Tony Pigott mentioned a few studies done by Edelman regarding consumers and social change. I made a note of that because, just a few weeks ago, I heard Tal Dehtiar of Oliberte mention a stat of 20% for people willing to buy based on a good cause. That seemed a bit low to me. Tony’s presentation presented a more significant number. I’ve gone to the source – the 2009 Edelman goodpurpose Report – and you can find highlights below. While having a great product or service is absolutely essential, putting “meaning into marketing” might just have more power than we think.

• 67% of Canadian consumers expect businesses to integrate good causes into their day-to-day operations
• 62% of Canadian consumers would switch brands to help support a good cause
• The top 3 causes people care about? The environment, healthcare, and reducing poverty. The lowest? Supporting the arts.
• 59% of Canadian consumers said they are more likely to recommend a brand that supports a good cause than one that doesn’t. That’s up 12% from last year.
• 87% of Canadian consumers would prefer a brand that helps support the livelihood of local producers versus a “designer brand”
• 61% of people say they have taken action because they have been influenced by their children or other people’s children (2008 study).

The report studied 6,000 people in 10 countries, including Canada.

Looking at the country-by-country breakdown is interesting. Question after question, Brazil and India led the way in their social purpose preferences. The U.K. and Germany were lowest but Canada wasn’t far behind.

The stats are good news for businesses but there are lessons here for non-profits too. NGOs are now brands themselves: Product (RED), Greenpeace, WWF, United Way, Care, Habitat for Humanity, Oxfam. They’re global NGOs with big resources but smaller non-profits can build equally effective brands on a local scale. Actually, they have to to rise above the noise. That was the big take-away from Tony’s talk.