The principles of good cause marketing partnerships

PainePR and PRWeek conducted a survey on cause marketing partnerships, downloadable here in PDF format from PRWeek. The article offers great information on the state of cause marketing partnerships as well as some key concepts, including:

• Make sure that there's something in it for both sides: one-sided relationships never last.
• Ensure that all parties understand their commitments and responsibilities. This includes field people who may not be aware of the details of partnership agreements hammered out by the home office.
• If it's not a good fit, you're better off saying no and looking for the right partner.
• Find a champion in upper management. If your partnership doesn't have top-level support, it won't have the organizational backing it needs to thrive.
• Go for at least a 3-year commitment; shorter engagements don't make sense, as it takes time to build momentum and awareness and get out the kinks.
• Set clear evaluation standards from the outset, making sure both parties agree on what success looks like and how it will be measured.

A great resource for anyone interested in corporate/nonprofit partnerships (and this includes business/education partnerships as well).