Changes to Consumer Activated Campaigns in Events

What is a Consumer Activated Campaign? 

Consumer activated campaigns are partnerships with a company where the donation from the company is not strictly from corporate dollars but requires the activation of customers. Examples of Consumer activated campaigns are: 

• Cause Marketing: When a company tells its customers that if they purchase a good or service, a portion of the proceeds will be donated to ACS. 
• Point of Sale/Round-Up: A company’s customers are asked to donate money at the time of sale (at register or online checkout). 

These campaigns are the most highly regulated partnerships for both ACS and the company, with legal standards set by the Better Business Bureau (BBB), Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and several state guidelines.  The changes help protect both ACS and partnering companies.  

Volunteer Talking Points Guide 

• As our events have grown and rules have evolved, we’re standardizing how we work with businesses and fundraisers to protect our events, our volunteers, and the American Cancer Society—while still supporting great fundraising. 
• This change isn’t about stopping fundraising—it’s about making sure we can keep doing it at scale, safely, and sustainably. 

What is changing? 

Going forward: 

• We can no longer promote fundraisers for a company that require action from their customers, such as:
  • “$1 of every purchase supports Relay For Life of Gotham City.”
  • “10% of every taco sold on May 5 supports Making Strides at Wayne Memorial Park.”
  • “At checkout, would you like to add $10 to support the American Cancer Society Bike Across Metropolis?”
  • “Round up your purchase today to support the American Cancer Society Golf Classic of Star City.”
• We can still celebrate and thank teams and businesses for their impact after an activity happens. 

This mainly affects what can be promoted through ACS-controlled channels, including: 

• Event emails (sent through EMC) 
• Event websites 
• Event social media pages (for example, Facebook and Instagram pages tied to the event) 

Why this matters: When we promote a fundraiser through ACS-controlled channels, regulators may view ACS as responsible for how it’s run. 

Sharing general awareness is different—but promotion can create compliance and legal responsibility for ACS. 

FAQs 

What are considered “ACS controlled channels”? 

• American Cancer Society (ACS)-controlled channels include event websites (Relay For Life, Making Strides Against Breast Cancer, Determination, Men Wear Pink, etc.), emails sent through EMC, and official Facebook and Instagram pages for the event.
• Facebook groups are not ACS-controlled channels. Teams and individual fundraisers are welcome to share team fundraisers directly in groups rather than routing requests through event leadership. 

I have a restaurant interested in holding a restaurant night, what do I need to do? 

• ACS events cannot officially partner with restaurants to host, advertise, or promote restaurant fundraising nights or similar give-back activities.

  • Here are some speaking points you can use:

    • “We want to make sure we’re being fair and consistent with all of our partners. Business promotion through ACS channels is something we reserve for approved sponsorship opportunities.”

    • “Even though the intent is generous, asking our supporters to purchase from a specific business is considered promotional advertising, and that is not something we can do for this type of fundraiser.”

  • Instead, you can offer other ways for the restaurant to support ACS, such as:

    • Starting a fundraising team and fundraising independently
    • Making a direct donation
    • Becoming an event sponsor
    • Encouraging employees to register, fundraise, or volunteer
    • Donating an approved in-kind item or experience, if appropriate

A business has done give-back nights with us before without a contract. How do I approach them now that one is required? 

1. Start by acknowledging the past relationship

   • “First, thank you so much for all the ways you’ve supported ACS in the past. We really appreciate the partnership and the generosity behind these give-back nights.”

2. Explain that ACS can no longer promote, support, offer signage/flyers, etc.
   • “At this level of fundraising, we are no longer able to provide this level of support without opening ourselves up to taxation. Going forward, ACS events are no longer able to promote restaurant give-back nights through our emails, social media, flyers, websites, or event channels”
3. Redirect to other ways to partner

   • “We would still love to have you involved. Other options would be to make a direct donation, become an event sponsor, start a fundraising team, or encourage your employees to participate.”

   • “If visibility is important to the restaurant, sponsorship is the best path because it gives us a formal agreement and approved recognition benefits.”

   • “You’re absolutely welcome to support the mission independently. We just can’t have ACS promote the sales activity or position it as an official ACS give-back night.”

   • “We value the relationship and would love to shift this into a structure that works better for everyone.”

4. If necessary, explain the legal/compliance issue

   • “The issue is that a percentage-of-sales promotion is not just a donation — it is a public sales promotion connected to a charity. That creates requirements we need to handle through the right process.”

   • “Our brand, our supporter audience, and our event channels have significant value. Because of that, we have to be thoughtful about when ACS is used to promote a company’s products or services.”

5. If they ask, ‘But we’ve always done this before.’ – here are some speaking points.

   • “You’re right, and we’re very grateful for that past support. ACS has updated its guidance, so even though this may have been allowed or handled informally before, we can’t continue it the same way moving forward.”

   • “I completely understand why this feels like a shift. This is one of those areas where we’ve learned we need to tighten up our process and be more consistent nationally.”

I have food trucks at my event (event day is ACS-owned). Do I need a contract? Is anything changing? 

• Because the event day is ACS-owned, the key question is whether the food truck’s support is tied to sales or promotion:
  • BEST OPTION: If the food truck donates after the event and there’s no prior agreement (not tied to sales/promotion): no contract is required.
  • If the food truck gives a % of sales and promotes ACS (on-site, single-day event): use the Onsite Commercial Co-Venture Agreement (coming soon).

What counts as “promotion” versus just sharing information? 

• A good rule of thumb: if you’re encouraging people to go buy something, register, or participate in a specific business-led offer (especially percentage-of-sales/give-back), that’s promotion. Promotion through ACS-controlled channels (event emails in EMC, event website, official event social pages) is limited to fundraisers that are legal, pose no threat to American Cancer Society and are good representations of the American Cancer Society brand. Post-event recognition is different.
• You can always encourage a team or fundraiser to promote any fundraisers through their own personal networks/resources.

Can I share a team’s give-back night in our event Facebook group? 

• ELT or staff should not post fundraisers on behalf of the event or ACS within these groups. Individuals and teams are allowed to share team fundraisers (tag ACS/ACS events) in Facebook groups from their personal accounts, as these are not ACS-controlled channels. 

Can we still thank a business publicly if we couldn’t promote the fundraiser beforehand? 

• Yes. Even when we can’t promote an activity through ACS-controlled channels, we can still celebrate and thank teams and businesses after an activity happens (impact, totals, shout-outs).  But be careful not to give these lower-dollar fundraisers more promotion that you give to high-paying sponsors.

If a company would like to set up a formal agreement, who do I contact to set this up—and what information should I share? 

• Contact your ACS staff partner early. This process may or may not be allowed & could take 2-3 months.
• To speed things up, share: 
  • Business name and main contact 
  • Event name/date(s) and whether it’s on-site (single day) or a single-location promotion, along with the duration of the campaign. 
  • What the offer is (for example, % of sales) and how the donation will be calculated 
  • Whether the business will promote ACS/the event as part of the offer 
  • How you’d like it promoted (EMC email, event website, official event social pages)