One Woman Can

Campaign: One Woman Can
Company: Mary Kay Cosmetics
Nonprofit Partner: Crowd-Nominated
Launch Date: March 27, 2013

Campaign Description:  

To commemorate the company’s 50th anniversary, Mary Kay has launched a cause marketing contest called ‘One Woman Can’. To enter, participants receive a personalized makeover from an Independent Beauty Consultant and submit their “before” and “after” pictures with an entry form and a brief statement about how the participant would make a positive impact in her community if she won a $5,000 grants. The top 250 vote getters become finalists, from which 50 winners will be selected to receive a $5,000 grant to a charity of their choice that supports women and children and one $5,000 international vacation to the destination of their choice.

Our Take:  

Celebrating a milestone anniversary with a cause-based program is becoming more  and more common. This particular campaign by Mary Kay makes good sense for the direct sales organization. Typically, we would declare the multiple steps involved to enter this contest as a significant barrier to entry. However, the large direct sales structure of Mary Kay combined with an international vacation incentive will likely provide the necessary support to sustain this cause campaign.