(RED), More or (LESS)

I'm a bit late to the party on the (RED) campaign backlash (see Rohit Bhargava, Ann Handley (and her commenters), Trent Stamp,Drew Neisser and Katya Andresen) but have been watching the proceedings with interest. Rather than rehash what others have already said, both pro and con, in response to the BuyLessCrap.org campaign (tagline: "Shopping is not a solution. Buy (Less). Give More."), I'll just add what I have not seen being said yet. As someone who is a pretty minimal consumer, this approach resonates with me. Do we really need to promote consumerism as the solution to what is essentially a political problem? While I can see both sides to the issue, I have always been somewhat uncomfortable with using a cause marketing approach to issues that can be better addressed with a social marketing or political advocacy approach - i.e., issues that require individual or social change. From a nonprofit's point of view, of course, the opportunity to raise funds through cause marketing partnerships makes a lot of sense. However, looking from a wider lens, many issues are not going to be solved just by throwing more money at them. AIDS and poverty in Africa are entangled with issues of political dictatorship and endemic corruption. One common praise of the (RED) campaign is that, even if it only donates a fraction of the money spent to promote it, at least it raises awareness of the issue. But how many people do not already know that AIDS is a problem in Africa? And what good is that awareness if it does not lead to some sort of action? I wrote about this with optimism back in October, but at this point, it's clear that this campaign has missed a huge opportunity to turn awareness into action by not leveraging its connection to Bono's ONE campaign, which does address political and social change. The (RED) campaign could be so easily and effectively tied into a social movement that starts with the purchase of a branded product, but does not end there. Regardless of the actual size of the pool of money flowing in as a result of the campaign, the larger focus should be on growing the pool of people adding their voices for change and giving them a way to express themselves. Social media tools could be used in innovative ways and Bono's involvement provides exciting opportunities to tie music into the campaign as well. If they start to think big, beyond a single purchase of a product, the results could be inc(RED)ible. Otherwise, I'm afraid the campaign is (LESS) than inspiring. Technorati Tags: red, buylesscrap, one, bono, campaign, nonprofit, cause marketing