VM EVENTS: VM Summit Summit Sound Bytes: Social Purpose Changes the ‘Value’ Equation By Staff Tuesday, May 10, 2011 3:30 PM RELATED CONTENT Summit Sound Bytes Summit Sound Bytes: Forging New Alliances Summit Sound Bytes: The Marketing Appeal of Groupon Summit Sound Bytes: What’s Next for Digital Trends? Summit Sound Bytes: 3D Vision Trend And Now…A Word From the Experts NEW YORK—In addition to attracting some of the optical industry’s top leaders, VM’s Global Leadership Summit also turned to experts outside the industry for perspectives on sales and marketing techniques. In this fifth part of VM’s online series, the dialogue shifted to the benefits companies and communites reap from Social Purpose initiatives. Follow the links below for previous Summit Sound Bytes articles: Part 1: 3D Vision Trend Part 2: What’s Next for Digital Trends? Part 3: The Marketing Appeal of Groupon Part 4: Forging New Alliances Social Purpose Post-recession, consumers value “values” as two marketing experts explore the potential for eyecare and eyewear. In a discussion of “social purpose,” Pete Krainik, founder of The CMO Club for chief marketing officers, said profits with purpose projects in the eyewear/eyecare industry should focus on what a brand stands for, not what it does. To express a company’s values, such a project is not about a product campaign, but a brand program, according to Krainik. One such program, the 2010 Pepsi Refresh Project, was described by Emily Silver, senior brand manager for Diet Pepsi at Pepsi-Cola North American Beverages. That effort, which distributed $20 million in grants to programs voted on by consumers, changed the conversation from value to values, Silver said. Pete Krainik, Founder, the CMO Club “Social Media, is playing a key role in the value shift. Nothing is hidden anymore—you can see at a moment’s notice what’s going on around the world.” “Ten years ago, it was all about corporate communication with the message coming from the top down but with the Internet, there’s been a shrinking of the world.” On the feasibility of non-vision care cause related marketing “It all comes back to what your brand is about. Whether it’s fashion or innovation, you should also take into account what your suppliers care about in their own countries.” Emily Silver, Senior Brand Manager—Diet Pepsi, Pepsi-Cola N.A. Beverages “The Pepsi Refresh Challenge wasn’t a charity program or a campaign but a new way of doing business. It changed the conversation from value to values.” “Some of the lessons we learned? Be authentic, experiment and refine, and get ready for a long-term commitment.” “In the end, we found we could engage our own workers and increase the morale by getting some of our best ideas from within the organization. It became a recruiting tool.”
