Cause Related Marketing -  The determining factors behind consumers’ intention to participate in different types of Cause Related Marketing campaigns

Abstract: Purpose - To extend the understanding of the determining factors behind consumers’ intention to participate in Cause Related Marketing campaigns and how they differ depending on if the campaign is monetary or nonmonetary. Design/methodology/approach - Drawing on Cause Related Marketing literature, 10 hypotheses were tested through regression analysis and ANOVA. In total 211 participants took part in the study, 102 individuals answered the monetary survey and 109 individuals answered the nonmonetary survey. Findings - The study found that altruistic together with self-interested motivations function as the two primary determinants of participation intention. Consumers with a tendency of being altruistically motivated are more prone to purchase cause related products and the influence of this factor represents the major determinant of intention to participate in monetary CM campaigns. Consumers that are motivated by self interests are more willing to support a company's cause related initiatives by participate on social media in a nonmonetary CM campaign. Finally, the study concludes that product type is an insignificant determinant of intention to participate in both monetary and nonmonetary CM campaigns. It was also found congruence has a slightly negative effect on intention to participate in monetary CM campaigns. Practical implications - The findings of this study provides essential implications for marketing managers working with CM. The importance of understanding consumers’ motivation should not be underestimated. Essentially since consumer’s mind-set naturally segment them into different clusters. This implies that the results of CM can be improved by carefully selecting campaigns that suit the prospective target audience. Managers should bear in mind that the product and the congruence between company and cause are not of primary importance when it comes to the performance of CM campaigns. Consumers seem to consider the donation itself as the essential part. Originality/value - The study is descriptive in nature and focus on the determining factors behind consumers’ intention to participate in different CM campaigns, and is therefore adding research to a previously unexplored area.