Cadbury’s CSR Business Program Builds 5000 Bikes in its Bicycle factory

I am always keen to write about the creative (and successful)  CSR business campaigns of larger organizations like McDonalds McHappy Day, The Beer Store’s Returns for Leukemia, Tim Hortons Camp Day and now Cadbury’s Bicycle Factory.

The Cadbury Bicycle Factory program is an online based interactive campaign which began in 2009 and has since built 9000 bikes. No purchase is necessary and the public gets to participate in a virtual task to help the candy giant achieve its goal of building 5000 bikes. The bikes are given to African students, so they have a means of transportation to get to school. The program is a great success and as of June 7th they had reached their 2012 goal in record time of 5000 bikes in 66 days. Even though they have hit their number, the public can still register at the site and participate for a chance to win some cool prizes.

Images courtesy of thebicyclefactory.ca

This year, the bikes that were built are going to be going to students in Ghana. The bikes they are sending are called “Nframa, [and are] a specially designed, one-speed bicycle with a sturdy frame made for the rugged terrain of rural Ghana. It’s called the Nframa – a Ghanaian word for “wind” – because of the mobility and freedom that these bicycles represent.”

The bicycle factory website allowed you to build a bike as team or as an individual and you could register using an online form or via your Facebook account. Participants would then choose a Cadbury product such as chocolate, gum or candy to drop through a virtual portal where it becomes a piece of a bike in Africa. You could then build five parts of the bike per day, which encourages participants to return to finish building their bike. Participants are also eligible for prizes with one prize being a trip to Ghana to help deliver the bikes.

Cadbury is optimizing the public’s involvement by encouraging visitors to spread the word about building bikes, offering team registration and integrating Facebook and Twitter from the beginning. By encouraging networking and team building, Cadbury will be able to get their message out to a larger audience. Plus people are more apt to participate in an event when prompted by family, friends or associates.

Cadbury is also advertising the Bicycle Factory through numerous television ads which highlight the cause and direct viewers to the website with directions on how to log-in and register.

Although there is no-purchase necessary, Cadbury still benefits in two ways: 1) It is good publicity for the brand and consumers like tying their regular purchases/indulgences to supporting a cause they believe in; and 2) Cadbury benefits from the market research captured via the registration process which builds their consumer database. Registration information includes age (birth date), email address, first 3 digits of postal code and product preference by virtue of the products they choose. This information will allow them to reach out to customers on a more personal level.

The Bicycle Factory is a successful example of a CSR business program that is well-matched to the brand while changing lives and making a difference. Judging by how fast the 2012 goal of 5000 bikes was reached, I would think it’s a program that will continue for years to come.
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Miratel Solutions is a Toronto call centre, eBusiness, and letter shop mail house specializing in professional fundraising services including telephone fundraising, online fundraising, lottery services, donation caging, donation processing and other donor management services. We are committed to our CSR business values in all contact centre services and mail house operations and advancing the missions of the nonprofits we proudly serve.