Introducing CauseMP.com

Cause Marketing Partners help businesses increase traffic, revenue, and good will by establishing event marketing partnerships with matching nonprofit organizations. The events themselves are hosted at the business location.

The event marketing partnerships are specifically designed for both groups to share resources and collaborate on promotional efforts to drive as much traffic and revenue to the event as possible, and to generate as much publicity, participation, and attendee donations as possible for the partner nonprofit organization.

CMP services also include helping individual volunteers and participants with existing fundraising commitments – such as runners looking to host an event to raise money for a walk-a-thon.

CMP is becoming the central source in the Chicago area for developing relationships with nonprofit organizations that are actively looking for event opportunities to cultivate awareness, volunteers and donors. CMP leverages relationships with dozens of Chicagoland nonprofits, as well as twelve years of event planning experience, to create programs uniquely suited to each business's needs.

As a component of overall event planning services, CMP offers a complimentary brand assessment of participating businesses. This assessment is used to help identify potential partners and ensuing promotional best practices for the charity events as well as for future marketing endeavors.

Additional benefits to nonprofit organizations include:

• Negotiation of event amenities and services
• Guidance in event marketing best practices
• Exposure to promotional resources of business partners
• Cultivation of volunteers, donors and sponsors for other events and programs

If your business is interested in collaborating with a matching nonprofit organization to help generate exposure, traffic, revenues, and good will – CMP will then help initiate the event planning and event marketing processes.

Please e-mail marc@causemp.com to begin discussing how CMP may be able to increase traffic and revenues for your business while expanding good will for your brand.

Coming Soon: The official CMP web site and blog!

Fundraising 2.0 is beginning to catch on...

Check out this article from today's edition of The NonProfit times - encouraging NPOs to pursue live experiences (aka events) and associated relationships with local businesses as primary strategies to drive awareness, advocacy, and cultivation of funds and volunteers.

Another small victory for event marketing and cause marketing - and (hopefully) one giant leap for both nonprofits and businesess who are dubious about the legitimate effectiveness and relevance of events as a primary marketing focus.

Marc Portugal

It's all about priorities

Priority 1: A belated Happy Mom's Day to any and all readers "in the motherhood..."

This morning I read another bittersweet article about the downward spiral of the hotel/hospitality industry and the growing losses of room and meeting revenues:

http://www.mydesert.com/article/20090510/BUSINESS01/905100307/1003/business/Saving+face+costing+hospitality+industry

As suggested in previous postings, hotels can mitigate their recession-inspired losses, ride out the next year or two, and enjoy added revenues and reputation building in future, healthier economies by focusing on a new priority - local revenues - from services and experiences that local consumers are already spending money on every single day.

ALSO suggested in previous entries on this blog and in my nonprofit blog called Fundraising 2.0 Live, nonprofits can combat everyday challenges to their own priorities (volunteer recruitment, donor cultivation, sponsor solicitation, etc.) – also exacerbated by the economy - by working more proactively and consistently with partner, for-profit businesses. By sharing resources via event marketing partnerships, both organizations benefit from added exposure to new potential donors and guests.

Change is scary. Not knowing the outcome of change - and/or not knowing the potential costs of change at time when money is so tight - is a nightmare. Having said that, the power of confronting and overcoming fear of change and the challenges the changes represent is "happily ever after."

Delays in embracing and activating change are more job losses, revenue losses and opportunity losses impatiently waiting to happen. Start small if necessary - but start now. Make it a priority.

Marc Portugal

Simple Math for Hotels...I Think...

Let’s do some simple math comparing a weekend of potential Food, Beverage and Entertainment revenues at a hotel with “desirable” restaurant, lounge and spa properties --- VERSUS the number of rooms needed to be filled to acquire the same amount of money.

Admittedly these are under-estimated dollars, and represent gross revenues only, but you never know these days. A little swine flu, rain or a Cubs game might slow things down a bit…

Hotel Restaurant on a Friday:
250 covers X $30 check average = $7,500
Repeat on Saturday = $15,000 for the weekend

Hotel Bar/Lounge/Rooftop on a Friday:
250 covers X $30 check average = $7,500
Repeat on Saturday = $15,000 for the weekend

Hotel Spa on a Friday AND Saturday:
100 covers X $50, 30 minute massage (only) = $5,000

Subtotal for FBE gross revenues from one weekend only: $35,000

If the rest of the week in total only generates half of the projected weekend revenues: $17,500

Annualized: About $2.5 million (again --- likely under-estimated…)

COMPARE TO:

Average downtown Chicago weekend rate for 5/15/2009-5/17/2009: $300 (presuming this is AFTER fees due to marketing sites like Hotels.com, Expedia, Orbitz, etc.)

Hotels would have to sell about 175 rooms per week to equal the same $52,500 - revenues from some customers that (inevitably) won’t be back anytime soon to spend that same money again.

Maybe 175 rooms per week are easy to fill these days. Maybe they’re not.

Maybe getting $300 per room is realistic in a recession. Maybe it’s not.

Maybe the economy will magically turn around and, in celebration; thousands of consumers will all book leisure travel and reschedule previously cancelled meetings and conventions. Maybe not…

Bottom line: choosing not to market and position dining, bar and leisure/lifestyle offerings as effectively as possible to locals --- who are spending money on these offerings in the same market every single day --- is simply walking away from revenues and publicity essential to growth and prosperity, and revenues that are equally viable in various economic settings.

At least by my math…

Marc-Portugal

"Stay-Cations" for Businesses

Hospitality Net published an article by David M. Brudney of ISHC citing staggering statistics in regards to the cancellations of hotel-based meetings and loss of associated RFB revenues. He also reminds us of the ensuing, "big picture" decline of overall lodging occupancy and revenues.

While I agree with the basic premise of the "solution" Brudney suggests - "don't give up trying to book corporate meetings" - I do not agree that conventional strategies and tactics (no pun intended) will result in the desired outcome.

Talking points (cited in the article) such as "meetings and events drive business growth" and even "revenues generated...help establish travel as part of the (economic) recovery" do not compellingly outweigh contrasting RISKS such as the negative PR and potential government scrutiny that may result if businesses spend money on travel that may not be crucial to their survival.

So what's the middle ground? How can businesses continue with off-site meetings and events and how can hotels and meeting planners profitably accommodate them (pun intended) in spite of reduced business travel?

Solution: The Business "Stay-Cation."

Most major markets (let's say the top 50 in the US) have hotel and resort properties with perfectly capable meeting, event, dining, lifestyle, entertainment, etc. facilities within their own locales, or at "worst" within a 1-3 hour driving distance.

Further, there are wonderful meeting and event planners within businesses' own markets or regions who can prosper from "local" contracts to help produce hotel-based meetings and events.

If I were hotels, I would show some "local love" --- and start contacting prospects based within 150-200 miles of their properties.

What are the some of the initial selling points of this strategy?

• No cost of air travel (sorry airlines)
• Significantly smaller carbon footprint than air travel (and even smaller with carpooling)
• Donation of % of meeting/event revenues to local preferred charit(ies) of businesses
• Room deals
• Amenity deals (use of fitness, spa, golf, etc. offerings)
• Preferred access, seating, etc. to on-property restaurant/bar/lounge offerings
• Preferred access, seating, etc. to local, off-property restaurant/bar/lounge offerings
• Gifts from the hotel itself - certificates, products, etc.

Furthermore, and as I've asserted on many occasions, the presence, consistency and relevance of ongoing "experiential" offerings by hotels will help INCREASE REVENUES before, during and after said local meetings. Hotels may not be able to bounce "locals" back to stay in the rooms, but they can bounce locals back for dinner, drinks, a haircut, massage, work out, etc.

Brudney says hotel executive, management and sales leadership cannot choose to "sit it out" and wait for the market to turn. Agreed. I also agree that traveling is fun and I imagine many businesses would prefer off-site meetings in a more exotic location than their own community.

Having said that, the world is what it is - at least for now. Recession. Swine Flu. Etc. It's time to embrace change. A better game plan is needed - one that better positions hotels and meeting planners for long-term "victory." That plan may just be based under their own roofs and in their own backyards.

Marc-Portugal

More ideas:
Contact
ISHC

Dirty Bingo?

Pondering how best to entertain myself this weekend, I perused local online and social media resources to see what's happening in the area:

• Any great restaurant or bar openings?
• Any great retail openings?
• Any great drink specials?
• Any great concerts?
• Any great fundraisers?

My findings: Dirty Bingo.

The bad news: this was my only unique finding in the third biggest city in the country.

The good news: it sounds kinda fun, and involves a good cause:

"If you're in the market for good clean fun, here’s a tip: Dirty Bingo is not for you. The monthly series, benefiting various local charities, has been keeping barflies in stitches since its inception last February with a less-than-demur approach to the popular board game. The $10 cover buys players 10 Bingo boards and one drink (each additional board costs $1; every $10 board comes with a drink). Includes prizes and drink specials such as $4 Miller Lite pitchers, $4 martinis and $5 bombs."

Is this the right fit for a fine dining restaurant or a boutique hotel? Not likely - but that's not the point. Dirty Bingo represents the effectiveness of experiential marketing and how a little creativity can go a long way. In looking for "relatively affordable uniqueness" in regards to local events, I commend Chicago's Victory Liquors and their cause marketing partners for their commitment to making experiential marketing work in spite of the recession, swine flu, and a myriad of competition in the Windy City.