Cause-marketing aside, most brands are usually not trying to save lives. Marketers are normally trying to sell a product or a service. But first and foremost, that means getting people to engage with, and participate in, what your brand is doing. And from that participatory side, there is a lot that we can learn from the ALS Ice Bucket Challenge that's been sweeping the country. By now you've undoubtedly seen your Facebook feed and Twitter stream flowing with videos of people dousing themselves with ice and challenging others to do the same to raise awareness and money to fight amy-otrophic lateral sclerosis (also known as Lou Gehrig's Disease). Some have argued about the effectiveness of this, but according to the ALS Association, "as of Wednesday, Aug. 27, the ALS Association has received $94.3 million in donations compared with $2.7 million during the same time period last year (July 29 to August 27)." Further, "these donations have come from existing donors and 2.1 million new donors."
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