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This Procott is (Red)!
Submitted by Tom Peterson on Oct 18, 2006 10:15 AM
The “boycott” was named in 1880 for Captain Charles Boycott, the agent for an unfair absentee landlord, with whom Irish renters (joined by others in the area) refused to have any dealings. But America’s most famous boycott, which included the Boston Tea Party, happened a century earlier. In recent decades, people have found reasons to boycott California grapes, Nestles products, Denny’s Restaurants or Taco Bell. And now, we’ve got the Procott. Like the boycott, its existence preceeded its name. A procott is the opposite of a boycott. According to the Procott website, http://www.web.ca/~procott/origins.html, a procott “is a movement to support the production and purchase of earth-friendly and justice-friendly goods and services.” I first ran across the term in Utne Reader’s “Good Idea” contest in 2002. Instead of not buying products with ties to negative actions, procotts encourage people to buy products and services that help bring about good. Instead of boycotting and not taking the bus in Montgomery in 1956, do procott and take the bus in 2006 because it’s better for the environment and community. Over the last few decades a number of options for people to Procott or participate in a more eco-just economy have developed. Now, superstars such as Bono and Oprah have joined with business leaders such as Steve Jobs to offer consumers the ability to procott: Portions of the sales of dozens of (Red) products —a (Red) iPod nano, a (Red) Motorola cell phone, a full (Red) clothing collection from the Gap — will provide anti-retroviral medicines to persons with AIDS in Africa. (www.joinred.com) The Global Fund, a public-private effort founded in 2002 to attract and distribute resources to prevent and threat HIV/AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, has committed more than $5 billion to programs in 131 countries. While cause marketing is nothing new, it offers consumers yet one more way to procott. If you happen to be buying an iPod anyway, why not make it (Red)?
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Do the causes associated
Do the causes associated with this type of consumer 'procot-ing' benefit? Even though these corporate driven campaigns donate a share of the profits to a good cause, who benefits most?
Does the nonprofit gain more in dollars and exposure than does the corporation in profits and increase sales?
I'm not sure but would love to see some analysis of this.
At the end of the day, it IS better than mindless consumerism and unbridled capitalism. For that, I'd like to see more corporations taking this type of lead.
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I too wonder, almost every day, how a few small good actions can grow into large great shifts in our systems and mass behavior.
Procott, intentionally choosing to buy goods and services that create a better world, is a rich spectrum, with infinite colors and shades. But it boils down to whether I buy this product or service that in some way helps the world, or that one that doesn’t.
Obviously, it gets complicated the minute you begin looking into a particular product. When you buy a Timberland shoe, let’s say, a portion of what you paid at the counter helps the nonprofit City Year give hope to inner city youth here and in South Africa. And that may be all you want to know. Or you may want to know where was the shoe made, what kinds of chemicals were used, how are Timberland employees treated. You’re going to buy shoes from someone, so you may want to compare Timberland with other companies on all of these issues. Or you may not have that much time!
This month in your local Kroger, you’ll see a large display of Campbell’s soup: chicken noodle and tomato. The cans are pink for National Breast Cancer Awareness month. Campbell gives 3.5 cents to the Susan G. Komen foundation for each can. Because they doubled normal sales, that amounts to about $250,000.
Again, you may ask, wouldn’t it be better if I avoided the can, bought a free-range organic chicken and locally grown organic vegetables and made my own chicken soup and then made a donation of more than 3.5 cents to the Komen Foundation?
I’d say, yea, that would be better. But they’re both procotting. Just different colors. The point is procotting is better than mindless consumerism.
How does this become a mass movement? It’s already becoming a mass movement. While they started on the fringes and people wrote them off for years, growth in organic and fair trade foods are rapidly out pacing other sectors in the food industry. The same is true for alternative energy.
It will take all sectors to end poverty and save the earth. Ray Anderson of Interface in Atlanta decided to figure out how to manufacture carpet that was sustainable in every way. Because my organization procotted, my feet rest on his carpet right now.
Back to the (red) ipod. If you buy one of those (instead of a blue one) and ten dollars goes to help a person with AIDS in Rwanda, and one million other people do the same, that’s $10 million for that campaign alone. Beyond that, Apple employees are now more involved, more connected to this part of the world. Steve Jobs says he’s never been to Africa. What if because of the campaign’s success of this campaign, he and Bono get on a plane and visit some villages, he sees the situation, gets more informed, more involved and adds a hundred million dollars to the development process.
What if the person who bought the red iPod thinks of someone in Africa each time he or she turns it on. They feel more connected in a society that needs all the connection to humanity it can get. They may take another step because of that tangible red reminder.
It’s all steps, one at a time.
Great description, Tom. It's great that corporations are trying to make a difference. If there's a spectrum of how much of a difference they're making to how much needs to be made, where do you think corporate America is on that spectrum?
This is an interesting concept...but how is it any different than just being a consumer and buying any kind of stuff? I do understand the individual decision to buy products that bring about good. I'm wondering if you have any ideas how this can become a national action on the part of all consumers - not only to buy good but for those who are unaware to become aware. Boycotts get press because it's a change, sometimes even a radical change and it brings attention to a situation and increases awareness. Would like to hear any thoughts you may have on this...
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