Campaign: Guns Down
Company: Essence Magazine
Nonprofit Partner: None
Launch Date: April 8, 2013
Campaign Description:
ESSENCE, a lifestyle magazine for African-American women, has launched a new message-focused cause marketing effort called GUNS DOWN. A three-part series in the magazine will tell stories of lives affected by gun violence and an advocacy campaign will encourage African-American women across the nation to join in the fight against gun violence. The May issue features a pre-written letter to President Barack Obama that readers can cut out and mail directly to the White House expressing support of the President’s initiatives to curb gun violence. A social media campaign encourages readers to Tweet a picture of their signed letters with the hashtag #EsssenceGunsDown to show their support.
Our Take:
Most cause marketing campaigns we come across involve consumer purchase or other action to trigger donation. Less frequent, but equally powerful, are what we’ve dubbed ‘Message Focused Campaigns’, where a company takes a stand to share a particular message, in this case, one of reducing gun violence. This particular campaign bypasses any relevant nonprofit and asks individuals to take a specific action (cutting out, signing and mailing a letter to the President). A magazine is particularly well-positioned to share poignant stories with readers around a particular message and ESSENCE appears to be making a strong commitment to this timely initiative. What do you think of their approach? Weigh in below!
