts on nonprofit management, philanthropy, and corporate citizenship.

Other subjects addressed in the fourth issue, Spring 2004, of the Review include corporate and nonprofit partnerships, nonprofit management, social entrepreneurship, and organizational effectiveness. These subjects are addressed in feature stories and the following departments:

-- "Upfront" comprises six to eight briefs summarizing ideas or

survey trends;

-- "Toolkit" spotlights strategies for improving management and

attaining the goals of social sector organizations;

-- "Case Study" examines actual management practices and lessons

learned in a social-purpose organization; and

-- "From the Frontlines" are first-person essays penned by

individuals at the forefront of social service.

More information on these and other articles are available online: www.ssireview.com. A one-year subscription costs $69.

The Stanford Social Innovation Review (SSIR) is published by the Center for Social Innovation (CSI) of the Stanford Graduate School of Business. The Review crowns an initiative launched three years ago with the founding of the Center. Significantly expanded in the summer of 2002, CSI was created to promote innovative, effective, and efficient solutions to important social problems by adapting business knowledge and experience to challenges faced by the nonprofit sector.

The Stanford Social Innovation Review is made possible by the financial support of CSI's investors, including philanthropists Louise and Claude Rosenberg (MBA '52), Susan B. Ford, The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation, and The David and Lucile Packard Foundation.