Holiday Shoppers Plan to Help Charity

Sixty per cent of Americans say that they will buy one or more holiday gifts to benefit a charitable cause this year, up from 56 per cent last year, according to a survey released this month.

The annual survey was based on telephone interviews with 1,000 consumers nationwide. It was commissioned by Cone Communications, a Boston company that helps corporations set up promotions in which proceeds from selling a product or service go to charity.

Among the findings:

* Sixty-eight per cent of single female consumers and other women who live in households with children said that they will buy a gift to benefit charity this year.

* More than 70 per cent of consumers aged 25 to 34 said they also plan to buy a holiday gift to benefit charity this year; 44 per cent said they had actually bought one or more such gifts last year.

* Nearly 90 per cent of white consumers and 76 per cent of black consumers said that they take a company’s reputation for charitable work into account when making purchases all year long.

“Consumers really want companies to be committed to issues or causes on a long-term basis, and they want those causes to be relevant to their daily lives,” says Carol Cone, chief executive officer of Cone Communications.

For more information on the survey, contact Cone Communications, 90 Canal Street, Boston 02114; (617) 227-2111; http://www.conenet.com.