The key principles of cause-related marketing agreed by Business in the Community: Integrity: Integrity is about behaving honestly and ethically and means adherence to moral principles. In the context of cause-related marketing this needs the highest standards. An ethical and professional approach and attitude is core to all aspects of the relationship and activity, and to all stakeholders including the partners in the agreement and the consumers.
Transparency: Informing, planning, communicating and implementing the partnership is fundamental. We must be honest with ourselves and open with our partners about all aspects of the organisation - good and bad. A relationship founded on evasion, half truths or deceit will not prosper.
Sincerity: People are becoming increasingly marketing literate. The public are happy that there should be a mutually beneficial relationship between a charity or cause and a business, but the balance and depth of that relationship will be under scrutiny both publicly and privately.
Mutual Respect: If an organisation could achieve its objectives as effectively without a partner, clearly it would do so. Conversely, if an organisation seeks a partner to enable it to achieve its objectives, by definition the partner has an intrinsic value and the values of the partner therefore need to be appreciated and respected.
Partnership: Partnership implies a joint venture in which each side shares the risks as well as the rewards. This is certainly the case in a cause-related marketing partnership where partners are in pursuit of both their own as well as joint objectives. Each partner therefore needs to appreciate all the opportunities and threats that the relationship presents.
Mutual Benefit: In any partnership, if a partner is not satisfied with the relationship then they need to question why they are involved. The more a relationship meets the needs of the partners the stronger and more sustainable it is.
