Making charity corporate partnerships work
Corporate partnerships can significantly elevate a charity's profile and generate additional sources of funds. Collaborations are an increasingly popular strategy to reach new audiences and showcase a charity's good work, and there are opportunities across multiple sectors, from the fashion industry to the travel world, where a charity can partner with another brand to raise awareness of its goals and increase revenue to support its activities.
However, with opportunity also comes risk. Temporarily merging your identity with a brand collaboration partner has the potential to damage your reputation. The good news is there are ways in which this threat can be mitigated, and the opportunity maximised. Here we explore the key considerations to ensure a charity corporate partnership can enhance a charity's profile and goals whilst minimising reputational risks within the relevant legal and regulatory frameworks.
Ethical considerations
By carefully considering which partner aligns most closely with its core values, a charity can maximise a brand partnership whilst also staying true to its charitable objectives. This leads to increased market visibility and strengthens a charity's identity.
There are various high profile campaigns which demonstrate how successful this approach can be. Take Marks & Spencer who partner with Breast Cancer Now, where both brands are focused on supporting women through breast cancer diagnosis – sharing stories from customers and supporters in a genuine and thoughtful way to support others who have similar personal experiences.
Another example is how Dogs on the Streets and All Dogs Matter partnered with BrewDog to increase awareness of homeless dogs and find new homes for them. BrewDog's “Street Dog” product was developed with these goals in mind and provided an innovative way of bringing recognition of the charity’s work to a new audience.
Communication is key from the outset when any charity is exploring a partnership opportunity. It's vital that you establish clear ways of working as soon as you engage with another brand, and early interactions can often be a strong sign of whether or not a particular brand will be a good fit. Establishing an open dialogue and being confident enough to ask difficult but pertinent questions will help to understand whether both brands have the same values and goals in mind.
Regulatory complexity
Safeguarding a charity's brand should be a top priority in any partnership. A charity must ensure its logo is suitably protected, and if promotional materials and taglines form part of the collaboration, it is crucial that the charity and its proposed partner discuss ownership of both existing and new IP. Trademarks, logos and original designs are core assets which require careful protection to avoid misuse or dilution.
A partnership agreement should be drawn up which addresses these aspects, defines any approval rights and processes, and also provides for use of materials once the campaign has come to an end in order to minimise any unintended consequences.
All promotional materials must be transparent and not misleading to avoid falling foul of advertising and marketing regulations. This includes clearly disclosing the nature of the collaboration to consumers and adhering to rules on influencer marketing and endorsements, where content must expressly state if there's a commercial relationship in place.
Data security is another key consideration at the start of a partnership, and robust contractual commitments are essential to ensure any data gathered as part of a collaboration is stored and used in accordance with applicable laws. This will minimise any financial and reputational risks in the event of misuse or loss of customer data.
The applicable regulatory and legal landscape will depend on the nature of a collaboration. If a charity is looking to run a co-branded campaign, the advertising and marketing rules will be paramount. A good example of this type of collaboration is the Samaritans partnering with National Rail to encourage rail passengers to chat to fellow travellers who appear to be at risk.
This campaign is a hugely successful one, instigating multiple life-saving interventions through a carefully thought through advertising initiative. Combining their respective sector knowledge, these two brands have come together with shared values to create meaningful content at railway stations across the country.
Another type of partnership might involve the production of a joint product, like Gillette who produce a particular product for their “Movember” range. Working together in this way, Gilette's product team have worked seamlessly with “Movember” representatives to raise awareness of mental health and prostate cancer through a product aimed at those who may unfortunately suffer from such illnesses.
Where brands do come together to create a new product, a well drafted contact should include quality control clauses, ensuring that both parties meet agreed standards to uphold their respective reputations and avoid disputes.
Whatever the nature of the collaboration, brands should enter into a written agreement which not only covers product and content ownership, marketing approvals and quality control, but also addresses financial contributions and the share of any revenue generated as well as establishing exit strategies, allowing for termination in cases of reputational or financial risk. Incorporating these elements from the outset helps mitigate risks and paves the way for a smooth, legally sound partnership that enhances brand value whilst protecting key assets.
Reputation considerations
Charity corporate partnerships are vital to raise a charity's profile across different sectors. Whilst charities may have regular income streams from existing donors and activities, a collaboration can often open doors and increase the charity's reach towards new audiences.
One of the most successful approaches is to find a corporate partner who already operates in a market which is ancillary to a charity's goals and objectives. A good example of this is Dogs Trust working alongside Pets At Home, maximising opportunities with retail customers who are passionate about animals.
Similarly, Age UK has partnered with Innocent to extend their reach across the knitting community nationwide with their “Big Knit” initiative – encouraging thousands of volunteers to make hats for smoothie bottles. Not only did this collaboration result in a direct revenue stream for Age UK from sales of Innocent smoothies, it also increased Age UK's profile beyond its existing donor base.
Partnering with brands who have similar values reduces the risk of issues arising during a partnership because these values should underpin their respective working practices and facilitate more transparency. Partners must have a clear discussion about the overall aims and objectives of their chosen initiative at the start of their working relationship. This will avoid misunderstanding or disputes arising once the collaboration is in the public domain.
Any agreed goals, performance levels or projected revenue should be captured in a written partnership agreement at the outset. The agreement can also set out the circumstances in which either brand can exit the arrangement, which may be on mutual terms or at either partner's discretion if it becomes apparent that its reputation is at stake.
Actions for success
Here are some key actions to make your brand collaboration a success:
- Select a partner whose values align with yours; conduct thorough due diligence to assess if the partnership will enhance or dilute your brand’s identity, and avoid reputational risks. This should include ethical and sustainability considerations, being open from the outset about the origins of materials, manufacturing processes and the environmental impact of products.
- Set mutual objectives and agree on key performance indicators (KPIs) like audience growth or stock movement (if relevant), regularly revisiting these metrics to stay on track.
- Maintain open, clear and regular communication by defining check-in points from the beginning and adhering to them, ensuring that both parties remain aligned throughout the collaboration.
- Engage legal teams early to draft contracts, identify potential risks and offer strategic advice, ensuring a smooth and legally sound partnership.
