Looking to boost your company's profile on a local level? Cause-related marketing or corporate partnerships could be the answer.

By linking with non-profit organizations and worthy causes, companies reap the benefit of positive news about their company and generate goodwill among their customers. According to a report released at the third annual Cause Marketing Forum last month, consumers are more likely to try products from companies that have invested money and time into charitable causes. Being a good corporate citizen also builds morale and trust among employees, according to Doing Well by Doing Good:2005.

Companies like Ben & Jerry's and Avon have elevated their brands to iconic status by dedicating themselves to solid corporate citizenship. Many large corporations have jumped on that bandwagon. In fact, investment in cause marketing has grown 800 percent since 1990 and is expected to reach $1.8 billion this year.

Makes sense, right? Companies understand that giving back not only is the right thing to do but it helps them connect with customers.

In the book Customer Bonding: 5 Steps to Lasting Customer Loyalty the authors write, "Identity bonds are formed when customers admire and identify with values, attitudes, or lifestyle preferences that they associate with your brand or product. Customers form an emotional attachment based on their perception of those shared values."

But cause marketing isn't about simply picking a charity and supporting it. A cause has to permeate the organization and align itself strategically with a company's mission statement. At this year's CMF, some of the experts said that finding an appropriate non-profit to team up with is a key to a successful relationship.

The Cone/Roper survey found that 80 percent of Americans prefer companies that commit to a specific cause for a long time period rather than those who opt for multiple, short-period causes.

Companies must also avoid strictly looking at a cause related campaign in terms of ROI, according to Walt Freese, CEO of Ben & Jerry's.

"If you do it a little different, and you do it in a timely fashion, you can have results that go way, way beyond your cause," Freese said at last month's CMF. "But if you try to look at the return on investment when you set out on a cause marketing campaign, nine out of 10 times you won't succeed."

Another key to cause marketing success is keying in on local media and local chapters of their non-profit partners, according to CMF attendees.

Ben & Jerry's, Avon, GNC, and Daimler Chrysler have concentrated on sending out localized press releases to get local community papers involved and to stimulate employee participation.

Focusing on grassroots level marketing has enabled these companies to reach employees and potential customers where they live and work.

Is using a newswire an effective way to distribute press releases?

Newswires are a great way to do a broad distribution of a press release, particularly if you want to make a product announcement or issue financial results. However, a recent study of 10,000 members of the media provides a cautionary tale about the efficacy of a newswire for local news.

According to the survey by Brodeur Worldwide, 73 percent of the respondents said "no" when asked if they monitored newswire websites for content. 78 percent said they do not favor one newswire over the other.

The good news is that regional papers are more likely to look monitor a wire service than national business media. 41 percent of regional daily or weekly newspapers and 23 percent of regional broadcast stations use newswires for content, while 4 percent of national business media and 2 percent of national daily business papers do.

At local newspapers, newswires don't necessarily provide the local contact information and connection needed to get in the paper. When trying to build brand awareness or improve employee or franchise relations, a PR professional is better served trying to localize press releases rather than a blast distribution over the newswire.