Mission-statement marketing (good old cause-related marketing by any other name?)

There is a nice article on AdAge this week talking about the era of “mission-statement marketing”. This is apparently not just standard old cause-related marketing (as we have known it for years and years) but a new trend.

The article claims that Procter & Gamble no longer uses their timeworn phrase “consumer is boss” only but now talk about “touching and improving lives”. Unilever too is taking the approach of talking about “Making Life Better”. Even mega-retailer Walmart is getting in on the action with its slogan “Save Money. Live Better”.

According to AdAge, 79% of consumers said they’d switch to a brand associated with a good cause, up from 66% in 1993, and 38% said they’d bought a product associated with a cause, compared with 20% in 1993, according to Cone Inc.

It isn’t just Unilever (home to Dove, the brand that promotes itself using “real women” rather than models) or Procter & Gamble (home to Pampers, the nappy supported by multiple child-related causes). The retailer Macy’s has launched a “National Kindness Day”, which claims to “reward and recognise random acts of kindness”.

Kids store Toys R Us is helping out the Toys for Tots foundation that collects toys to donate to underprivileged children. Each time someone signs up to be a Facebook fan of Toys R Us or Babies R Us, Toys R Us donates $1 to Toys for Tots. Target is selling GiftCoins that are gift cards with a charitable bonus. GiftCoins are sold in a set of five worth $5 each for a total of $25. When a consumer buys a $25 pack, Target donates $2 to St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital. Target will donate up to $750,000.

Meanwhile, Levi Strauss is apparently set to launch a scheme in January called “Care Tag for Our Planet”, which asks people to wash clothing in cool temperatures to save energy and also requests that the wearer donates the jeans to charity shops (it’s a partnership with clothes recycling organisation Goodwill) when they are finished with them.

But is this really a new trend? I don’t think so. As picked up by The New York Times, this is just a sign that in a recession, people are thinking more carefully about how they consume. Brands are now using this collective desire for responsibility and societal concern for their own ends. Is this the start of a mindshift within businesses?

After all, isn’t adapting to consumers’ interests and priorities simply known as ‘marketing’? Hm.