Philanthropy and charity are key ingredients to humanizing a brand. However, it has to be real and truthful or else it won’t be effective. The best way to be truthful is by aligning with an initiative that directly benefits the company itself. I know, it sounds antithetical, but it really isn’t. The reason it’s not a bad move is simple.

When a company aligns with an initiative the benefits its own interests, then the reason behind the philanthropy is obvious to the market. That doesn’t mean it’s not as important, in fact, it’s quite the opposite. The people quickly see that you are TRULY behind the initiative and aren’t just using it as a ploy. Therefore, they too can get involved for their own reasons without feeling like the company is benefiting directly from them. (more…)