Today on CauseTalk Radio, Megan and I talk to Stuart McAllister, Vice President of Sales & Marketing for the Food Service Segment of Dole Packaged Foods, about Dole's partnership with celebrity chef Roy Choi on starting a healthy eating movement in Los Angeles.

Megan, Stuart and I discuss...

Today on CauseTalk Radio, Megan and I talk to Jamie Richardson, Vice President at White Castle, about the quick-serve chain's register fundraiser for Autism Speaks that raised $909,000 - a 48 percent increase over the previous year.

Megan, Jamie and I discuss...

Today on CauseTalk Radio, Megan I talk to Mark Epstein, Co-founder & CEO of The People's Operator (TPO).

The People's Operator is a socially conscious mobile provider based in the U.K. has launched its service stateside with the help of Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales. The company donates 10% of its subscribers' monthly bills to a cause of their choice. In addition, the company donates 25% of its profits to charity as well.

Megan, Mark and I discuss...

Today on CauseTalk Radio, Megan and I talk to William MacAskill, associate professor at Oxford University and author of a great new book: Doing Good Better. 

Will is one of the cofounders and leading voices of effective altruism, which he calls "Generosity for Nerds."

Effective altruism is all about maximizing your positive impact on the world (through volunteering, charitable donations, etc.), and it's been getting a lot of traction lately.

On today's show, Megan, Will and I discuss...

Today on CauseTalk Radio, Megan and I talk to Rob Goldstein, Vice President of Marketing, Communications and Development, ALS Therapy Development Institute in Cambridge, MA, about the 2015 Ice Bucket Challenge.

ALS TDI is one of 18 ALS-related organizations in the Collaboration for the Cure that are working to coordinate a successful Ice Bucket Challenge this month.

Megan, Rob and I discuss...

Today on CauseTalk Radio, Megan and I talk to Marco Crespo, Business Director at the Ayrton Senna Institute in São Paulo, Brazil, about the rise and development of cause marketing in the world's 5th largest country.

Ayrton Senna Institute is an education-focused nonprofit organization created by the sister of three-time Formula One world champion, Ayrton Senna.

Megan, Marco and I discuss....

The Ice Bucket Challenge returns on Friday, July 31st. Here’s a look back at the origins of last year’s challenge and the potential for another viral home run this summer.

So when exactly did the Cold Water Challenge become the Ice Bucket Challenge? It didn’t. While the former was getting most of the attention - both good and bad - in May 2014, do-gooders had been pouring water and ice on their heads for charity for at least a year....

Today on CauseTalk Radio, Megan and I talk to Matt Hodges, Vice President of Public & Investor Relations at GameStop. If you or your kids play video games you've probably been to a GameStop. And with over 6,600 worldwide locations it's easy to find a store.

Gamers are passionate about their games, but they don't play around when it comes to good causes. Megan, Matt and I talk about a recent GameStop point-of-sale fundraiser for Make-A-Wish that raised $1.2 million - quadrupling the $310K that was raised the previous year. 

Today on CauseTalk Radio, Megan and I talk to Mollye Rhea, President of For Momentum, an Atlanta-based cause agency, about their 2015 Corporate Partner Survey.

For Momentum surveyed individuals who manage nonprofit partnerships to learn about local and national giving strategies, partnership selections and expectations, target audience and common mistakes.

Megan, Mollye and I discuss...

Today on CauseTalk Radio, Megan and I talk to Brandy Rettus, Corporate Giving Administrator for Men's Wearhouse, about their National Suit Drive, which benefits at-risk men transitioning into the workforce.

Today on the show, Megan, Brandy and I discuss...

Today on CauseTalk Radio, Megan and I talk to Liz Deering, Founder of 121Giving, a marketplace and crowdfunding platform driven by the real needs of nonprofits and powered by people and brands that care.

121Giving wants to serve nonprofits like DonorsChoose helps classrooms get the things they need.

You may hate being asked to donate at the register, but most people don't. That's the finding of a 24-page report released by Good Scout, a social good consultancy that's headed by two cause superstars, Phil McCarty and Maureen Carlson. 

The big news is that 55 percent of respondents like being asked to give at the register. Consumers also felt positively about the charity and the retailer after donating. Gasp!

Businesses and individuals have responded to the the killings at Mother Emanuel African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church in Charleston last week with donations and fundraisers.

The biggest donations to date have come from businesses that have a strong link to Charleston and South Carolina.

Today on CauseTalk Radio, Megan and I talk to Steve Scheier, author of a new book Do More Good. Better. Steve is also founder & CEO of Scheier + Group, a consultancy that shows non-profits and social impact companies how to make the most of the people they have so they can better deliver on their mission.

Tune in today to learn how to muster the bravery to ask for what you want, and to help those around us do the same! 

Today on CauseTalk Radio, Megan and I talk to Maria Redin, General Manager and Strategy Lead at GOODcorps, a social impact consultancy that grew out of GOOD Media.

GOODcorps has worked with top brands such as Pepsi, The Gap, Starbucks and Dick's Sporting Goods. (BTW, Dick's won two Halo Awards earlier this month at the Cause Marketing Forum conference in Chicago!)

Megan, Maria and I discussed new insights from phase one of a three-part research project that explores “goodness” in brands and how consumers perceive what truly makes a brand “good.”

Five core insights were uncovered from this phase one of research....

The annual Cause Marketing Forum Conference in Chicago last week was - once again - a great success! Congratulations to CMF founder Dave Hessekiel and marketing director (and my CauseTalk Radio co-host) Megan Strand and the rest of the team for putting on another great event.

I'm thankful that David regularly invites me to speak at the CMF conference. While this year was no exception, David did give me a challenging topic: global cause marketing.

The goal of the session was to give attendees "a new perspective by studying the structure and substance of campaigns in global markets" and a tour of the best international programs.

But there was one nagging problem keeping me up at night: my knowledge of international cause marketing was as empty as my passport was of stamps. What should a cause marketer do?!

I'm excited to be one of the 35 experts in VolunteerMatch’s new book, Volunteer Engagement 2.0: Ideas and Insights Changing the World.

I was surprised when VolunteerMatch asked me to contribute a chapter. I just didn’t view cause marketing as connected to volunteering - and I thought the book's editor, Robert Rosenthal, and I agreed on this point!

You see, Robert was the guy who dissuaded me from including volunteering in my last book on nonprofit fundraising, Fundraising with Businesses: 40 New & Improved Strategies for Nonprofits.

I had considered several volunteer-related strategies for the book, but in the end I only included one: volunteer grants, also known as dollars for doers programs, which match a corporate volunteer’s time with a small grant from the company to the nonprofit.

So, why would I now write a chapter on cause marketing for a book on volunteering?

Since 2011, 1,600 Denny's nationwide have sold coupons in support of Share Our Strength's No Kid Hungry's efforts to help the more than 16 million American children struggling with hunger.

For a $3 donation, guests received $9 worth of coupons redeemable at participating Denny's restaurants. 

Since inception, Denny's annual campaign has raised $1.4 million for No Kid Hungry. But Denny's wanted to save more children from hunger!

The restaurant chain had three questions heading into the 2014 campaign:

1. How could Denny's raise more money for No Kid Hungry?
2. How could Denny's boost employee excitement for the campaign?
3. How could Denny's raise money from guests online with the same success they had offline?

The answer was Booster.