Kroger Measures Charity Impact

CHRISTINA VEIDERS

CINCINNATI, Ohio — Kroger Co. and other top-tier corporate citizens are demanding accountability and want to know the social impact of their charitable endeavors.

The trend is toward having verifiable measures in charitable campaigns, and outcome measures in the nonprofits' work, said Lynn Marmer, group vice president of corporate affairs, Kroger.

“We want measures that don't just show how many people visited your clinic, but how was their health changed as a result of their visits,” she explained.

Marmer addressed the topic of how corporations and nonprofits can meaningfully measure their impact on social investments, particularly cause-marketing campaigns, during the Cause Marketing Forum's annual conference in New York last month. Also on the panel were Paula Oyer Berezin, president and chief strategist of Social Capital Partnerships, a Chicago-based social cause consultancy; and Alice Archabal, chief development officer of America's Second Harvest, Chicago. All agreed that today's corporate giving environment has become very sophisticated, with various measures applied both to the charity's mission and the corporation's business.

Kroger launched several national cause-marketing campaigns last year that raised $7 million for both America's Second Harvest and breast cancer research. This spring, the company partnered on a national campaign with the Susan G. Komen for the Cure organization, pledging $2.5 million to assist regional Komen affiliates in raising breast cancer awareness through research, education, screening and treatment. The campaigns involved all Kroger divisions and numerous vendors.

Such cause-marketing events need to be a win on three levels in order to be successful, said Marmer. “It's a win for vendors because they get a sales lift. It's a win for Kroger because we get an opportunity to engage our customers and associates in an important cause. It's a win for the nonprofit organizations that are the beneficiaries.”

Oyer Berezin said there is a growing expectation on the part of corporate investors to measure not only the return on investment, but also the social impact. The whole process of measuring success has gotten much more sophisticated as cause-marketing campaigns have become multidimensional and involved more stakeholders.

There are a number of measures to weigh success, she said. On the financial side, measurements might include consumer and employee engagement and product sales. “It used to be [measuring] how many impressions are we getting, have we increased sales or have we built loyalty,” she commented.

On the goodwill side, it depends on the overall mission. Kroger and America's Harvest can ask how their efforts have helped to end hunger, or how deep did it go in terms of locally touching people served by the mission.

Oyer Berezin cited changed behavior as one way to measure goodwill, such as increases in volunteers or repeat donors, constituents who become engaged or media outlets that report on an issue.

Operations can also be another measure, through efficiencies resulting from in-kind support or funds for operational needs, such as new technology, accounting services, consulting or capacity building.

ConAgra Foods, the longtime partner of America's Second Harvest, made a big difference by helping the cause build the capacity of the charity's food distribution infrastructure. The company, along with other America's Second Harvest supporters, helped the cause invest in technology that improved inventory management. The technology bettered the food banks' abilities to track and manage the distribution of food, meaning more inventory could move through the system more quickly, resulting in a reported increase in product allocation and distribution of more than 35% since 2000 without a corresponding increase in food bank square footage. This improved efficiency led to more food in the hands of hungry Americans, which spoke directly to America's Second Harvest's overall mission of ending hunger.

Archabal said consumers also want to know where the money goes when they support cause campaigns. Due to the increase in the number of charities and competition for consumer donations, “people are becoming much more savvy in the way they view support organizations,” she said.

“It is really important to report back to consumers so they are well aware of the impact their support has.”

This year Kroger and America's Second Harvest will again team up in June during National Hunger Month in another “Giving Hope a Hand” campaign. The company will also repeat its breast cancer awareness campaign this fall.

“Cause marketing is an exciting opportunity to engage vendor partners and customers,” said Marmer. “What we like about these opportunities is to raise significant dollars on a national level, but to contribute them locally. That is where our shoppers are, and that's where our associates are, and that's where the benefits of those organizations happen.”