Cause Marketing Snapshot

77 percent of U.S. consumers want companies to commit to a specific cause for a long time, instead of running short promos with several causes. (That’s up from 66 percent in 1993.)

83 percent of U.S. consumers have a more positive image of a company that supports a cause they care about.

86 percent of consumers with household income over $50,000 have a more positive image of such a company.

94 percent of Influentials – the 20 million Americans defined by Roper as those who influence their social circles – have a more positive image of a company that supports a cause they care about.

North American companies will spend $630 million on cause sponsorships this year, up 16 percent from 1998.

Cause sponsorship will be 8.3 percent of the $7.6 billion marketers will spend on all sponsorships in North America this year, up from 8 percent last year.

Sponsors who make a flat donation can pay for rights fees and guarantee a minimum donation to a cause organization without tying consumer donations to product sales.