Studies: Cause Marketing Increases Sales

According to the 2008 Cone Cause Evolution Study, consumers are more likely to purchase specific brands if the brand or product is associated with a good cause. Eight in ten respondents (79%) said they would switch brands (provided price and quality were equal) to the one that is associated with a good cause.

Cause-related branding can have a positive impact on sales. While 79% of consumers said they would switch brands (price and quality being equal) to one that is associated with good cause, 84% said they would like to select their own cause. An additional 83% noted that the cause must be personally relevant and 80% said the nonprofit association of the cause is relevant.

About half of respondents (52%) felt that companies should continue to give to nonprofits at current levels, while 26% felt companies should give more. In separate research, specifically the 2008 Cone/Duke University Behavioral Cause Study, 182 consumers were exposed to cause related or typical corporate ads and then sent to shop in a mock store.

In this case, there was a 74% increase in the purchase of a shampoo brand that was associated with a specific cause and a 28% increase in cause-related toothpaste brands. Both studies support the notion that cause-based marketing can positively impact sales.