Pink Ribbons of Breast Cancer Awareness Rival Pumpkins as Symbol of October

National Breast Cancer Awareness Month is October. Its pink ribbon has come to be as recognizable as the Halloween pumpkin, and, after 25 years of promotion, almost as iconic.

A favorite of cause marketers, breast cancer awareness and fundraising, symbolized by the ubiquitous pink ribbon, dominates October almost as much as pumpkins and witches. It's a bit ironic, in fact, with the scary color orange and the feminine pink facing off all across the country.

A recent USA Today/Gallup Poll reveals that we have somewhat mixed emotions about the annual breast cancer promotion.

Most of us do support the cause since some 80% of us know someone with breast cancer. Almost all of us, 96%, think that Beast Cancer Awareness Month has made everyone aware of the disease, and most of us, 84%, do contribute. We mainly do that through shopping for the cause (95% of people ages 18 to 29) by buying products that affiliate themselves with a cancer charity.

The "shadow" in the support, as revealed by the survey, is that one in three adults, and more than half of women under 50, said that they thought the laser like focus on breast cancer during October overshadows other good causes.

And it does seem as though other "months" devoted to a particular cause do not dominate their calendar slots as thoroughly as does breast cancer during the month of October.

Breast cancer awareness and cure is especially appealing to retailers who often run month-long promotional tie-ins.

An example is Safeway. A national grocery chain, Safeway has nearly 1700 stores across the US and uses them for breast cancer fundraising.

The stores offer checkout donations, sell special pink reusable bags of which $1 of the price goes to breast cancer organizations, and has worked out deals with some suppliers that donate $5 for every $30 spent on products that are marked with pink ribbon tags. The money raised will go to a variety of organizations engaged in breast cancer research.

In addition, Safeway employees chip in by decorating their stores, wearing special attire, and volunteering time to raise money "for the cure."

Wisconsin-based national chain Kohl's is another strong supporter of breast cancer causes. The Kohl's Cares merchandise program sells specially marked items throughout its stores and at its website with the full profit going to breast cancer organizations.

This year, Kohl's commissioned artists to create 16 six-foot-tall ribbon sculptures, depicting the artists' personal connections to breast cancer. The ribbons will be exhibited throughout the month of October, and are being auctioned on eBay through Tuesday, October 4. Proceeds will be donated to the Southeast Wisconsin Affiliate of Susan G. Komen for the Cure. Besides Komen, Kohl's supports the American Cancer Society.

The roster of cause-related marketing promotions around breast cancer during October would fill a book. All of us will have multiple opportunities to support the cause, and most of us will do it. October's pink ribbons have become as well known as the Jack-o-Lanterns twinkling on our doorsteps. The question is, will they wear as well over time as the pumpkins?

Related: