2015 America`s Charity Checkout Champions™ Report

2015 America’s
Charity Checkout Champions™
Report
The Cause Marketing Forum’s exclusive industry survey
examining million-dollar-plus consumer donation campaigns at
point of sale.
AMERICA'S CHARITY CHECKOUT CHAMPIONS™ REPORT Executive Summary
In 2014, more than $388 million was raised by a group of 77, million-­‐dollar-­‐plus charity checkout champions. In total, these campaigns have raised over $3.88 billion over three decades. The cumulative amount of money collected in the United States by $1-­‐million-­‐plus point-­‐of-­‐sale fundraising programs decreased by a fraction of a percentage (-­‐0.31%) from 2012 to 2014. While the aggregate total remained constant, within this report’s data are some important phenomena with implications for the future of charity checkout programs: • Properly integrating cash register technology and employee training makes a dramatic impact on funds raised. • Layering consumer incentives and fundraising can pay significant financial and social dividends. • Some natural disasters spawn substantial one-­‐off checkout charity programs. There were five, $1 million+ disaster relief programs linked to Superstorm Sandy in the 2012 results. By contrast, 2014 was a quieter year for such major natural disasters and no event-­‐specific disaster relief programs made the list. • There is room for new business players or for changes in charity focus. • Proactive nonprofits can lay a major role in stimulating new and enhanced programs (e.g. St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital and Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals). • The cause matters. Consumers are willing to open their wallets to donate $1 to help sick or injured children more than any other cause area. Charity
Checkout Programs Are Here to Stay
American consumers have grown accustomed to being asked to round up their purchase or donate a dollar or two to charity when checking out at retailer establishments from restaurants to grocery stores. A recent study from Good Scout Group reports that 71% of those surveyed have donated to charity at the register. Two years ago, the Cause Marketing Forum (CMF) conducted a first-­‐of-­‐its kind survey looking at the largest in-­‐person and virtual point of sale programs. In 2012 over $389 million was raised by 78 programs that brought in $1 million or more. When CMF sought out 2014 campaigns that raised $1 million+ it uncovered 77 programs and some great insights into charity checkout best practices. Maintaining its lead as the reigning Charity Checkout Champion™ is eBay’s Giving Works program, raising $62.2 million in 2014 by enabling sellers to contribute a portion of their sales to charity and inviting buyers to make a voluntary donation year-­‐round. This represents a 15% increase over their 2012 figures and brings their cumulative charitable donation figure to $561.8 million to thousands of charities since 2001. Retaining its standing as the largest in-­‐store program and the second largest in our survey is the Miracle Balloon program by WalMart and Sam’s Clubs that invites consumers to ‘Put Their Money Where the Miracles Are’ for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals. It raised $40 million in 2014. Following a traditional yet highly successful point of sale model, consumers were asked to donate at checkout to benefit sick and injured kids at a local children’s hospital. The totals decreased 3.9% from the $41.6 million it raised in 2012. Since 1987, the program has raised $700 million for the network of children’s hospitals. Again ranking third is the coin collection program at 13,300 McDonald’s locations that raised $27.1 million for Ronald McDonald House Charities in 2014. The year-­‐round program asks consumers for spare change and those nickels, dimes and quarters have added up to an astounding $281 million since 1992. Although down slightly from 2012 numbers, this 2014 figure represents a 3% increase over 2013 totals (see McDonald’s call out box below). New coin collection boxes now used at McDonald’s. M C D O NA LD ’ S C O INS T E LL
A
D E EP E R S TO R Y
Comparing the net dollars collected at thousands of McDonald’s locations in 2012 and 2014 doesn’t tell the full hat has transpired with the program over the past two years. story of w
In 2012, the program generated $28.1 million, an increase over years past due to tighter controls and outsourcing the management of the coin collection to a third party. With nothing to drive growth in 2013, that number dropped to $26.3. MHC implemented more aggressive merchandising, refreshed old boxes and centralized the process of In 2014, R
creating and distributing new graphic elements to franchise locations. Against a 2% decline in McDonald’s sales, the coin collection program grew 3% to hit $27.1 million in 2014. This survey is far from a full representation of point of sale campaigns taking place across the country each day. For every campaign reported in this survey, CMF estimates there are hundreds more partnerships between company, cause and consumer raising thousands or hundreds of thousands of dollars for a wide variety of causes. Several campaigns came within $100,000 of the million-­‐dollar mark but didn’t quite break the threshold. There are also other campaigns that raised over $1 million in 2014 not included in this survey because they either did not make their results public or escaped our search. The goal of this report is to provide an industry benchmark and identify point of sale trends. It concludes with a matrix of 2014’s largest programs and, where possible, a comparison against 2012 figures. About the Charity Checkout Champions Methodology
Cause Marketing Forum combed through public data to identify the largest point of sale donation programs and asked companies and nonprofit organizations to provide campaign details in the spring of 2015. We relied on publicly available information such as annual reports or press releases when companies or nonprofits declined to provide information for the study. Information based on public information is footnoted in the report. To qualify for inclusion, a Charity Checkout Campaign™ had to invite consumers to make donations at point of sale and had to have raised at least $1 million in consumer donations in 2014. Only program activity in the United States was included in the study. In the course of the spring 2015 research, CMF discovered some programs that could have been included in our original Charity Checkout Champions™ report published in 2013. To provide the most accurate data, we’ve updated the 2012 program information for this report. It should also be noted that many of these partnership Charity Checkout Tactics
Icon/Pinup: At checkout, consumers are asked if they’d like to “purchase” what is typically a paper icon (e.g. a sneaker or pink ribbon) for a set dollar amount (usually $1, $3 or $5) to benefit a designated charity. The icon is then displayed in the store. Partners of Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals efforts went beyond consumer donation to include have raised hundreds of millions components such as percentage-­‐of-­‐sale donations on through the group’s ‘Miracle Balloon’ purchases or corporate donations unlocked via social media campaigns. In these instances, the aggregate of funds raised pinup program over the years. Donation Request: Similar to the ‘pinup’ program above, consumers are asked to would be larger than the consumer donation number make a donation upon checkout either included in this survey. by a sales associate or an automated pin pad ask. Coin C ollection: A canister, box or other Common Charity Checkout Tactics
collection device is placed at point of purchase with messaging on where a consumer’s spare change will be Consumer donation cause marketing campaigns can take donated. Ronald McDonald House many formats. The most popular include icons (pinups), Charities received $27.1 million in 2014 donation requests, coin collection and round-­‐up programs (see side bar). The Cash Register Giveth…And Taketh Away
in nickels, dimes and quarters collected at over 13,000 McDonald’s locations. Round-­‐up: Consumers are asked upon checkout if they’d like to round up their purchase to the nearest dollar increment with the overage going to a designated charity. For example, if a There are many differences between the programs listed in consumer agrees to round up a $ 12.47 the 2012 and 2014, $1-­‐million-­‐plus lists. Some programs purchase, $.53 goes to charity and the grew. Some shrank. Some companies changed their consumer pays an even $13.00. JCPenney has raised tens of millions for a variety of charities using this tactic. charitable focus. New players emerged. Fifty-­‐four programs appear on both lists. Six programs that appeared in 2012 don’t show up on the 2014 list. And ten 2014 programs were not yet $1 million+ initiatives in 2012. For example, DICK’s Sporting Goods had participated in St. Jude’s annual ‘Thanks and Giving’ holiday campaign since 2007. In 2012, they raised $4.8 million from consumers for sick children. Since that time, DICK’s has introduced a major cause initiative called ‘Sports Matter’ with a mission to keep kids playing sports. While they did ask consumers to support the campaign at point of sale, the focus and quantities raised was completely different and no individual campaign hit the $1 million mark in 2014. Forty-­‐three campaigns showed increases over their 2012 funds raised and twenty posted amounts that were lower in 2014. Ten campaigns that had not yet reached the $1 million mark in 2012 were added to the list in 2014. Six campaigns that generated at least $1 million in 2012 did not reach that level this year and fell off the list. An additional 9 campaigns that did not exist in 2012 made the list of million-­‐dollar-­‐plus efforts in 2014. Campaigns that declined from 2012 to 2014 may have experienced changes in management, execution or simply changing corporate strategy. Charity checkout fundraising campaigns aren’t appropriate for all companies as Food Lion discovered. The grocery retailer serves primarily 55% of Americans said they
enjoyed donating to
charitable causes a t the
register.
28% listed charity brand
recognition as the number
one reason they were
compelled to give.
Source: 2015 Change at The Checkout Report
a low-­‐income population and learned through customer surveys that their budget-­‐
conscious shoppers did not like being asked to donate at checkout. In response, the only ask Food Lion makes at checkout now is one to support local food banks. For the purposes of this survey, that took Food Lion from over $8 million raised in 2014 to less than $500,000. The largest absolute dollar increase between 2012 and 2014 was realized by Kmart, which increased dollars raised for St. Jude by a whopping $10 million to a total of $17.5 million. Brian Hanover of Sears Holdings Corporation (Kmart’s owner), gives much of the credit for this jump to executional When Kmart introduced an automated pin pad ask at checkout with $1, $5 and $10 options, the average donation amount increased. improvements such as adding an automated ask on the pin pad machine (which reinforces the verbal ask by a Kmart associate) and an extended campaign period. Senior leadership attention was also a major factor. “Kmart is truly dedicated to the cause,” said Hanover. “At the senior most levels of leadership, we wanted to ensure Kmart was number one for St. Jude (of all corporate fundraisers). Being number one is a big pride point for associates.” For its part, St. Jude activates a great deal of celebrity engagement for the retailer and works to keep the campaign fresh for associates, including creating a personalized video for Kmart associates from spokeswoman Marlo Thomas and personally introducing patient families to field associates. On a percentage basis, Ace Hardware registered the biggest increase from 2012 to 2014. Its dollars raised for Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals jumped 173% from 2012 to reach $4.08 million in 2014. CMN Hospitals attributes the growth to Ace’s commitment to doubling their in-­‐store fundraising over the next eight years as well as dynamic and strategic account management. Cause Champions
Led by the point of sale powerhouses of St. Jude and Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, the children’s health cause represented 51.4% ($199 million) of the money raised by all million dollar+ campaigns. Disease-­‐related campaigns make up the second largest category at 9.8% of all dollars raised or $37.9 million. Campaigns focused on animals raised $37.7 million, accounting for 9.7% of the total. Leading Industry Sectors
Mass merchandisers and warehouse clubs such as WalMart and Costco rang up $90.5 million for charities, representing a full 24% of the survey total. Specialty stores including retailers focused on pets, electronics, auto parts, seasonal goods and more represented 20.4% or $79.4 million. The online sector, again led by eBay, delivered 17% or $62.2 million in donations. QSR/fast casual restaurants (e.g. chains such as McDonald’s, Domino’s Pizza and Dairy Queen) served up 15% or $55.9 million for a variety of causes. Incentives
As customers are asked with increasing frequency to donate to causes at checkout, some retailers have turned to incentives to increase participation. A third of survey respondents reported using some type of incentive in their consumer donation campaign. Not only do incentives such as coupons or discounts provide a give-­‐and-­‐get situation for consumers, many retailers have found these added perks make it easier for salespeople to make an ask. When these incentives are tied to sales in the form of a bounceback coupon or offer, the business impact of the campaigns is easier to measure. Examples of incentives include Wendy’s Frosty Key Tag campaign that rewarded consumers who donated $1.00 to the Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption with a special key tag. With any future purchase, the key tag provided a free Frosty Jr. To benefit Children’s Miracle Network Hospitals, Ace Hardware sold a 5-­‐gallon bucket for a $5.00 donation. Anything customers could fit into the bucket was then 20% off. Often, incentives are tied to a company’s loyalty program. As an incentive for donating to the St. Jude campaign, KMART Shop Your Way members received a bounceback coupon for 5% back in Shop Your Way points. Redemption rates on these donation-­‐triggered coupons have “consistently been in the upper echelon of response rates” compared to similar offers according to Sears’ Brian Hanover. Campaign Run Times
Five campaigns in the survey report running year-­‐round campaigns and two were reported as single-­‐day events. Removing those outliers from the data produced an average campaign run time of 4.9 weeks. The Change at Checkout Report found that 55% of consumers prefer to be asked to donate once or more per month. Persistent Partnerships
Many of these campaigns have been around for years, creating brand affinity and campaign consistency for the nonprofit and the participating company. The longest running campaign in this survey, a partnership between Kmart and the March of Dimes, began in 1983. The campaign raised $11 million in 2014 and has raised a grand total of $125 million for the charity between 1983 and 2014. However, not all successful charity checkout programs have been around for decades. For example, the National 4H’s Council’s first foray into the world of consumer donation campaigns was a partnership selling paper clover icons with rural-­‐based retailer Tractor Supply Company (TSC) started in 2011. Generating $625,881 its inaugural year, the partnership has grown annually to reach over $1.5 million in 2014. The introduction of a corporate partner relationship was a new paradigm for the organization which has chapters located in every county of the United States. The relationships between 4H chapters and local TSC stores have been cultivated over the years to create the robust alliance it is today. Not only do retail stores sell paper clovers twice each year, 4Hers are also encouraged to use TSC stores and parking lots to host fundraisers or set up educational livestock clinics and exhibitions. Supporting the agricultural education of a community’s youngest residents is clearly a solid brand fit for TSC and solidifies its community reputation as the brand that supports customers’ rural lifestyle. Conclusion
and Best Practices
Consumers have shown their willingness to donate small amounts at the register year over year. A well-­‐timed, simple ask at point of sale makes donating easy for consumers and these collective micro donations can add up to huge dollars for good causes. Best practices include the following: Solid cause/brand fit. The more consumers can personally relate to the cause, the more likely they are to donate. Classic examples include: Grocery stores supporting hunger in the local community. Online retailers asking their users to donate to the cause about which they care most. Specialty retailers asking for funds for sick children at a local children’s hospital. Rural outposts asking farmers to support the next generation of farmers. Alignment matters. Technology supports. Investing in point of sale donation technology is not a small undertaking but one that has been proven to potentially boost participation and even increase donation amounts. However, savvy checkout champions know that technology is not a substitute for a human interaction. Sixty-­‐two percent of consumers prefer to be solicited by the cashier, a dynamic not likely to change significantly in the future according to the Change at Checkout report. Incentives help. Rewarding customers for their donation by offering discounts or other incentives is sound strategy in consumer donation campaigns. Not only do customers feel they’re getting a win-­‐win, incentives can soften the ask for associates by offering a direct benefit in return. Data on redemption rates for these incentives may also offer valuable, measurable insights to both company and cause. A little competition goes a long way. Many companies turn consumer fundraising campaigns into friendly store vs. store competitions, which keeps motivation high and provides additional opportunities to communicate to associates about the campaign and its progress. Leaderboards, contests and employee recognition are all used effectively to get competitive juices flowing and keep the cause and campaign top of mind. As lucrative as these point of sale campaigns have proven to be for nonprofit organizations, there is significant movement in selected partners, corporate strategy and amounts raised year over year. An increasing yearly dollar amount is not a foregone conclusion when choosing to continue a point of sale partnership. Charity checkout campaigns will continue to make familiar and periodic appearances to consumers at their favorite retailers far into the future. Technology may change the nuances of these point of sale interactions but arm in arm with their consumers, companies will continue to raise millions upon millions of dollars for cause partners at checkout. America’s Charity Checkout Champions™ 2015
Amount Raised 2014 Company Cause Year Started Amount Raised Since Inception Amount Raised 2012 % Change $62,200,000 eBay 34,995 charities 2001 $561,805,032 $54,020,000 15.14% $40,000,000 Walmart/ Sam's Club CMN Hospitals 1987 $700,000,000 $41,643,464 -­‐3.95% $27,100,000 McDonalds Ronald McDonald House Charities 1992 $281,000,000 $27,900,000 -­‐2.87% $22,000,000 Costco CMN Hospitals 1998 $220,000,000 $14,444,331 52.31% $17,500,000 KMART St. Jude 2006 $76,000,000 $7,500,000 133.33% $11,000,000 KMART March of Dimes 1983 $125,000,000 $8,000,000 37.50% $9,700,000 Best Buy St. Jude 2013 $10,587,000 NEW $8,700,000 Petco The Petco Foundation Data not available $7,800,000 Speedway CMN Hospitals 1991 $68,000,000 $6,272,307 24.36% $6,400,000 Toys"R"Us 2004 $41,900,000 $4,000,000 60.00% $6,400,000 Yum! (Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, KFC) Marine Toys for Tots Foundation UN World Food Programme 2007 $7,400,000 -­‐13.51% $5,800,000 Spirit Halloween 130 Children’s Hospitals 2006 $22,000,000 $3,500,000 65.71% $5,749,420 Lowe's Muscular Dystrophy Association 2001 $44,097,797 $7,600,000 -­‐24.35% $5,200,000 Domino's Pizza St. Jude 2004 $16,100,000 $3,600,000 44.44% $4,900,000 Rite Aid CMN Hospitals 1994 $70,000,000 $6,000,000 -­‐18.33% $4,700,000 Petco The Petco Foundation $4,600,000 ANN Inc. St. Jude 2007 $26,000,000 $4,500,000 Safeway Local Food Pantries 2014 $4,500,000 $4,500,000 Walgreen Co. 2011 $3,253,394 38.32% $4,300,000 ANN Inc. 2004 $22,300,000 $4,000,000 7.50% $4,088,349 Ace Hardware CMN Hospitals 1991 $54,000,000 $1,500,000 172.56% $3,900,000 Williams Sonoma St. Jude 2005 $29,000,000 $3,800,000 2.63% $3,800,000 Publix Special Olympics 1994 $29,639,690 $2,652,434 43.26% $3,722,000 Safeway 2001 $138,000,000 $12,350,561 -­‐69.86% $3,600,000 CVS Health 2014 $3,600,000 NEW $3,600,000 CVS Health Stand Up to Cancer 2014 $3,600,000 NEW $3,600,000 Wendy's Dave Thomas Foundation 1999 $25,235,563 American Diabetes Association Breast Cancer Research Foundation UC Davis, UCI, UCSF, UC San Diego, UCLA, UCSF American Lung Association Data not available $4,000,000 15.00% NEW $2,790,000 29.03% Amount Raised 2014 Company Cause Year Started Amount Raised Since Inception Amount Raised 2012 % Change $3,500,000 Walgreen Co. Susan G. Komen for the Cure 2011 $19,000,000 $8,541,403 -­‐59.02% $3,400,000 Arby's Share Our Strength 2011 $11,204,000 $2,665,129 27.57% $3,400,000 Macy's Shop for a Cause 2006 $47,000,000 $3,100,000 9.68% $3,224,766 Publix CMN Hospitals 1992 $30,000,000 $2,507,029 28.63% $3,170,000 Safeway 2005 $89,000,000 $9,235,491 -­‐65.68% $3,000,000 Burlington Stores 2001 $22,000,000 $3,400,000 -­‐11.76% $2,900,000 New York & Company St. Jude 2008 $487,000,000 $2,500,000 16.00% $2,700,000 GNC St. Jude 2005 $13,000,000 $3,100,000 -­‐12.90% $2,700,000.00 Wegman's Local Food Banks 1993 $25,000,000 $1,380,000 95.65% $2,680,248 Macy's Reading is Fundamental 2004 $32,000,000 $4,800,000 -­‐44.16% $2,600,000 AutoZone St. Jude 2006 $11,400,000 $1,900,000 36.84% $2,500,000 Stop N Shop The Jimmy Fund (Dana Farber) 1995 $60,000,000 $3,000,000 -­‐16.67% $2,431,796 Love's Travel Stops CMN Hospitals 1999 $12,000,000 $1,432,911 69.71% $2,359,424 Humble Bundle American Red Cross 2012 $4,907,279 $900,217.56 162.09% $2,347,729 Macy's American Heart Association's Go Red For Women 2003 $1,315,234 78.50% $2,300,000 Brooks Brothers St. Jude 2005 $12,314,216 $1,350,693 70.28% $2,300,000 Blue Buffalo and Petco The Petco Foundation & The Blue Buffalo Foundation for Cancer Research 2010 $7,000,000 $1,500,000 53.33% $2,300,000 Petco The Petco Foundation Data not available $2,279,665 Macy's Ralph Lauren Pink Pony Fund 2013 $4,000,000 NEW $2,200,000 IHOP CMN Hospitals 2005 $16,000,000 $2,486,843 -­‐11.53% $2,200,000 Toys "R" Us 2011 $8,300,000 $1,900,000 15.79% $2,200,000 Wendy's 2014 $2,200,000 $2,100,000 Dollar General St. Jude 2006 $9,300,000 $2,000,000 Petco The Petco Foundation $2,000,000 Finish Line Finish Line Foundation, Special Olympics 1999 $17,000,000 Stand Up 2 Cancer, Prostate Cancer Foundation Leukemia and Lymphoma Society Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation Dave Thomas Foundation for Adoption NEW $1,600,000 31.25% Data not available $1,450,000 37.93% Amount Raised 2014 Company Cause Year Started Amount Raised Since Inception Amount Raised 2012 % Change $1,983,000 JCPenney USO and Boys & Girls Clubs of America 2012 $5,883,000 $1,900,000 4.37% $1,854,754 Corner Stores CMN Hospitals 1995 $21,000,000 $2,357,229 -­‐21.32% $1,832,906 Corner Stores Muscular Dystrophy Association 1987 $24,000,000 $2,100,000 -­‐12.72% $1,700,000 Dairy Queen CMN Hospitals 2006 $18,957,000 $1,502,221 13.17% $1,595,039 Macy's Got Your 6 2014 $1,595,039 $1,551,052 Tractor Supply Company National 4H Council 2011 $2,500,000 $1,021,558 51.83% $1,491,952 Famous Footwear March of Dimes 2003 $14,105,000 $1,245,000 19.84% $1,400,000 Burlington Stores WomenHeart 2012 $3,000,000 $775,000 80.65% $1,400,000 Safeway 2003 $132,000,000 $9,237,548 -­‐84.84% $1,400,000 The Kroger Co. 1998 $35,000,000 $1,358,930 Panda Restaurant Groups CMN Hospitals 2011 $3,447,723 $677,895 100.46% $1,313,227 JCPenney Breast Cancer Research Foundation and National Breast Cancer Foundation 2012 $4,457,104 $1,600,000 -­‐17.92% $1,300,000 Chico's FAS CMN Hospitals 2011 $2,876,428 $976,852 33.08% $1,300,000 Circle K American Red Cross 2010 $10,000,000 $1,513,160 -­‐14.09% $1,300,000 Joe's Crab Shack Autism Speaks 2013 $5,000,000 Family Video The Lymphoma Research Foundation and UC Medicine Comprehensive Care Center 2012 $4,700,000 MD Anderson Cancer Center 2014 $1,196,721 CMN Hospitals 1998 $5,000,000 $735,531 60.13% CMN Hospitals 1997 $38,000,000 $1,304,646 -­‐14.59% 2012 $2,132,000 $445,000 147.19% 2011 $3,500,000 $750,000 46.67% $1,300,000 $1,196,721 $1,177,804 $1,114,286 Stripes Convenience Stores Stripes Convenience Stores Giant Food Stores/Martin's Food Markets $1,100,000 Harris Teeter $1,100,000 Carl's Junior/Hardees Easter Seals, Special Olympics Muscular Dystrophy Association USO & Wounded Warrior USA Cares Dream Foundation Lone Survivor Foundation Stand Up and Play NEW Data not available NEW $1,000,000 30.00% NEW Amount Raised 2014 Company Cause Year Started Amount Raised Since Inception Amount Raised 2012 % Change $1,080,000 Safeway Wounded Warrior 2011 $3,700,000 $982,809 9.89% $1,047,700 The Kroger Co. USO 2010 $11,900,000 $952,000 10.05% $1,000,000 Applebees Alex's Lemonade Stand Foundation 2004 $5,000,000 $500,000 100.00% $1,000,000 Circle K CMN Hospitals 2000 $9,500,000 $1,084,300 -­‐7.77%