When deciding where to spend their money, consumers are more loyal to companies which get involved in good causes, according to new research. Consumers want to buy goods linked with a cause, says The Game Plan, a study carried out by Research International for Business in the Community in Britain.

But in spite of it influencing shoppers' buying habits and their perception of a business, so-called "cause related marketing" is under-used, it warns.

The report backs up previous research showing that 86 per cent of consumers agreed that when price and quality were equal they were more likely to buy a product, switch brands or change shops if the product were associated with a charity or a cause.

And 70 per cent of marketing directors, 67 per cent of community affairs directors and 56 per cent of chief executives believe cause related marketing will increase in importance over the next two to three years.

Among the key findings of the study and attitudes to cause related marketing were:

consumers see it as a positive approach;

consumers see it as an easy way for them to support charities or causes;

despite positive consumer response, awareness is limited because of a lack of effective communication on most programmes;

consumers want business and causes to make greater efforts to raise awareness about programmes;

programmes that show a clear affinity and partnership between the business and the cause get the most positive response;

to be most effective, programmes should engage the consumer on an emotional level.