Synopses & Reviews
and#147;Mara Einstein once again brings a clear head and discerning eye to one of our culture's most energetically promoted yet ambiguously motivated sectors. Whether you want to do real good for the world - or simply ridicule those who have been fooled into thinking they are - this book will show you the light.and#8221; -Douglas Rushkoff, author of
Life Inc: How Corporatism Conquered the World and How We Can Take it Back"Mara Einstein pulls back the curtain on some of the most important marketing developments of our day with a nuanced analysis that is both penetrating and fair minded." -Joseph Turow, author of The Daily You: How the New Advertising Industry is Defining Your Identity and Your World
and#147;Compassion, Inc challenges us as human beings to look at the true effects of our attempts to "purchase for positive social change." Einstein clearly articulates how we are too often creating the very same problems we are trying to solve. In this smart and well-researched look at the oxymoron of sustainable consumption, Einstein shows us that there is indeed another way, and how we can be more effective as consumers, but most importantly as citizens.and#8221; -Courtney Hull, Hull Family Foundation
Review
and#8220;and#8221;Einstein has the unenviable task of reminding us that shopping is not philanthropy. The consumer marketplace is increasingly becoming the mechanism for funding organizations that do charitable work, thus tying the fates of charities to the whims of the market, Einstein warns. It is also enabling governments to further abdicate problem-solving, with the result that the causes we care so much about are not genuinely helped.and#8221;
Review
and#8220;A highly worthwhile read with prescriptive examples for authentic sustainability and social justice initiatives at companiesand#8212;not all about the brand, the celebrity or corporate self-interest.and#8221;
Review
and#8220;Einsteinand#8217;s book is a powerful call to be more attentive to whether weand#8217;re letting ourselves try to be philanthropic on the cheap by and#8220;givingand#8221; to others when weand#8217;re really just getting something for ourselves.and#8221;
Review
"On our must-read list."--Humane Connection
Review
and#8220;Marketing campaigns associated with philanthropy . . . may sound magnanimous, but when Einstein shines a lens on the practice, she finds considerable cracks in the veneer.and#8221;
Review
“A highly worthwhile read with prescriptive examples for authentic sustainability and social justice initiatives at companies—not all about the brand, the celebrity or corporate self-interest.” Jacqueline Pfeffer Merrill - Philanthropy Daily
Review
“On our must-read list.” Rebecca Aguilar - Book Kvetch Blog
Review
"Provocative." Laura Orlando - Ms Magazine
Review
"Eminently readable. . . . Few have questioned whether [corporate charitable giving] strategies are good for anyone but corporations. Mara Einstein is one of the brave few." Rance Crain - Advertising Age
Review
and#8220;On our must-read list.and#8221;
Synopsis
Pink ribbons, red dresses, and greenwashingand#151;American corporations are scrambling to tug at consumer heartstrings through cause-related marketing, corporate social responsibility, and ethical branding, tactics that can increase sales by as much as 74%. Harmless? Marketing insider Mara Einstein demonstrates in this penetrating analysis why the answer is a resounding and#147;No!and#8221; In Compassion, Inc. she outlines how cause-related marketing desensitizes the public by putting a pleasant face on complex problems. She takes us through the unseen ways in which large sums of consumer dollars go into corporate coffers rather than helping the less fortunate. She also discusses companies that truly do make the world a better place, and those that just pretend to.
About the Author
Mara Einstein is Associate Professor of Media Studies at Queens College. She is the author of Brands of Faith: Marketing Religion in a Commercial Age. She has worked as a senior marketing executive in both broadcast and cable television as well as at major advertising agencies.
Table of Contents
Preface
1 Value Brands . . . They Ainand#8217;t What They Used to Be
2 How Corporations Co-Opt Caring: Strategic Philanthropy, Cause-Related Marketing, and Corporate Social Responsibility
3 The Birth of the Hypercharity and the Rise of and#147;Charitainmentand#8221;
4 The Consequences of Co-Opting Compassion
5 Shopping Is Not Philanthropy. Period.
6 Can Companies Make a Difference?
7 We Are Not Consumers
Notes
Index