The Marketing Genius of Doing Good

The really smart and savvy businesses have already realized that there is tremendous profit in Doing Good.  In my last post I wrote about what Starbucks has done in Rwanda but what you should also know is what Rwanda coffee has done for Starbucks profits.  The company started selling coffee from Rwanda in mid 2009.  2nd quarter profits in 2010 were an eight fold increase and the company has posted four consecutive quarters of profit now.

So what if everyone with a small or home-based business started to use this model?  If you are already in business here are 3 things you can do to become a Philanthro-Capitalist.

1-    Decide what portion of your gross sales or profits you can give to charity without hurting your business.  I know companies that have raised prices slightly so that they can give more away and they have done very well.  Look at the higher prices we pay for organic foods for example.
2-    Pick a charity to support.  You can even include your most loyal customers and supporters of your business in making that choice.
3-    Don’t just give the money to the charity.  Get involved and get your customers involved.  For example if your donations are going to support the local homeless shelter you might decide that the portion of your sales or profits that you are donating will go towards buying enough food for a Thanksgiving or Christmas meal for the homeless.  This is where you can include your customers to volunteer to do the cooking and serving of the food.  I know what happens and the feeling your customers will have because I have led such initiatives. This 3rd step will turn your customers into evangelists of you and your business driving more customers to you who will want to not just buy your products but be part of the experience.

Now imagine how much good you can do if you initiated this little idea in your business.  And as more businesses follow this model, the more money charities will have to do all the good work they do.  And if you include your customers it will raise volunteerism in our country and this is what I have learned about what happens to a person that is doing good.  They feel better about themselves and as they do their relationships get better and they do better at home and at work.  They make more money, they are happier and their lives are lifted because they lifted others up.

One trap you will need to avoid here is that there will be detractors that will tell you that this model will not work.  I have seen it work and I am seeing examples of it in businesses big and small.  However, there will always be those who discourage you and one of the arguments they use is: “what happens when other businesses start doing what you are doing with charities”. They argue that the competitive edge you enjoyed is now gone.

I encourage you not to think about the competitive edge you win or lose with other businesses but instead think about the collaborative edge you give to the world as all businesses join forces to change the world.