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David Hessekiel  //  David Hessekiel is the founder and president of the Cause Marketing Forum, a business dedicated to helping companies and causes succeed together.

Dec 20 / 5:42am

Pepsi Has Big Cause Marketing Plans for 2010

In what may be the first cause marketing teaser campaign I'm aware of, Pepsi has been releasing bits and pieces of information about its plans to launch a major cause marketing campaign in 2010.

About a month ago, Pepsi ran full page ads telling consumers to look out for its 2010 "Refresh" campaign and its website offers the opportunity to sign up for emails about future announcements.  http://www.refresheverything.com/refresh/everything/everything

This week, Pepsi announced it would not be advertising its soft drinks during the Super Bowl and the Wall Street Journal reported that Pepsi "will plunge into the crowded field of cause-related marketing in coming weeks with a campaign to kick off "Pepsi Refresh Project." Under the program, Pepsi will award grant money for community projects proposed and selected by consumers, such as helping high-school students publish books to develop their writing skills. Pepsi says it has earmarked $20 million of its ad dollars for the grants next year."

Hopefully this is just one harbinger of exciting new cause marketing programs to come in 2010!