According to Deloitte’s Millennial Survey 2013, Millennials are eager to make a difference. They believe the success of a business should be measured by more than financial performance, by a focus on improving society. The study says 63% of Millennials donate to charities. Other research shows that:

• 1 in 3 will boycott or support businesses based on the causes they care about
• 4 in 5 said they’d be more likely to purchase from a company that supports a cause they care about
• 3 in 4 would think more highly of a company that supports a social cause

It is no wonder why Warby Parker and Tom’s Shoes are among Millennials’ favorite brands. With that, companies are going even further to appeal to this cohort. As we know from our research on Millennials and cause marketing, Millennials are more willing to donate their time to a cause rather than their money or goods. Their social nature prompts them to find ways to actually participate in their cause. We know that Millennials want to co-create and contribute to products and services.

MADI Apparel is one example of a company that clearly shows Millennials’ support for doing good and co-creating with businesses. MADI Apparel stands for Make a Difference Intimate Apparel and imitates the successful one-for-one giving model pioneered by Tom’s Shoes. MADI pledges to donate a pair of new underwear to women in need in domestic violence shelters and homeless shelters for every pair purchased. However, Millennials don’t want to just buy a pair of underwear knowing that a pair will be given to a woman in need. Instead, they want to participate in making it happen!  Millennials are playing a major role in the success of start-ups by contributing to crowd source fundraising sites. MADI Apparel utilized Indiegogo, just one of the many crowd sourcing platforms, to fund their first production run of underwear.

When Millennials know they can play a part in a companies success and give back, it is a home run. Millennials take pride in knowing they were apart of the success of companies, non-profits and hell, even discovering the next hot trend or band. Through other crowd sourcing platforms such as The Crowdfund Mafia, StartUp America, Naturfunding and The Grommet, Millennials can do just that. These are all designed specifically for funding charitable causes and thousands of Millennial start-ups are using them to gain support from Gen Y.

So, what does that mean for your business? Engage Millennials, allow them to co-create with your business and stand for more than your bottom line. Whether you are a start-up or a 100-year old company, find a way for this cohort to truly participate and if possible, allow it to be cause-worthy.

Pam Besheer contributed to this post. 

Photo Credit: Flickr via Becca Neidle & @CrowdfundMAFIA