There’s been a lot of talk lately about Ohio sports teams. How many games do you think the Browns will win this season? Can the Cavs get any respect with LeBron back in Ohio? Will the Blue Jackets return to the playoffs?

But do you ever hear people ask, “What about the players on the practice squads?” Not until now. That’s because there’s one member of the Cincinnati Bengals practice squad who’s not fully focused on football and this weekend’s game. That’s Devon Still.

Name off in your head the most successful and impactful cause marketing initiatives of the last decade. Here’s what I think:

Saving Lids to Save Lives with Yoplait for the Susan G. Komen Foundation.

Product Red for The Global Fund to Fight AIDS, Tuberculosis and Malaria.

The TRUTH campaign from the American Legacy Foundation.

Making a difference. Doing social good. Creating a better world for all to live in. These are the mantras by which social marketers live. Using commercial marketing tactics to persuade people to voluntarily change a specific behavior or invest in themselves and their communities is what makes social marketers tick. It’s why we get up in the morning and go to bed fulfilled each night.

Partnerships are a powerful tool in social marketing and public awareness campaigns. Once you’ve determined and segmented your audiences, finding organizations that have the respect and the trust of your target audiences can be critical to your success. Campaign partners can help you reach your targets in a variety of ways, many more than any one organization could. In some instances, partner organizations can also bring resources to the table to make the campaign broader and richer. Partners can help in your efforts to reduce barriers to desired actions.

But the first question you need to ask yourself is: What’s in it for the partner?

By Kimberly Varner, M.A.

Earlier this year, the PRSA Foundation released what it called “staggering” numbers about diversity in the PR industry. Today, African Americans and Hispanics make up about 30 percent of the U.S. population. That number is expected to grow to more than 50 percent by 2050. And yet, according to the PRSA Foundation, fewer than 10 percent of PR pros identify as African American or Hispanic. And those numbers don’t capture the lack of diversity in the leadership ranks of the PR industry. Additionally, they leave out other types of diversity related to sexual orientation or disability.