Five Standout Mother’s Day Cause Campaigns

By Mollye Rhea, President and Founder, For Momentum

Mother’s Day has always been special to me. First, I was a daughter celebrating one of the greatest moms on the planet. Then, the holiday grew even more significant when I became a mom. As a cause marketing professional, I also admire the nonprofit organizations and brands that are doing a standout job of honoring moms while raising funds and awareness for their cause. Here are five Mother’s Day cause campaigns that earned my “Mom’s Seal of Approval” this year.

1. Pencils of Promise – “It Takes a Village, and a Mom”

Pencils of Promise (PoP) is a nonprofit organization that builds schools, trains teachers and works to remove other barriers to education for children across the globe. They know one factor that positively influences a student staying in school is family support outside the classroom. To deliver this message, PoP used the online publishing platform Medium to tell the story of mothers in Guatemala who are encouraging their children to complete their schooling with help from PoP. Beautiful, full-color portraits of the mothers and their children accompany the profiles of these remarkable women who sometimes make incredible sacrifices to ensure that their children receive a better education than they did. A corresponding email campaign made it easy for recipients to donate to PoP in honor of their mothers.

2. UN Foundation – Global Moms Relay

Mother’s Day marked the perfect starting line for the UN Foundation’s Global Moms Relay. From now through June 17th, corporate partner Johnson & Johnson will donate one dollar for every social action—Facebook like or share, tweet, Instagram post, Pinterest pin, etc.—up to $350,000. The award-winning digital campaign features celebrities (like Kristen Bell in the above YouTube video), leaders and individuals answering one relay question: “What do you wish were true for every child, everywhere?” At the end of the relay, donations go to five initiatives that are helping women and children lead healthy and happy lives. Learn more at the campaign landing page GlobalMomsChallenge.org.

3. Susan G. Komen – #4EveryMom

If your Facebook feed looked anything like mine this past weekend, you saw a stream of friends’ avatars with a special “I ♥ Mom” message. No doubt you also recognized the pink ribbon logo associated with the Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation. Komen gave its supporters the opportunity to upload and change their profile pictures to raise awareness for the #4EveryMom campaign. The Foundation also used the holiday to celebrate its three-year cause partnership with racing driver Pippa Mann, who drives a pink IndyCar with the names of breast cancer survivors inside the cockpit. Mann is speeding toward her goal of raising $100,000 for Komen before the Indy 500 on May 29th. Check out her #GetInvolved crowdfunding site.

4. Every Mother Counts – The Orange Rose Collection

The National Retail Federation predicted that Americans would spend a total of $21.4 billion on Mother’s Day gifts and outings this year. That’s good news for Every Mother Counts, a nonprofit organization that partnered with several retailers to create The Orange Rose Collection. Brands like Toms, Marc Jacobs, and Ash + Ames designed special items with the orange rose, which symbolizes Every Mother Counts’ mission of making pregnancy and childbirth safe for all mothers. Supporters can also unlock donations from corporate partners Maybelline and Minted.com by sharing posts with the hashtag #EveryMomCounts.

5. March of Dimes and Random Acts of Flowers – Mother’s Day Deliveries to Moms of Preemies

My final standout Mother’s Day cause campaign highlights what can happen when two nonprofits join forces to deepen their impact and expand their reach. To help the March of Dimes fulfill its mission to improve the lives of preemies and their families, another nonprofit organization, Random Acts of Flowers, delivered bouquets to moms of preemies on Mother’s Day. Random Acts of Flowers recycles and repurposes flowers received from grocery stores, florists and other national corporate partners. Volunteers then deliver the floral arrangements to people in health care facilities across the country. As the social media accounts for both organizations showed, more than a thousand moms of premature infants received a beautiful Mother’s Day surprise.

From pink ribbons to orange roses, these five Mother’s Day cause campaigns illustrated how companies and nonprofits are bringing great things to life through the power of storytelling and partnership. What other elements make for a great cause campaign? Leave a comment below or email me to share your thoughts.