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Phase: Ideas Missions: Providing the Basics

One for One

Creating and supporting more businesses that embrace the One for One approach in the area of basic childhood needs. Toms Shoes - donates shoes for every pair purchased - sponsors sight-saving surgery for each pair of glasses purchased - donates a week of clean water per bag of coffee purchased Good Spread Peanut Butter - donates high nutrition food to malnourished infants. How could we incentivize more partnerships between baby food brands, diaper brands, sanitary product brands, clothing brands, and educational institutions to give back a portion of their profits through a relevant service they specialize in?

Photo of Wojtek Konstanty
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Written by

The global population has access to more information than ever before. We know what is going on in the world and want to help, but we often don't know what to do. 

We know what kind of products make us and our families healthy and happy and we will continue to purchase those products daily. Still, it has been shown in the marketplace, by companies like Toms and GoodSpread, that we feel even better about our purchases if we know that something that is benefitting us personally is also making a difference across the globe. 

Cause-based marketing is good for business and the world. A solution could be the creation of an organization or online platform where brands could choose/create causes they want to contribute to and advertise their impact to consumers without significantly changing their business model. 

This could mean brands that sell baby food, clothes, sanitary supplies, or educational services could easily allocate a portion of their marketing budgets to support pre-selected organizations providing similar support for babies in the developing world. They could then advertise the partnerships directly on packaging, letting consumers know their purchases are making a difference for other families as well as their own. 

http://helpgoodspread.com​

http://www.toms.com/gift-of-sight​
http://www.toms.com/gift-of-water​
http://www.toms.com/gift-of-shoes

What kind of help would you need to make your idea real?

Creating a platform/ organization which would match brands with the right non-profit partners

Reaching out to brands and convincing them that they can be even more successful by giving back.

Is this an idea that you or your organization would like to take forward?

  • This idea is meant to inspire. I hope someone else takes it on!
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Inspired by (8)

Breakfast
Breakfast
Fighting World Hunger with Peanut Butter
Fighting World Hunger with Peanut Butter
Malnutrition
Malnutrition
Feeding the Children
Feeding the Children
An integrated eVoucher-mHealth scheme for micronutrient powder (sprinkles) for children in the first 1,000 days of life
An integrated eVoucher-mHealth scheme for micronutrient powder (sprinkles) for children in the first 1,000 days of life
Drones that Deliver
Drones that Deliver
Stop hot car deaths to infants and toddlers
Stop hot car deaths to infants and toddlers
OMOMI Project UPDATED January 6th, 2015
OMOMI Project UPDATED January 6th, 2015
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This inspired (2)

Fortified Yogurt made by and for Families
Fortified Yogurt made by and for Families
Fog Farms - Drinking Water from Humidity
Fog Farms - Drinking Water from Humidity

2 comments

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Photo of Meena
Team

Interesting provocation, Wojtek. Might also be a good idea to explore the contention around the one-for-one model too: http://www.fastcoexist.com/1679628/the-broken-buy-one-give-one-model-three-ways-to-save-toms-shoes and http://www.nextbillion.net/blog/2011/06/07/when-the-shoe-doesnt-fit-an-investors-take-on-one-for-one-models We wonder whether you and others here might give some thought on how this model might be innovatively reconfigured? We're excited to see what folks come up with!

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Photo of Wojtek
Team

Hi Meena,

Thank you for the thought provoking articles.

I agree the One for One model is not perfect, but I want to recognize its efforts at at least making giant first world corporations care. Sure, not every child will be saved right away, but I think that by making customers aware of these lives on the other side of the world and giving customers a way to help while spending money on what they would have bought anyway is a great start.

Also, I think the model is continually improving and whereas shoes may not have been such a crucial necessity, now it's Medical Sight-Saving operations, Water wells, and the Nutrition necessary for full brain development and survival. These new ways of giving are really investments in the future of communities and children because children that grow up being able to SEE and THINK will be able to contribute much more positive net gain to their own communities.

That's why I think it would be awesome for the community to help create some platform or organization where brands (that use millions of resources and make millions of dollars) could give a portion of that back in a BENEFICIAL way just like you're saying :)

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