Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon

Guest blogger, Nyia Hawkins

Have you ever played the game Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon? The theory
is that any actor can be linked to Kevin Bacon; through his film roles
to those of his co-stars and on to Kevin Bacon within six film roles
or less.  If you're Katya Andresen, vice president of marketing for
Network for Good, you are only one degree away because Kevin Bacon
calls you.  And you don't have to be an actor.

Bacon wanted to do something good with the pop culture party game that
claimed his name so he purchased the URL for 'six degrees' and
contracted Network for Good, i.e. Andresen, to do the marketing.
Andresen had just the concept in mind, which is the philosophy behind
her book, "Robin Hood Marketing; Stealing Corporate Savvy to Sell Just
Causes." At sixdegrees celebrities attach their name to a
charity, so when a viewer looks up his favorite celebrity he gets
information on a charity in the same click.  'Six Degrees' has raised
more than half a million dollars for various charities.  The Network
for Good website has led more than 430,000 people to donate more than
$100 million to over 20,000 charities.  
 
Andresen's marketing concept is an exercise in innovation, that doesn't
wag fingers at the public or pull guilt trips to get donations.  Her
concept of non-profit marketing is a conversation of listening to what
people care about and attaching charities to that.  In the case of 'Six
Degrees', what people care about is celebrity and attaching themselves
to celebrity; $558,076 worth of celebrity.
 
Nyia:  How do you add a degree of separation from celebrity to charity,
from charity to viewer?
 
Katya:  Whether for good or bad our culture is still attracted to
celebrities and what they wear, eat and do.  With www.sixdegrees.org,
we are showing what charities celebrities support.  But what has truly
made the site take off is not simply the celebrity fascination, it's
the desire of everyday people to be celebrities for their own cause by
posting their photos, stories and favorite charities on the site but
also on their own blogs and web pages.  We make that possible with
easy-to-use fundraising widgets that keep a running tally of how much
that widget has raised.  More than 4,000 people are being celebrities
for their own cause, and in only three months, they've raised more than
$550,000, which is astounding. So celebrities drive interest but
everyday people drive donations, because they are the true celebrities
within their own circles of friends and family.  
 
N:  What is the genesis behind your book?
 
K:  Non-Profits can be their own worst enemies when it comes to
Marketing, because they forget that their mission is not enough to
prompt action -- they have to determine how to talk with their
audience, on their audience's terms.  When I was a reporter working for
Reuters in Cambodia for World Aids Day, I noticed a huge a crowd in one
corner of a rather dull public health fair.  I saw the source of the
commotion: a towering, condom-shaped balloon emblazoned with the words,
"Number One." A crowd was eagerly grabbing free samples of Number One
Condoms, as well as Number One paraphernalia like t-shirts, hats, and
shorts.  The nonprofit, Population Services International, was marketing
pride and fun as a way to sell safe sex, rather than blaring their
mission statement.  That gave me an ah-hah moment, because I saw the
potential of approaching social good with a marketing mentality
borrowed from the business world.
 
N:  What do you see for Six Degrees future?
 
K: I would love to see 'Six Degrees' continue to grow and thrive.  I would
like it to become the model for people in the non-profit sphere.  I
would like to see people who are most passionate about these activities
come into the same arena.