Are Cause Marketing Games Serious Business?
| Cause marketing is serious business, not a game. But it is striking how many start-up companies are building cause-related game platforms. CauseWorld is a mobile app that enables consumers to earn karma credits they can donate to charity be photographing UPCs of participating products when shopping. It has received major sponsorship from Kraft, Procter & Gamble and Citibank. GamesThatGive.net sums up its business proposition as: "You play games for free and we sell ads. 70% of our our ad revenue goes to your favorite charity." GamesthatGive.net offers numerous Meez, the online virtual playground for kids, recently announced the launch of a virtual blood drive directing kids to learn about the American Red Cross. The reward for participating? A virtual t-shirt for your avatar, of course! It remains to be seen which of these -- and other platforms -- will generate big audiences and dollars for cause-related initiatives. GamesThatGive, for example, has generated under $25,000 in donations since it launched its beta version last summer. Consumers using Causeworld, on the other hand, are reported b Ad Age to be generating $200,000 in donations per month. What's your experience been with game-related cause marketing? |

