SO much of this post resonates with me – you are right on Geoff. But, I believe, it’s not that marketing folks don’t know where to begin, its that they somehow have put this work in a different category and so they don’t apply the same practices to cause-marketing as they do other marketing. Not because they don’t know the value of being associated with a good cause, but because it doesn’t feel right to tell someone else’s story and that’s often what they do – ONLY tell the story of the cause (which incidentally doesn’t result in more sales). In order for that to change I think companies need to begin to own their own story around their giving (the authenticity you talk about) AND acknowledge the immense value that collective impact has.  You don’t have to be a non-profit make a difference and you don’t have to be humble about doing good if you are corporate America – you just have to OWN it, treat partners with respect and communicate!