A LOT OF LEGS Cause marketing is an investment in your company’s reputation, which sometimes makes it difficult to measure in conventional metrics, such as lead cost. Heidi Hurn, marketing director for Legacy Roofing, says the company’s state-of-the-art lead-tracking system puts leads directly resulting from cause marketing at less than 1%. Yet both she and her father, owner Cliff Hurn, agree that the company’s involvement with both high-profile nonprofits such as the Susan B. Komen Race for the Cure, as well as a host of school sports teams, contributed to Legacy Roofing’s strong growth over the years.
They’d also agree that companies making that commitment shouldn’t be shy about letting people know, a view some others are beginning to subscribe to. In spring of 2006, All County Exteriors, in New Jersey, participated in an episode of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition by taking on the roofing, siding, and all exterior trim portions of a house that had been burned and needed to be entirely rebuilt. One payback for the company’s involvement was its ability to use the Extreme Makeover logo on its trucks, shirts, and marketing materials. That “extremely popular TV program … has a lot of legs,” says vice president of operations Ross Marzarella. “I can’t tell you how often people stop us when they see our trucks with the big Extreme Makeover logo on them.”
That reaction prompted Marzarella to reconsider the way his company approaches philanthropic causes. All County Exteriors has “always participated in Habitat for Humanity and community programs,” he says, as well as the Make-A-Wish Foundation, and fundraising by the American Cancer Society. On a number of occasions, the company has reroofed churches “at significant discount.” “We do it to help out, and we do it, secondarily, for the public relations,” Marzarella says. But All County Exteriors promoted its involvement with Extreme Makeover, and saw the difference.
“In the past, we haven’t promoted it. We didn’t call the newspaper and give them a press release, which is something we should start doing as the market becomes more competitive,” Marzarella says.
Marketing professionals point out that there are discreet and appropriate ways to highlight the good you do. For instance, many companies draw attention to their cause with a section on the company Web site called “Community” or “About Us.”
But perhaps you think that your company must be huge to be effective in community, or cause, marketing. Not so, says author Joe Marconi. “Even mom-and-pop operations can go to the local school and say: ‘What can we do to help? Does the soccer team need new uniforms? Do you need a new van?’ These are things you can do on a local level that really put you in good stead.” That identification, over time, influences how purchase decisions are made, and can generate for your company a steadily accumulating process of layered referrals.
“It’s all relevant to your size,” Ferro says. “You may not be able to do 10 causes, so you do one. You may not be able to spend $25,000, so you spend $2,500. Marketing has to have emotion and heart with it for it to work.”
BUILDING A LEGACY OF GIVING
Last October, some 50 employees of Legacy Roofing in Seattle — a third of the company’s workforce — participated as a team in the Susan B. Komen Race for the Cure, a breast cancer fundraiser. The one-day event drew some 20,000 participants, and Legacy Roofing signed on as a team sponsor.
Susan B. Komen Race for the Cure, the Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, also in Seattle, and the Jacob Green Golf Tournament, which raises money for local nonprofits, are three causes that Legacy Roofing has aligned itself with for several years. The company selected these at the recommendation of the public relations firm it uses.
Director of marketing Heidi Hurn estimates that Legacy Roofing annually spends $65,000 to $70,000 sponsoring 30 school sporting teams, as well as events such as the Race for the Cure. The company’s focused public involvement in community activities has done much over the years to “get our name out there,” Heidi says. It began when owner Cliff Hurn started sponsoring the various high-school sports teams his children were on. Heidi says community marketing and the recognition it has brought the company helped Legacy Roofing grow from sales of $3 million per year to $18 million five years later. —J.C.
FOOD DRIVE
Last month S&K Roofing, Siding and Windows in Eldersburg, Md., completed its fourth Holiday Food Drive. In November and December, the company collects nonperishable food and non-food items at a drop box in its showroom, to be delivered to the Maryland Food Bank. Right before Christmas, the food is taken to the food bank and weighed. The company then donates a dollar for every pound contributed. In 2006, S&K collected more than 1,000 pounds of nonperishable food and non-food items. In 2007 the company hoped to collect 1,500 pounds. Director of sales Charlie McCurry manages the operation, and S&K’s cash donation comes from its general fund, and is not considered a marketing expense.
S&K Roofing, Siding and Windows selected Maryland Food Bank only after researching the nonprofit online and visiting the food distribution facility. A major reason for selecting the food bank was because the nonprofit — which distributes 12 million pounds of food through community centers annually — is nondenominational.
