Brand Spirit - How cause related marketing builds brands

By Hamish Pringle & Marjorie Thompson

Before reading this book I thought that CRM only stood for Customer Relations Management. This book not only introduced me to the concept of Cause Related Marketing, but put it in context with everything else in the marketing mix, giving interesting examples of current business strategies with CRM programs.

At the beginning of this book there is an excellent diagram called "Anthropomorphy in branding." This shows an outlined person with a heart, which has Emotional written next to it, the head has Rational written by it and there is a halo above the head which states Spiritual/Ethical. Below the diagram, the simple statement, “50s Rational, 70s Emotional, 90s Spiritual”. This visually illustrates how consumer behaviour has changed between the 1950s to the 1990s and why marketing has had to change with it.

The book starts by discussing this in more detail, such as why the consumer has changed and how branding has now entered the Third Wave in a bid to keep up with consumer demands. It endeavours to explain why consumers now want to know more about the brands they buy, such as what the companies like, think and feel (the spiritual age) and introduces Cause Related Marketing (CRM) as a method achieve this.

CRM is described as a way in which brands can gain this extra dimension or "soul"  by getting actively involved in a long term program with a social cause (to which they are seen to have a close link).

The book makes clear the importance of choosing the right cause to support. The cause should be linked to the company in some way; such as Andrex’s Guide Dogs for the Blind campaign, which has a strong link due to the Andrex puppy used in the television advertising. The cause should be investigated to ensure there has not been (or could be) any bad publicity; or that it is a cause that the public feels is just a superficial way of generating sales (such as a program to improve heart checks by an insurance company).

Once a cause has been chosen, the company has to decide if it is either going to partner with a charity or go direct to the cause, such as Tesco did with its very successful Computers for Schools CRM programme. There are pluses and minuses for both, and one of this book's main strengths is the practical discussion and evaluation which is given to all possible opportunities.

The book takes the reader through every aspect of a CRM programme, with detailed examples (both good and bad) throughout the book. My only criticism is how Saatchi & Saatchi has openly used this book as an advertising channel to promote the work is is doing or has done in this area. Few other agencies are mentioned and a great amount of time is spent describing the agency's past projects. In some places this is more like reading agency's credentials. However, that said, it is much easier and more appropriate for anyone to describe the projects they have worked on as they have the inside knowledge.

Other areas which are discussed are the amount of funding, involvement from staff at all levels, the duration of the programme and how marketing and PR can be best used to support the campaign.

Brand Spirit is very well-structured book and it is quite evident that a great deal of background research has been undertaken into areas related to this topic. I would recommend this book to anyone in marketing, PR or advertising. Not only does it highlight strategies that you may not have thought about before, but also gives sound practical advice and guidance on how to plan and implement a CRM programme on both a small and a large scale.

Review by Nicola Barnett