Cause-Related Marketing : How Swedish fashion retailers increase purchase intentions by doing good

The aim of this study is to investigate what factors are important when implementing cause-related marketing within the Swedish fashion retail market, in order to change the purchase intention of customers. Cause-related marketing (CRM) is a widely used marketing tool within the Swedish fashion industry. There has been an increasing trend of using cause-related marketing as part of corporate social responsibility strategy. Companies increasingly believe that associating their corporate identity with good causes can be an effective marketing tool. There is limited research about CRM with a bearing on the Swedish market and the fashion industry. This has given the authors an interesting field for research and analysis. A quantitative method was used to collect primary data. A survey was conducted among customers of H&M, Lindex, Mango and Indiska. These companies were chosen after the observation of a large amount of Swedish based fashion retailers and their involvement within CRM. The results indicate that there is a link between cause-related marketing and customer purchase intentions. CRM campaigns have positive effects on customers by increasing their purchase intentions. Marketing communication, price, customer attitude and fit are important factors that affect the purchase of CRM products. A further investigation can be useful for companies and researchers in the field of marketing strategies