Spotlight: Orange Rock Corps

While almost every large corporate organisation, (especially those in the technology industry), encourage their employees to spend a few hours each month volunteering, or donate sums of money to a range of charities, it is quite surprising that only one has actually gone about associating their brand with volunteering in a huge way – namely, mobile phone operator Orange with Orange Rock Corps. 

When I first heard of Orange Rock Corps, I thought it was a great initiative. Encouraging kids to volunteer and giving them tickets to gigs in return for their time? Considering the target audience, who probably spend half their waking time listening to music on their iPods anyway, it is a smart and relevant way of motivating them to engage with the community they are a part of. 

One of the best parts is that all ‘payment’ is only in kind, and it is a win-win situation for all involved: the kids, who get to see their favourite artists live; the artists, who get to interact with extremely enthusiastic young fans, also earning good karma points in the bargain (plus it won’t hurt their image to be associated with an event like this); and Orange, who through association with the event, become known as a brand that genuinely puts their money where their mouth is, especially to a segment of the population that probably forms a huge proportion of their user base. 

I’m surprised other brands haven’t cottoned on to this yet. If you know of any other big brands that are involved in volunteering, do let us know.