Ep 19: New York Times Advertising Columnist Stuart Elliott Talks Cause Marketing

This week, Megan and Joe talk with Stuart Elliott, advertising columnist at The New York Times about his recent article on "Seeking Success by Helping to Feed the Hungry." In it, Stuart profiles a new campaign called Run 10 Feed 10. Each person who registers to run in 10-kilometer races to be held in 11 cities this fall will trigger 10 meals to people in need in the runner’s community.

The partners in the initiative are Unilever, on behalf of four brands, Degree Women, Ragú, Simple and Vaseline; Women’s Health magazine, published by Rodale; the Feed Foundation; and Crowdrise, a Web site that uses social networking and crowdsourcing to help raise money for charities.

We discuss how this new campaign may represent a new area of opportunity for media companies that have previously let brands take center stage with cause marketing initiatives. Stuart also reflects on the growth of cause marketing the past few years and where the industry may be headed.

Assorted Notes & Links

• Seeking Success by Helping to Feed the Hungry (Stuart's article referenced in the show)
• NewYorkTimes.com (Stuart's columns online)
• Media Decoder Blog