Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg Uses the Ultimate "Redirect" - The Double Bottom Line

Within hours of the announcement that Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg was donating $100 million to the Newark school system,  the 26-year old tycoon's net worth was the spotlight of the financial world and a not-so-flattering movie about him debuted in New York.

Coincidence?  I think not.  In this brilliant PR move, Zuckerberg is using one of the favorite techniques of all good parents - and presidents - the "redirect."  A redirect is when someone attempts to deflect attention from a yucky thing is to something else.  Just ask Bill Clinton about the bombing of the aspirin factory when the world was focusing on a stain on a blue dress.

Unlike President Clinton's efforts to divert, Mark Zuckerberg's new-found philanthropic nature - and corresponding positive press - is more likely to produce positive results.

What can we learn about this and how it relates to our own double bottom line strategy?

Choose your CAUSE (redirect) very strategically.  Unlike President Clinton, Zuckerberg has done something very positive.  With the exception of a few hard-core wacko types, bombing anything - including an aspirin factory with PEOPLE in it - is not likely to be viewed as a 100% positive thing.

Zuckerberg wisely chose to focus his donation on helping kids.  It is hard to go wrong when you choose kids as the beneficiary of your support.  After all, everybody either has one, loves one or was one.  Kids and pets - notoriously tough in movies but fabulous in cause marketing.

Make it public - very public.  According to reports, Zuckerberg considered making the donaltion anonymously but the mayor of Newark convinced him that it would be better for the cause to make the donation public.  (Sure he considered keeping it a secret.  Wink, wink. Nudge, nudge. Ha.)  Zuckerberg chose to "come out" with his donation on the most powerful marketing channel in the world (aside from Facebook) - the Oprah Winfrey Show.

Here's the thing about using a DBL strategy - if no one knows about it, it might help one bottom line (the cause) but it is not going to help the other (financial).  In most instances, the donor's public endorsement can be very powerful in "ripple" endorsements and new supporters.  At worst, it might spark others to do similar good things.

Timing is everything.  Is it mere coincidence that the official announcement of the $100 challenge grant occurred on the SAME day as the public release of the movie that Facebook execs are denouncing as inacurate and unflattering?  And, isn't it interesting that in its just-released list of the 400 wealthiest Americans, Forbes announced that Zuckerberg posted the largest gain in wealth during the last year making this 26-year old a billionaire 7 times over.

Make it count.  Used wisely, $100 million can go a long way towards solving a problem - even one as monumental as public education.

Will this huge gift deflect some of the criticism Mr. Zuckerberg will inevitably receive as a result of the film or the Forbes 400 list?  Time... and Facebook....will tell.

Although this is Zuckerberg's first charitable donation with his own funds, Facebook users have been using the medium for years to quickly and easily raise money for important causes.  Indeed, Facebook is having an enormously positive impact on the world every moment of every day.

I applaud Mr. Zuckerberg's efforts to make a significant impact on a part of our society that is in great need of improvement.  Used as a "redirect" strategy or as a fundamental way to do business, incorporating The Double Bottom Line is a very smart way to do business in the 21st century.


Related Articles/Videos:


Mark Zuckerberg on Oprah from Cindy W on Vimeo.


http://blogs.wsj.com/wealth/2010/09/23/mark-zuckerberg-an-embarrassment-of-riches/?KEYWORDS=zuckerberg

http://www.facebook.com/startupeducation?v=wall

http://blogs.wsj.com/speakeasy/2010/09/24/facebooks-mark-zuckerberg-talks-to-oprah-winfrey-about-his-100-million-donation/

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704062804575510230514927218.html?mod=WSJ_hps_MIDDLESecondNews

Target Gives Out over $3 Million a Week to Good Causes! Great Double Bottom Line Marketing In Action

Target is a great example of social enterprise marketing.  Since 1946, Target has donated 5% of its income to support education, the arts, social services, and volunteerism.  Target's stated mission is:

Our mission is to make Target the preferred shopping destination for our guests by delivering outstanding value, continuous innovation and an exceptional guest experience by consistently fulfilling our Expect More. Pay Less.^® brand promise.

To support our mission, we are guided by our commitments to great value, the community, diversity and the environment.

Their execution of, and communication of, their double bottom line activities, positions them as a customer favorite in the field of retail sales.

To read all about it, visit http://www.target.com/community

Michael Dell & Philanthropy--A Great Example of The Double Bottom Line in Action

When Michael and Susan Dell became parents, they did a lot more than make room in their house for their own children. They made room in their hearts for underprivileged children they might never meet. “Being a parent of four children and seeing many who are not so fortunate, we knew this was a great area to focus on,” says Michael Dell, the 45-year-old founder of computer giant Dell Inc. “When you become a parent, you are suddenly aware of how important good health and quality education are for the well-being and success of children.”     (rest of the story at....)

Philanthropy--Direct from Dell | SUCCESS Magazine | What Achievers Read

Car Dealer Gets Creative About "Going Pink" for Breast Cancer Awareness - Great Double Bottom Line "Cause Marketing" Strategy

Here is a great example of a local business employing the Double Bottom Line - doing well by doing good. The folks at John L. Sullivan Chevrolet in Scaramento, got creative in their efforts to increase Breast Cancer Awareness.

They took advantage of what they had - labor, cars, paint, social media marketing, and a lot of creativity - and did something that will really get them noticed in a world where there are way too many car dealers saying: buy a car from me, buy a car from me, buy a car from me.

Who would you rather do business with?

New Social Media Platform Uses Double Bottom Line Strategy

Double Bottom Line Tip: Partner with a charity or several charities to increase loyalty to your product or service.

Result? Sales go up. Customer retention goes up. Customer recruitment by existing customers goes up. It's a beautiful thing!

This new Social Media platform, YourNight appears to be a great case-study in how to build a tribe where everyone wins - consumers, producers, and great causes.

I love the fact that they are putting 5% back into charitable causes. Their goal is to raise $1 million in 2010 for charities. Now, I call that a BHAG (Big Hairy Audacious Goal via Jim Collins in Good to Great).

Disclosure: the link below is an affiliate link to the site (that means I might make a few bucks if people spend money there). http://www.yournight.com/GinaCarr

If you don't want to use my affiliate link, then just go directly to www.yournight.com.

Here's a thought "Give before you get"

Cause marketing refers to a type of marketing involving the cooperative efforts of a "for profit" business helping and giving to a "non profit business" for mutual benefit. The term is sometimes used more broadly to refer to any type of marketing effort for social good.

Numerous examples are available to show that cause marketing has helped to increase a company's profits. As an example, in the cause marketing campaign by American Express the company saw a 17% increase in new users and a 28% increase in card usage. By "doing good" American Express was well rewarded by the marketplace

Smart executives and entrepreneurs understand the wisdom : "Give the marketplace what it wants and you will get what you want".

I strongly believe however that "when you give you get" is not a marketing belief... but a law of nature, and of success. I have read Napoleon Hill for over 25 years and have employed in my life, and in my businesses the concepts in his book "Think and Grow Rich".

I teach his principles in my coaching at IDEAS-Institute and participate in two Master Mind groups. I know they work and I have seen them work for others. The core of his teachings are simple. "Think and you can achieve anything" you desire and then, "Do good- then get good."
It is not the other way around despite the beliefs of most businesses. Think also of St Francis who said "it is in giving that we receive" . Notice the sequence.... first give then receive.



At Double Bottom Line we not only teach and consult with businesses on how to grow their bottom line by doing good, but we employ that strategy and belief in our own business. At the end of the day when you employ Cause Marketing you actually get much more than you give. And you find that the more you give to help others succeed- the more you and your enterprise succeeds.

Double Bottom Line Book Recommendation: SuperCorp by Rosabeth Moss Kanter

In her latest book SuperCorp, Rosabeth Moss Kanter examines "How Vanguard Companies Create Innovation, Profits, Growth, and Social Good."

Although she doesn't use the term "The Double Bottom Line," the companies she profiles are clearly using a DBL strategy as I define it - doing well by doing good.

The book is based on a three-year investigation of what some of the most successful companies are doing to make the world a better place. In the process, they have increased their bottom line by building stronger tribes internally and externally.

I'm headed to Boston next week for my 20th Reunion from the Harvard Business School where Rosabeth Moss Kanter chairs the Harvard Advanced Leadership Initiative. I met her when she was in Atlanta recently presenting the book to the Harvard Business School Club of Atlanta.

I had been talking about The Double Bottom Line concept for years but listening to her and reading her book inspired me to focus on it more intently. Thus it is now the focus of my marketing consulting business.

Wikipedia Link for Rosabeth Moss Kanter: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rosabeth_Moss_Kanter


Harvard Business Review: http://blogs.hbr.org/kanter