Benefits of Working for a Cause-Based Company and Purpose-Driven Brand
Eyeful Media is a cause-based marketing agency, recently recognized as an Inc. Best in Business company. We support several organizations, offering financial contributions and our time. We also give 5% of profits or more to organizations our team cares about.
It means more when the success of our SEO, paid search, and paid social campaigns can help others. That’s one of the many reasons working for a cause-based company is so rewarding.
“Working for an agency like Eyeful that is passionate about giving back to the community is a rewarding experience,” Eyeful SEO and Content Director Brendan Bowers said.
“I look forward to our all-hands meetings where we highlight the charities and nonprofits our team is supporting. It makes our work mean more on a daily basis.”
According to a recent “Make Work Meaningful” study, teams are 5x more productive when they consider their work meaningful. It’s also inspiring for employees to be able to help others in the community with the work they are doing.
“Seeing how our work not only helps our clients but also helps others in the community is very inspiring,” Eyeful Content Strategist Lori Pruitt said. “It’s one of the reasons I love working for Eyeful Media.”
Here are some additional benefits of working for a cause-based business.
5 Benefits of Working for Cause-Based Business
Fulfilling Work: Contributing to the greater good through daily tasks brings a unique sense of satisfaction and purpose. Katie Burke, the Chief People Officer at Hubspot, sees fulfillment at work as having a positive impact not only on people as employees but also on their happiness.
“I think that giving people meaningful work has economic value, but I also believe it has great personal value in people's happiness. People are happier with their family and friends when they're happy and fulfilled at work. And, from our perspective, we think about our impact as helping companies grow better, but also as helping our employees and their families grow better.”Core Differentiator: Purpose can drive competitive advantage in the market. According to research by Deloitte, purpose-oriented companies “report 30 percent higher levels of innovation and 40 percent higher levels of workforce retention than their competitors.”
Meaningful work and a shared purpose create an inspired culture and develop companies that people want to work for and work with.Collaborative Culture: Working in a purpose-driven company fosters a team environment where collaboration is paramount. A shared purpose aligns teams and creates opportunities for deeper bonds and connections among its members.
Peter Drucker emphasized this point: "The most successful company is not the one with the most brains, but the most brains acting in concert.”Aligned Values: Being part of an organization that supports your personal values of community and giving back makes your professional life more fulfilling.
Working for a company with whom your values align is becoming an increasingly important factor in where people choose to work. According to Deloitte, 70 percent of millennials expect their employers to focus on societal or mission-driven problems.Making a Daily Impact: The importance of the impact of purpose on an organization’s bottom line is the flywheel effect it creates in serving that purpose. Success in our daily work translates into greater resources and more opportunities to give back at both the individual and organizational levels.
Having a purpose is powerful. Below is a list of cause-based companies like Thrive Causemetics, Patagonia, Warby Parker, and others fueled by a purpose-driven mission.
Thrive Causemetics: Blending Profit with Purpose
Award-winning author Simon Sinek posed this question during a recent episode of his A Bit of Optimism podcast, Purpose over Profit:
“How do you run a thriving company that cares more about impact than about profit margins?”
His guest — Karissa Bodnar — provided an answer. The company she launched in her one-bedroom apartment, Thrive Causemetics, is a cause-based beauty company that has grown into a leader in the skincare and beauty industry.
Thrive’s commitment is to create vegan, cruelty-free products while working as a team to give back to those in need. Thrive’s growth and loyal customer base have put the company in a position to donate over $139 million to charitable causes.
“We believe changing the world starts with a single ingredient,” Bodnar said during the podcast. “We make vegan formulas with proven ingredients. They're 100% cruelty-free and don't have parabens or sulfates.”
Employees at Thrive know that their efforts and skills drive more than revenue and profit. This mission to give back helps inspire and motivate the team to continue to do much more than thrive.
Patagonia: A Role Model for Corporate Responsibility
Patagonia is an inspiring cause-based company and industry juggernaut. They are a leading example of how purpose-driven businesses can succeed at the highest level.
The clothing brand has done more than become an industry leader. Since 1985, Patagonia has pledged 1% of sales to preserve and restore the natural environment. The company, founded in 2002 by Yvon Chouinard and Craig Mathews, has given more than $140 million in money and donations to local environmental groups.
Patagonia appeared in Inc Magazine’s Most Purpose Driven Brands list. HubSpot also recognized Patagonia for being one of the most Socially Responsible Brands. Their journey has influenced other companies to embrace similar values.
Warby Parker: A Visionary Approach
Warby Parker redefines the role of a company in society. The eyewear leader's cause is to inspire and impact the world with vision, purpose, and style. The WarbyParker.com website further defines its mission:
“We believe everyone has the right to see. Around the world, about one billion people need glasses but can't get them. To help, we partner with organizations worldwide.“
“For every pair of glasses sold, we give a pair to someone in need. Over 15 million glasses have been distributed through our Buy a Pair, Give a Pair program.”
Warby Parker employees do more than sell eyeglasses. They are working to help their business grow so that others can have the ability to see more clearly.
AllBirds: Sustainable Footwear
AllBirds cause is to help the environment. The footwear company aims to better the planet's health by using sustainable materials in its shoes.
After considering why more footwear didn’t use sustainable materials, AllBirds created a shoe using merino wool and natural materials. The company strives to protect the environment by shipping its products in recyclable containers. It partners with Soles4Souls to help recycle and reuse lightly used Allbirds shoes.
AllBirds is a certified B corp: “The environment is a stakeholder here, and how we treat it is just as important as the bottom line,” the company says.
Bombas: Clothing on a Mission
Socks are the number one requested item in homeless shelters. Knowing this, Bombas’ founders wanted to create a sock they could give to shelters nationwide.
The company believes socks, underwear, and t-shirts should be accessible to anyone in need. Bombas donates one piece of clothing to homeless shelters for every item sold.
Bombas’ impact report further clarifies its mission:
“At the Bombas office in New York City, we always keep a basket of donation socks by our front door so that team members can grab a pair when they head out for lunch or make their evening commute.
“Offering a pair of socks to someone who needs them creates an opportunity for connection or a conversation. Through these friendships, we’ve learned the best ways to help and deepen our impact in our neighborhood.”
Bombas has over 3,500 giving partners, which helps put the company’s clothing into the hands of those in overnight shelters, rehabilitation, and transitional living facilities.
They also provide items to medical professionals, Title 1 schools, and street outreach teams.
Fabletics
Fabletics works to create an inclusive community by championing health and wellness for all. The company focuses on a community's physical, mental, environmental, and social factors.
To make an inclusive community a reality, Fabletics creates activewear for every body size, provides mental health access through its partnerships, uses sustainable materials to create its products, and seeks to support underrepresented communities.
Keen
Only a few businesses can say they were started after a global tragedy. For Keen Footwear, the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami set its values in motion. Shortly after the tsunami, the company redirected its $1 million advertising budget to tsunami relief. Today, their outreach and giving back efforts are known as “the Keen effect.”
“Every KEEN boot, sandal, and sneaker you buy has a positive effect, funding organizations to protect the planet and making the outside and trades more accessible to all.”
Since its initial tsunami relief support, Keen has supported 100s of non-profits and donated $2.5 million to support the conservation of wild habitats.
Avocado Green Brands
Avocado Green Brands works to make healthy sleep affordable and accessible for all. When the founders of Avocado Green Brands found that mattresses marketed as organic and non-toxic were anything but, a purpose-driven brand was born.
“To be the most respected source for organic mattresses, pillows, and bedding at affordable prices — while maintaining environmentally conscious, ethical, and sustainable business practices across our entire supply chain.”
Not only does Avocado Green Brands sell organic and environmentally-friendly sleep products, but the company’s business practices reflect its commitment to the Earth.
It is a certified B corp., diverting 78% of factory waste from landfills.
SodaStream
When you think of soda, you likely think of the plastic bottles the fizzy drink comes in. Single-use plastics contribute to much ocean and land waste, and SodaStream is working to change that.
“We believe that something as small as sparkling your water at home can spark a huge change in the world. By 2025, SodaStream will save up to 76 billion single-use plastic bottles from our planet.”
SodaStream’s bottle is reusable, reducing the use of single plastic bottles, and the use of the machine reduces the use of single-use plastic soda bottles.
Cotopaxi
Seeing the world can inspire people to make it a better place. That’s why Cotopaxi makes gear for adventures while helping to fuel change. “To achieve our mission, we dedicate at least 1% of our revenue to nonprofits that help communities experiencing poverty,” Cotopaxi says.
To help communities, Cotopaxi strives to make its gear as durable as possible. The company also donates 1% of its revenue to various non-profits to reduce inequity.
GoodPop
GoodPop is a cause-based company that creates treats that are good for you and good for the planet. The company uses sustainable materials in its product packaging and sources its ingredients from organic, non-GMO providers.
“The packaged food industry is known for using a lot of packaging. At GoodPop, we use recyclable materials, but we want to do better. That’s why our products are plastic-neutral certified through 4ocean.”
GoodPop is a certified B corp, which means:
“Using our products as a force for good is why we created the Pledge Good Foundation to give back to our communities. It means doing better for our environment by using recyclable materials and always striving to do more.”
Portland Coffee Company
Portland Coffee Company uses its profits to make the world a better place. Since its founding in 1996, Portland Coffee Company has “committed [ed] resources to a global project supporting a coffee community in need.”
The company has led projects in Costa Rica, Columbia, Kenya, El Salvador, Sumatra, Honduras, and more. In these areas, they helped establish clean drinking water through solar-powered pumps, functional clean wells, and more.
Daily Harvest
For many people, access to nutritious fruits and vegetables is limited. Daily Harvest is working to change that. “We are transforming what we eat, what we grow, and how we grow it — one crop (and bite) at a time.”
Daily Harvest creates its dishes from sustainable sources. It works directly with farmers to ensure biodiversity, healthier soil, more biodiversity, and a smaller carbon footprint. “Everything we make is built on sustainably sourced fruits and vegetables and crafted into delicious food that is good for you.”
Dave and Buster’s
Dave and Busters believe in inclusive fun for all. Beyond creating an inclusive, good time for all guests, Dave and Busters support causes like Make-a-Wish.
Dave and Buster’s Legacy Fund helps team members in times of need.
“Its purpose is to ensure any team member who has suffered a catastrophic medical or other personal situation receives immediate assistance.
“The Fund is financed by contributions from our team members, customers, guests and business partners.”
The company also uses its facilities' energy-efficient lighting, fixtures, and HVAC.
Main Event
Gaming can be fun and benefit a good cause at the same time. Through its fundraising efforts, Main Event donates 20% of party sales to the non-profit of the fundraiser’s choice.
Spirit nights and other fundraisers help school clubs and non-profits get the funds they need to succeed while having a good time.
GAINSystems
GAINSystems works to drive change in the world. For every subscribing customer, GAINS increases its investment in solar arrays.
“GAINS is on track to achieve a zero-carbon footprint by the end of 2023. We have already saved 68,000 pounds of CO2 emissions and delivered the equivalent of 600 trees planted.
“As a company, we have built solar arrays at multiple community hosting locations in Chicago. Each installation generates more than $6,000 in reduced energy costs and solar credits for the community annually.”
Lessening its carbon footprint isn’t the only thing GAINS does. It also partners with organizations to ensure those in need have clean water and nutrition.
PurposeBuilt
America needs millions of skilled tradespeople, and PurposeBuilt wants to help tradespeople find jobs they love. PurposeBuilt strives to “Nurture the next generation of blue-collar with superior-quality gear, supplies, and steadfast support — protect, honor + inspire.”