Cause Marketing and Social Impact: Connecting with Gen Z's Values and Desire for Change
The evolving market of the present has brought about a time where Gen Z undoubtedly stand out among their older generational counterparts when it comes to their conscious consumer behaviour and passionate commitment to social and environmental causes. This generation, born between the mid-1990s and early 2010s, is driving a significant shift towards more ethical and purpose-driven consumer behaviour. Brands that aim to secure the loyalty of Gen Z must first understand and align with their values, something that can be done particularly through cause marketing.
Cause marketing involves businesses aligning their promotional efforts with social and environmental causes, offering a powerful avenue for connecting with Gen Z’s values and desire for change. This strategy enhances brand loyalty and contributes to making meaningful societal impacts. This article will explore the key aspects that make up cause marketing, how it resonates with Gen Z, and effective strategies for implementing it.
Understanding Gen Z's Values and Priorities
Gen Z are more likely to support brands that demonstrate authenticity, transparency, and a genuine commitment to the causes that they care about; they are most certainly characterised by their strong social and environmental consciousness. Unlike previous generations, Gen Z are more likely to prioritise purpose over profit, seeking out companies that both align with their personal values and contribute positively to society.
But what does it mean to be socially and environmentally conscious? Gen Z places high importance on the sustainability initiatives and ethical practices of businesses. They are vocal about issues such as climate change, social justice, and mental health, and expect the businesses they consume from to reflect these same values. Alongside this comes the desire for authenticity and transparency; this generation values honest and transparent communication from brands. Their exclusivity in choosing to support solely authentic brand campaigns makes them quick to spot and reject disingenuous marketing tactics, such as the recent call out of companies greenwashing their campaigns and faking environmentally friendly products, like H&M’s Conscious line.
This is also why they prioritise brands that align with their values. Gen Z consumers have a strong preference to engage with companies that genuinely share their commitment to supporting the social and environmental causes that they believe in. However, support is not the only thing they are looking for, as Gen Z actively seek purpose-driven companies that are actively making a positive impact, for example, beauty and cosmetic line Rare Beauty and their Rare Impact Fund, focusing on providing products to people that struggle to open packaging and highlighting mental health, issues that brand owner Selena Gomez has personally been open about. They support businesses that go beyond profit-making and following social media trends to making a real difference in the world, whether that be through implementing clear social and environmental initiatives, or through practising general Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR).
Brands that aim to secure the loyalty of Gen Z must first understand and align with their values
The Rise of Cause Marketing
Cause marketing has emerged as a crucial strategy for brands aiming to resonate with this new age of socially conscious consumers. This approach involves a symbiotic relationship where businesses support and promote a social cause in a way that benefits both the brand and the cause. The term refers to collaborations between businesses and non-profit organisations to advance social causes while promoting their products or services. Examples include campaigns like TOMS’ “One for One” shoe initiative and Patagonia’s environmental activism.
Let’s take a look at the benefits that cause marketing brings to either side of the parties involved:
Besides the inherent nature of promoting social and environmental causes being an overall positive addition to the globe and therefore the corporate world, brands can enhance their image, increase customer loyalty, and boost sales by aligning with such meaningful causes. This is because cause marketing fosters a positive perception and differentiates brands in a competitive market, which is why it is important for businesses to capture a natural, inherent dedication to making a positive contribution to the world, not just through the products or services they bring to consumers, but also through displaying ethically driven brand presence and practices to maintain the loyalty of consumers.
Strategies for Effective Cause Marketing with Gen Z
Now we know that in order to effectively engage a Gen Z audience through cause marketing, brands must adopt strategies that resonate with their values and expectations. Here are the key strategies to consider when implementing cause marketing:
1. Identify Authentic Causes
Align with Gen Z's values: Focus on causes that reflect Gen Z’s priorities, such as sustainability, social justice, or mental health, and communicate them and advocate for them with sincerity.
Conduct research to understand their priorities: To more accurately and personally target a specific Gen Z audience, make use of surveys, social media analysis, and trend monitoring to identify the issues that matter most to the sub-group of Gen Z that your brand wants to tailor towards. Conduct research into your own audience to see what they are currently talking about to get an idea of where to start looking for a cause.
Find a cause that makes sense for your brand: This doesn’t mean to just find a cause that best fits your brand image, as the entire point of cause marketing extends beyond just image; Make sure that the causes you identify have goals that align with yours, and that they have similar ideas on the means through which you want to attain them.
Collaborate with relevant non-profits or organisations: Partner with credible organisations that have a proven track record in the chosen cause area, not only to cement your brand’s presence in supporting the chosen cause but to also show Gen Z consumers that your brand genuinely adds to making a difference.
2. Integrate Causes into Brand Identity
Include causes in brand messaging and campaigns: Ensure that the chosen causes are consistently reflected in your brand’s messaging and marketing efforts.
Demonstrate long-term commitment, not just one-off initiatives: Showcase ongoing support and involvement in the cause to build trust and authenticity. Your ties to your cause cannot just be a once-a-year event, it has to be a consistent effort that demonstrates how much your brand really cares about the issue. Start to involve it in your marketing and keep it up year-round, as this also ties into point 2.1, where long-term commitments add to the consistency of your brand and the messages you communicate.
Involve Gen Z in the process: Encourage user-generated content (UGC) and co-creation to make Gen Z feel involved and valued in your cause marketing efforts. Take advantage of interactive content options on social media, and communicate directly with Gen Z using features such as polls or question stickers in stories or posts. One step further would be to promote positive challenges or trends, such as Marc Jacobs's use of content creators making outlandish videos and marketing through entertainment.
3. Leverage Social Media and Influencers
Utilise platforms popular with Gen Z: Focus on social media platforms like TikTok, Instagram, Youtube, and Snapchat, where Gen Z spends a significant amount of time.
Partner with influencers who align with the cause: Collaborate with influencers who have a genuine connection to the cause and can authentically promote it to their followers. Having a face to the brand can really help with fostering a more personal feel between the brand and the audience.
Encourage user-generated content and sharing: Create campaigns that inspire Gen Z to create and share their own content related to the cause. Trend monitoring is really helpful here, as to what starts and maintains trends that appeal to Gen Z.
4. Measure and Communicate Impact
Transparently report on the impact of cause marketing efforts: Share clear and honest reports on the outcomes of your cause marketing initiatives. Demonstrate that your brand’s integrity runs across all facets.
Use data and storytelling to showcase positive change: Combine quantitative data with compelling narratives to illustrate the impact of your efforts. Show your Gen Z audience that the symbiosis of your brand-cause-consumer relationship is truly paying off.
Celebrate milestones and achievements: Highlight key achievements and milestones to maintain momentum and inspire continued support. Documenting and commemorating your progress and successes helps keep Gen Z consumers believing in your brand and its intentions and results.
Brands must adopt strategies that resonate with Gen Z’s values and expectations
FAQ about Cause Marketing
What is cause marketing?
Cause marketing is a collaborative effort between businesses and non-profit organisations to promote social causes while marketing their products or services.
Why is cause marketing important for brands wanting to target Gen Z?
Gen Z values brands that are socially and environmentally responsible. Cause marketing helps brands build loyalty and trust with this generation by demonstrating consciousness and commitment to important causes.
How can brands identify causes that resonate with Gen Z?
Brands can identify relevant causes by conducting research on Gen Z’s values and priorities through surveys, social media analyses, and trend monitoring.
What are some examples of successful cause marketing campaigns?
Examples include TOMS’ “One for One” shoe initiative, Patagonia’s environmental activism, and Ben & Jerry’s social justice campaigns.
How can brands integrate such causes into their identity?
Brands can integrate causes into their identity by weaving them into their messaging, demonstrating long-term commitment, and involving Gen Z in the process through user-generated content and co-creation.
How should brands measure the impact of their cause marketing efforts?
Brands should measure impact by transparently reporting outcomes, using data and storytelling to showcase positive change, and celebrating key milestones and achievements.
Conclusion
Cause marketing presents a unique opportunity for brands to connect deeply with Gen Z, as by aligning with their values and desire for change, brands can truly amplify their presence in the world while also making a positive impact; more specifically, by authentically embracing causes that matter and implementing strategic cause marketing campaigns, brands can enhance their image and loyalty among Gen Z while contributing to meaningful social and environmental purposes. Now is the time for brands to embrace cause marketing strategies and be the drive behind such positive changes. Ready to lead your brand's purpose revolution? Let’s talk.
