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 Doing
good for goodness’ sake is fine, but what if you exhibit could
benefit from your benevolence? Ever since American Express
Co. coined the term “cause-related marketing” in 1983,
countless corporations have been jumping aboard the do-gooder express,
bound for the PR holy land. Exhibitors have also begun to harness the
power of philanthropic activities, which have generated feel-good vibes,
boosted booth traffic, attracted media attention, fostered staff/attendee
interaction, and even cut costs in the process.
Secure Computing Corp., a provider of Internet-security software and appliances
in San Jose, CA, didn’t initially have philanthropic goals in mind
when it began planning its booth for the 2007 RSA Conference in San Francisco.
Rather, a mandate from its new senior vice president of marketing demanded
the trade show team increase visibility while cutting costs by 25 percent.
Scratching their heads for a solution, the team met for a marathon brainstorming
session. Collectively, they figured attendees had more pens, T-shirts,
and stress balls than they’d ever need. So Secure Computing figured
it could save the cash it typically spent on branded giveaways and ask
attendees to drop other exhibitors’ swag into a simple $7 garbage
can. If attendees filled the can by the end of the show, Secure Computing
promised to donate the can’s contents to a local children’s
hospital along with a $10,000 check. The company historically spent at
least that, if not more, on giveaways; plus, it hoped the activity’s
PR and traffic-building benefits would far outweigh the tax-deductible
$10,000 donation.
In addition to goal lines on the garbage can that marked attendees’ progress,
the can featured inexpensive graphics that explained the activity — dubbed
the Tchotchke Tchallenge — and prompted attendees to fill it
to the hilt with whatever they could find.
 By
the end of the show, attendees had filled the can to overflowing, so
Secure Computing gave the items and a $10,000 check to the University
of California, San Francisco Children’s Hospital. As anticipated,
it was money well spent, as the Tchotchke Tchallenge generated show-wide
visibility and repeat attendee visits. Plus, Secure Computing cut its
total-booth costs by 25 percent and generated a whopping 210 leads, 10
percent more than its goal.
 The
strategy was so successful, in fact, that Secure Computing recycled it
at Interop 2008 in Las Vegas. This time the Las Vegas chapter of The
Children’s Heart Foundation received the Interop tchotchkes and
the $10,000 check. At show’s end, Secure Computing had generated
445 leads, more than double its total at RSA. Plus, the activity generated
press attention, resulting in articles in Network World, Information
Week, and Secure News, among others.
For seven other exhibitors who demonstrated how charitable activities
can provide hard results along with philanthropic warm fuzzies see the
entire article here.
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Mid-price
hotel chains with full food service (average daily room rate of $83).
Courtyard by Marriott takes top honors. Hilton Garden Inn, Wyndham Garden
Hotels, Holiday Inn Select, Holiday Inn Hotels and Resorts and Four Points
by Sheraton also rank above average. 
