New Orleans: The Face of Poverty in America

The most striking fact about New Orleans is that despite its relative tourism-generated affluence, it is home to some of the Unitied State’s most extreme poverty. The yawning gap between the rich and the poor was brought to world attention in the wake of the Hurricane Katrina disaster.

In 2003, for example, the number of families living in poverty in Louisiana was about 181,000. Nearly 30 percent of people younger than 18 in Louisiana live in poverty, while almost 15 percent of its citizens 65 and older also are below the poverty line. Those figures are close to double the national averages.

According to a recent article by Earl Ofari Hutchinson, "Looting New Orleans, and America's Poverty Crisis", the deplorable looting in New Orleans is a symptom of longstanding American poverty. Hutchinson writes:

Criminal gangs, which always take advantage of chaos and misery to grab whatever they can, did much of the looting. But many desperately poor, mostly black residents saw a chance to grab items that they can't afford. That's still wrong, unless the items were necessary for survival. But it's no surprise. New Orleans has one of the highest poverty rates of any of America's big cities.

According to a report by Total Community Action, a New Orleans public advocacy group, nearly one in three of New Orleans' 485,000 residents live below the poverty level. The majority of that group is black. A spokesperson for the United Negro College Fund noted that the city's poor live in some of the most dilapidated housing in the nation.
http://www.blacknews.com/pr/looting101.html

Reducing Poverty In Bali by Improving Local Industries

Much of the promise for lifting Bali's residents out of poverty lies in enhancing Bali's key industries. One such industry is the well-developed handicraft industry, which produces everything from handmade wood and stone carvings, furniture, paintings, clothing, ceramics and pottery and jewelry.

In Bali, art is everywhere, bursting from thousands of art shops, stores and galleries. The Balinese are dedicated to art -- making beautiful things is ingrained into their society.

The Balinese handicraft industry is an engine of productivity, divided into art for religions purposes, art for tourists and art for export to every corner of the world.

Until recently, the handicraft industry was one of the most robust export industries in Bali, but it now faces competitive pressures from other Asian countries. In particular, the Chinese manufacturing/cheap export juggernaut has lowered prices for handmade products throughout the world to the extent industries everywhere compete against China's low wage structure at abysmal low price points.

Because handicraft production draws from the natural skills and inclinations of the Balinese culture, it holds the promise of reducing Bali's diminishing standard of living for the average Balinese citizen.

The challenge is transforming the handicraft industry into a one that operates with modern business practices, thus helping it avoid the low price/commodity trap, while at the same time maintaining its heart and soul - the very competitive advantage, which sets it apart from other countries.

The Concept of "Social Entrepreneurship"

The concept of "social entrepreneurship" is catching on. Recently, PBS ran a four part series (http://www.pbs.org/opb/thenewheroes/whatis/) about social entrepreneurs and the work they are doing…from India to Puru…to address social problems using a unique blend of philanthropy and business savvy.

I first heard the term when I listened to journalist David Bornstein speak last year in San Francisco on his book tour for How To Change The World: Social Entrepreneurs and the Power of New Ideas (http://tinyurl.com/7wzqj)
In his book, Bornstein profiles nine champions of social change who developed innovative ways to address needs they saw around them in places as distinct as Bombay, India; Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; and inner-city Washington, D.C.

Bornstein describes a similar approach and philosophy that each social entrepreneur uses to address local problems. Social entrepreneurs believe that problems like hunger or poverty are best addressed by channeling market forces to the needs of a social enterprise.

Social entrepreneurs concentrate on marginalized sectors of society. They seek financial sustainability as a means of attaining objectives such as improving the quality of life of their stakeholders and their living environments.

Here’s a description from The Ashoka Foundation (http://www.ashoka.org), an organization that identifies and invests in social entrepreneurs:

The job of a social entrepreneur is to recognize when a part of society is stuck and to provide new ways to get it unstuck. He or she finds what is not working and solves the problem by changing the system, spreading the solution and persuading entire societies to take new leaps. Social entrepreneurs are not content just to give a fish or teach how to fish. They will not rest until they have revolutionized the fishing industry.

Identifying and solving large-scale social problems requires a social entrepreneur because only the entrepreneur has the committed vision and inexhaustible determination to persist until they have transformed an entire system. The scholar comes to rest when he expresses an idea. The professional succeeds when she solves a client's problem. The manager calls it quits when he has enabled his organization to succeed. Social entrepreneurs go beyond the immediate problem to fundamentally change communities, societies, and the world.

http://www.ashoka.org/fellows/social_entrepreneur.cfm

The Predicament of a Balinese Taxi Driver

I met Ketut Sukadana in November 2001 while visiting Bali, Indonesia. It was only two months after the terrorist attacks in the United States, war raged in Afghanistan, and the world economy was in a shambles. Bali was almost completely devoid of tourists and the locals were desperate.

Everywhere I traveled, hotel rooms stood empty. Restaurants and street stalls were vacant. Street vendors, long dependent on a steady stream of tourist dollars, were on my heels at every turn, beseeching me to buy woodcarvings, jewelry, t-shirts -- things of value only to tourists, and only when they were in town to buy them.

Although this daily onslaught made my trip somewhat stressful, I could sympathize with the islanders' predicament. Their main economy was tourism and the dollars it provided. With no job alternatives, no tangible assets and no social safety net, their situation was grim and their pain was real. I'll always remember an eight-year-old girl who followed me for a quarter mile, trying to wear down my resistance to buy some trinket.

Against this backdrop, while wandering in search of a room, I met Ketut. He was driving the streets, looking for a fare. While he was grateful to find a paying customer, he was one of the few drivers I found who did not aggressively try to guide me to hotels to receive a kickback. I trusted him and hired him to take me around the island for a few days.

Ketut, 30, is representative of an average Balinese. His father is a rice farmer who works a small plot of land with the help of Ketut's older sister. Born in a small village on the eastern side of the island, the youngest of six children, he left school at age 13 when his father could not afford to pay for his secondary education.

Like many in his generation, Ketut left his rural village for the busy tourist center to gain employment. He married two years ago and wants to have a baby. He maintains strong ties with his family and returns home often for the religious festivals that form the backbone of Balinese society. His village is not just his spiritual home. It's a place to return when money runs low, and he can work for food on his father's rice paddy.

Ketut and his wife live in a 10-by-10-foot apartment in the capital city of Denpesar, a 20-minute drive from the tourist center. Their apartment rents for $20 US a month, has no air conditioning, and is large enough to accommodate a bed and little else. Until recently, his wife worked for a local garment factory that was forced to shut its doors. Now, Ketut is the sole income earner.

It's a challenging life. Each morning, he drives his motorcycle to Kuta to pick up a taxi. His arrangement with the taxi company means he will rent a car for $15 a day and burn up $5 of gasoline driving around town looking for tourists. He takes the financial hit on slow days, as the taxi company assumes none of the risk. "It's like a lottery," he says. "Some days, I lose money. Others, I break even."

Competition is fierce, now more than ever. Many tourists choose to walk the fairly compact city and do not venture to Bali's further reaches. Short rides around town may yield $1 US, or a coveted ride to the airport around $3. If he's lucky, a culturally inclined customer will hire him to tour the artisan villages of Ubud, about an hour away, for $10.

When business was good, these petty sums delivered a consistent income that could pay his overhead. Now, 16-hour days cruising the streets or waiting by hotels does not guarantee that enough paying customers will meet his costs of taxi rental and gasoline.

Ketut is no different than much of the population. Although the Balinese tend to earn more than most of the population in Indonesia, much of the population is poor by Western standards. A hotel worker might earn $5 US a day, a construction worker much less. The only people who enjoy the income levels that ensure a decent standard of living are those fortunate enough to have acquired land before property values skyrocketed, or those with an entrepreneurial instinct who build businesses.

When I learned about his predicament, I asked myself if I could help Ketut market himself more successfully, and possibly help him run his own small business as an entrepreneur. This kind of arrangement would lead to more income. It's an easy assessment, but a much more challenging proposition.

Bali: Trouble in Paradise

What I love most about Bali is how its inhabitants ensure that the spirits protect us all. Every morning, Balinese women place sweet-smelling offerings at doorways to greet the friendly spirits. The offerings are prepared with sprinkles of rice, burning incense, flower petals, and jasmine. Even nasty demons are treated to concoctions of blossoms and delicious things to eat. Elaborate shrines and temples adorn all villages, including those no larger than a crossroads. Sacred shrines watch over passersby above dangerous curves on the roads and at busy intersections. In the countryside, stone-carved deities hide in the bushes to ward off evil demons.

Bali occupies a unique place in the global consciousness. Even for those who've never visited the Indonesian island of three million people, Bali evokes images of sun and surf, lush rice paddies, friendly natives and a culture steeped in a distinctly Indonesian-Hindu civilization.

More than half a million visitors arrive on this tiny island each year to experience its tropical paradise. But all this changed last October when Indonesia's premier tourist destination was rocked by a terrorist bombing that killed 202 people, mostly foreign party-goers, in the crowded tourist strip of Kuta.

The terrorist attack dealt a major blow to a tourist industry still struggling from a slowdown following the September 11 attacks, a slow world economy and the recent outbreak of SARS. Many predict that the Balinese economy, hugely dependent on tourist dollars, will never fully recover.

Bali's one-dimensional economy: a recipe for disaster

Although Westerners started visiting Bali as early as the 1930s, the tourism boom that drives much of the Balinese economy took off in the 1980s. Tourism is now the largest source of income for Bali and provides a livelihood for 70% of its population.

It's not uncommon for entire families to work in the tourism sector. A father may act as a local tour guide and a son as a driver. The mother might work as a maid at a local hotel while her daughter gives massages at a local spa.

When the tourism industry suffers, so do the majority of Bali's people. I came to appreciate this after visiting Bali in November 2001 in the wake of the September 11 attacks. Hotels, restaurants and businesses stood nearly empty. Street peddlers outnumbered tourists and hounded the few visitors mercilessly.

As the once-agrarian economy shifted to a tourism-based economy, most Balinese enjoyed only a modest improvement in income. They receive subsistence level wages. The gap between rich and poor has widened significantly over the past decade, as a rapid rise in land costs now means that more and more Balinese can no longer afford to buy land or homes. Moreover, the low season always brings a dramatic drop in earnings, contributing to what has become an economic rollercoaster for the majority of Bali's citizens.

Many attribute higher school dropout rates to the fall in income and the fact that primary and secondary education is paid for by parents. Bali's younger generation is finding it increasingly difficult to expect the standard of living enjoyed by previous generations.

Some officials estimate that as much as 80% of all tourist receipts end up outside Bali. This revenue leakage offsets claims that tourism lifts all boats by putting dollars into the pockets of ordinary Balinese citizens and calls into question just how effective tourism has been for the Balinese economy.

Do Alternatives to a Tourist-Based Economy Exist?

Today, Bali tourism has still not returned to normal. In a study issued by the United Nations Development Program, The World Bank and the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), 1500 Bali residents reported significant falls in employment, sales and income since the Bali bombing last October.

"We can't reach the same level as it was two or three years ago," said statistics bureau official Rusman Heriawan, who notes that in 2002, close to one and a half million tourists came to Bali. But in the first half of 2003, lass than half a million tourists arrived, down 39.77 percent from the same period last year, according to Indonesia's bureau of statistics.

Bali needs new ways to survive. Unfortunately, much of the broader discussion about ways to revive the economy revolves around yet more initiatives to bring back tourists. It took Bali only two decades to build its economy around tourism, however. Now, Bali must find better ways to generate livelihoods comparable to what those in the developing world take for granted.

"Nine months after the bombing in Kuta, it's clear that there are many helping hands extended toward Bali. It's less clear how many of those hands have Bali's best interests at heart, and what Bali's people really want," states a recent article in the Asia Times. "There is a continued golden opportunity for people to work together but little indication that communication and cooperation are on the agenda for what remains as a unique, enchanting and unfortunately endangered community."

Facts about Bali

Country: Indonesia
Area: 5620 sq km (2192 sq mi)
Population: 3 million
Capital city: Denpasar (pop 370,000)
People: 95% ethnic Balinese, plus Javanese minority
Language Bahasa Bali, Bahasa Indonesian, plus English in tourist areas
Religion: 95% Balinese Hindu, plus Muslim and Christian minorities

Bali Links & Resources:

General Country Information

http://www.bali-information.com/bali-map.php

http://www.tradepartners.gov.uk/indonesia/profile/03_economic/economic.shtml

Articles:

Should I Travel To Bali? (Arthur Frommer's Budget Travel)

Bali Faces The Future (BBC)

Bali's Struggle For Survival (BBC News)

Marketing Without Borders

Why do some people have so much, while so many more have so little? That's a question many have been attempting to answer for generations.

As a pragmatist, I've always believed that many of the world's problems required a healthy dose of hope, fresh solutions to challenging problems and a concrete path toward a better future. This is especially true when you consider one of the most profound issues facing each of us today -- the effects of a growing underclass in much of the world.

Poverty affects all of us. Name any issue -- climate change because of pollution, deforestation, the drug trade, illegal immigration, terrorism, AIDS -- all of them have roots in the growing economic challenges of the developing world. The more disparity there is between the well-off minority of the world and the needy majority, the more we gamble the future well-being of global society at large.

I traveled enough to know that even in a time of growing prosperity for the developed world, much of the world is being left behind. The gap between the "haves" and the "have-nots" is widening. Estimates say that 20% of the world's population control 80% of the world's wealth. One in five people on the planet make do on less than a dollar a day.

For years, I've tried to understand why this is so. I've read books, attended lectures and traveled to poor countries. The problem of global poverty is too complex for any one interpretation. Yet, I believe that teaching entrepreneurship and small business marketing skills to people in the developing world can alleviate many of the world's problems. That's why I decided to take a three-week trip to India and Indonesia -- to teach others what I, as a marketing consultant, take for granted.

The idea came to me while sitting in an Indian/Pakistani restaurant in San Francisco this summer. I was considering ways to promote my new book, Get Slightly Famous. I was also planning a trip to Asia, one of my favorite places in the world. Then it hit me: "Why not take my book to a global audience?"

Then I had another thought. "Why not bring the ideas in my book to people in countries that need them the most?"

I got to work planning my trip around this new objective. Within a matter of weeks, my initial inspiration went from the back of a napkin to a full-blown initiative complete with partnerships, sponsors and supports. I decided to use my book as a template for the trip in its planning, execution and contribution to others. Here's how it goes:

- I will travel to two countries, Bali and India, and help two representative micro-entrepreneurs become better marketers. I will also make as many connections as possible in those countries, including local business associations, non-profit organizations and other trade-related entities.

-I chose Bali because after visiting the island in November 2001 (two months after the 9/11 attacks) I saw the effects on the local economy that resulted from a downward dip in tourism. I also met and became friends with a bright, motivated taxi driver while on that trip. I spend a week with him touring the island and sold him on the benefits of promoting himself as a local tour guide, rather than a dime-a-dozen taxi driver. I believe he will make a good case study of how a typical Balinese person can advance their situation by becoming a better marketer with a bit of help and training.

-I chose India because I'm well aware of the problems facing that country due to overpopulation and diminishing job opportunities. I'm acquainted with India's widespread poverty and its radical disparity in wealth distribution. Moreover, I've been working with a Delhi-based administrative assistant for several months now. I believe that, by working together, I can help him grow his business and establish the basis for a successful, mutually beneficial joint venture arrangement.

-I will use my book Get Slightly Famous as a springboard to give my trip a focal point. Not only does my book lend itself to this type of social entrepreneurial venture, it gives my trip more promotional value. It's made establishing joint ventures with other socially minded entrepreneurs and organizations much easier. It also provides a useful PR hook as I begin to promote the trip.

-I borrow from other organizational models that have impressed me with their entrepreneurial approach to poverty alleviation. For example, I'll use my long-time relationship with The National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE/www.nfte.com) as a model and partner with them with them as much as possible, including donating books to their operation in Jaipur, India, which I'll visit, and virtually mentor their students when I return.

-When all of this is done, I'll hope to inspire others to get on board and become part of a network of globally minded businesses that are willing to contribute to the project. There are many things that almost any successful business can do to help others in need. Many times, all they need to do is contribute their knowledge to make a radical difference. Moreover, many small businesses in the developing world can use this network to form alliances with other small businesses around the world. With the Internet, this is entirely possible.

I believe that to tackle the issue of global poverty, an epic outreach among those in the developed world to those less fortunate is part of the answer. I'm not talking about a handout or charity. Rather, I'm suggesting that one of the best ways out of the growing problem of wealth disparity is by teaching those with very little how to build their own income streams, develop an entrepreneurial mindset, and essentially become masters of their own destiny.

Instead of handing someone a free meal, you teach him or her how to grow their own food and prepare their own meals. This is about teaching people to solve their own problems, rather than imposing solutions from the outside. It's about hope, but hope combined with a concrete path.

When I wrote Get Slightly Famous, I was determined to create a marketing guide that addressed today's tough new business climate. I wanted to deliver action-oriented advice, not theory, which any small business owner could use to make a real difference in their businesses and lives. I believe that if the marketing advice I espouse is applicable to small business owners in the U.S., Europe and the other parts of the developed world, it should be equally applicable to those in the developing world.

Reducing Poverty In Bali by Improving Local Industries

Much of the promise for lifting Bali's residents out of poverty lies in enhancing Bali's key industries. One such industry is the well-developed handicraft industry, which produces everything from handmade wood and stone carvings, furniture, paintings, clothing, ceramics and pottery and jewelry.

In Bali, art is everywhere, bursting from thousands of art shops, stores and galleries. The Balinese are dedicated to art -- making beautiful things is ingrained into their society.

The Balinese handicraft industry is an engine of productivity, divided into art for religions purposes, art for tourists and art for export to every corner of the world.

Until recently, the handicraft industry was one of the most robust export industries in Bali, but it now faces competitive pressures from other Asian countries. In particular, the Chinese manufacturing/cheap export juggernaut has lowered prices for handmade products throughout the world to the extent industries everywhere compete against China's low wage structure at abysmal low price points.

Because handicraft production draws from the natural skills and inclinations of the Balinese culture, it holds the promise of reducing Bali's diminishing standard of living for the average Balinese citizen.

The challenge is transforming the handicraft industry into a one that operates with modern business practices, thus helping it avoid the low price/commodity trap, while at the same time maintaining its heart and soul – the very competitive advantage, which sets it apart from other countries.

GIVE Project: Bali Asli Soap Factory Marketing Program

High in the mountains of central Bali in the village of Pupuan, I tour a small soap factory called Bali Asli. Bali Asli is a social enterprise; the Bali Asli team has established a series of small scale, locally rooted industry projects that process local, natural resources into a wide range of resaleable products.

Bali Asli is a community-based business whose mission is to create jobs in one of Bali's poorest regions while generating profits that support local community projects. Bali Asli's most notable contribution is to the local school system, which is almost completely unfunded by the Indonesia government.

Earlier in the day, I visited 2 local schools largely funded by profits generated by Bali Asli products…

Yet, the production capacity is too low to make the type of impact…

I am visiting to perform a field study of the Bali Asli production system, including a survey of the requirements to import Bali Asli products to the United States. Bali Asli has been run by Richard and Maya since 1986.

As I spend time with Richard and Mya, I am impressed by the potential of this type of small scale industry to help develop local economies in Indonesia. Today, these small industries are one of the area’s largest employers.

In 1999 the owners of Bali Asli joined forces with other local enterprise and education experts and formed a non-profit foundation called Yayasan MACK.

Today Yayasan MACK works closely with Bali Asli and other local businesses to support local NGOs and community programs by clearly demonstrating the viability of establishing self-sustainability through ethical, environmentally sound small-scale production industries.

About the Bali Asli Products

Bali Asli produces a wide range of environmentally sound, natural products, including:

• Natural Beeswax, glycerine and liquid soaps
Bali Asli soaps are hand made and hand packaged by local women from the village of Batungsel, Pupuan. They are also great for the end users as they are made from completely natural ingredients and contain glycerin and natural moisturizers, which are gentle and beneficial for skin and hair.

• Natural household cleaning products
Bali Asli’s 100% natural household cleansers & laundry detergents are made with essential oils that have anti-bacterial, anti-fungal & natural cleansing properties. They are economical as they are made in concentrated form, and you only need to use a small amount to clean your clothes and home completely naturally.

• Natural insect repellent products
Bali Asli has developed affordable and safe solutions to natural mosquito, ant and other pest control. Their 100% natural pest control products are made with natural oils and pure essential oils that have been tested for safety and effectiveness in keeping your environment free from pests.

• Natural Jams, Jellies, Condiments and Sauces
All of the Bali Asli food products are made from fresh local tropical fruits, vegetables, herbs and spices. They contain no preservatives, colorings or artificial ingredients of any kind.

For more information about Bali Asli see:
http://www.balispirit.com/baliasli.htm

GIVE Project: Promote Balinese Exports in the United States

I've just met with the International Finance Corporations, a branch of the World Bank, leading a four-year project called Pensa –Pengembangan Usaha (http://www.ifc.org/pensa), which seeks to improve the prospects of the Balinese handicraft industry.

Their idea is to help Balinese handicraft manufacturers run their businesses more effectively. They are working to several handicraft aggregators, "middlemen" businesses that pool together small, individual village artisans to leverage their potential to reach larger international buyers.

IFC has asked GIVE to promote this initiative within the U.S. via our Marketers Without Borders program (http://giveindonesia.org/marketerswithoutborders.htm).

The idea is to target key industries of potential buyers, using GIVE's model of supporting entrepreneurial projects with professional marketing and business consulting services. GIVE will help IFC gain media attention and reach out to their handicraft clients' best prospects.

Carl Deganhaart, IFC's director in Bali, is hopeful that the project will enable otherwise limited individual artists now dependent on sales solely from individual tourists to reach a larger market in the United States and Europe.

"IFC functions as a quality control intermediary who can help the industry get organized, improve overall standards and open up new global markets for exported Balinese handicrafts."

The real competitive advantage of Balinese handicrafts is their source of origin. Bali is able to compete with other countries on prices, but unlike more material handicraft industries elsewhere Indonesian attention to quality and consistancy needs improvement. This is not a factory driven, mass production model.

Balinese handicrafts have the personality and quirkiness of the artist that produced them. But to compete in the global market, Bali needs to integrate a more professional attention to details of filling orders based on buyer specifications, which means attention to systems, procedures and quality control.

"Bali has a real opportunity to compete on a higher quality level than goods produced in Thailand and China," explains Deganhart. "Bali has something special to offer the world that can't be found anywhere else. The challenge is to help the handicraft industry operate on first world standards while preserving, and ultimately marketing, the soul of these products, which is so appealing to consumers."

IFC has two primary programs:

Market Linkages. This program works with 17 promising handicraft aggregator businesses to improve their overall operations, processes, and business practices. Participating businesses are chosen based on overall competency, including adherence to fair labor standards.

After initial assessments, IFC provides free business services, including consultation, management assistance working capital. They help handicraft producers focus on product improvement, merchandising, packaging and other areas.

To date, the program has helped 5 pilot companies generate $255,000USD and create 443 new jobs.

Professional Business Consulting Services. IFC makes available consulting expertise in management, packing, and other business advice that would otherwise be unaffordable to it's pilot participants. They've developed an export information center that assists handicraft businesses on how to improve processes, adhere to Fair Trade (http://www.fairtrade.org.uk/) standards, and improve their overall operations.

Getting Started with Cause-Related Marketing

Cause-related marketing yields mutual benefit. Look for partners with a similar agenda whose goals can be better achieved by partnering with your business. Take inventory of the assets that make you an appealing partner in a cause-related venture.

Peggy Linial, author of Marketing From the Heart: A Guide to Cause Related Marketing for the Small Business, offers this formula for choosing partnerships:

Mission statement + personal passion + customer demographics
= successful partner

"Know what your product is, what tugs at your heart strings, and who your customers are. Then, choose accordingly," Linial says.

Embrace a cause. There are many types of mutually beneficial relationships you can form with your cause-related partner, including special events, sales promotions and collection plans. An easy way to embrace a cause is to team up with a charity.

Whenever Johnny "Love" Metheny, a slightly famous nightclub owner in San Francisco, opens a new club, he shares the limelight with a local charity. "I have a history of including the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society in my grand openings," says Metheny, who was voted the society’s Man of the Year in 1991. "It's not only something I feel good about, but it helps us market our businesses to the community and media at the same time."

Volunteer. Another strategy is to volunteer with an organization or cause. When Eunice Azzani, an executive recruiter, volunteered to serve on the board of the San Francisco AIDS Foundation, or SFAF, she didn’t anticipate that it would connect her with executives from Mervyn’s, Bank of America, and Wells Fargo Bank, all of whom eventually hired her to work for them.

"People don’t hire a piece of paper or a process. They hire people they trust," Azzani says. "Volunteering for a position at a local organization makes you very trustworthy.” She advises business owners to target causes they believe in. "If you're helping with a cause you believe in, people will see that you care. And they'll realize you will probably care as much about your work."

Cross-Promote. As your partnership takes shape, look for ways to become ambassadors for each other. Whenever you can, talk about the charitable organization. If you own a business that’s open to the public, have flyers available. Promote the organization (and your partnership) on your website and in your newsletters. Ask your partner to extend the same courtesies to you.

Never lose the marketing focus of your community partnership efforts. Even though the work is philanthropy, your cause should generate interest in your company and motivate people to buy from it. Select a cause that is important to your target market, and make sure your target market sees that connection.

Cause-related community partnerships help you meet people, grow your business, and help your community. The strategies boost a company's prestige while gaining visibility through association with the cause. Tremendous goodwill can be generated, and media attention can be its side-effect.