Joining Forces: Corporate Social Responsibility and Social Media
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Transcript of Joining Forces: Corporate Social Responsibility and Social Media
&
BY ISOBEL CHIANG-OLIVER
Customers, clients, and consumers are more
educated and informed than ever before. We as
consumers have gained a
collective consciousness; we are acutely aware of our place
within the social ecosystem.
IMAGE: FLICKR, JAMES CRIDLAND
A consequence of this collective consciousness is that consumers now impose a sense of duty onto the corporations they buy from, forcing them to add
value to the community at large— in order to stay competitive, profit can no longer be the only driver. This way of doing business is known as
Corporate Social Responsibility, and refers to how companies conduct their business practices to create social good (Rowley 2009)..
IMAGE: FLICKR, WORLD BANK PHOTO COLLECTION
Social
med
ia h
as ch
ange
d th
e
face
and Instagram provide a platform to voice one’s
dissatisfaction if a company is practicing business
IMAGE: FLICKR, MIKAEL ALTERMARK
unethically, unsustainably, or irresponsibly.
of CSR. O
utlets
such as Twitte
r, Facebook, W
ordpress,
So what are the
leverage points?
How can companies use social media to
advance their CSR?
Social media can be used as a platform for companies to raise awareness and publicity about the positive work
they are doing in the community. Social media conversations therefore act as free advertisements which paint a
company in an ethical, socially responsible, and
sustainable light.
for example…
SCREENSHOT TAKEN FROM TWITTER
Reactions to CSR campaigns can
create PR buzz within the
community
ALL IMAGES: FLICKR, CLEFTCLIP
the threshold for impact is maximized
CSR campaigns that are conducted on social media platforms
hold high potential for virality.
Once a campaign goes viral,
IMAGE: WIKIMEDIA COMMONS, DAVIDE RESTIVO
IMAGE: FLICKR, MARILYN ROXIE
IMAGE: FLICKR, BO NIELSONIMAGE: FLICKR, KIT COWAN
“According to a recent study of Fortune 200 company executives, 72 percent said they
have used social media to communicate with
consumers about their CSR efforts.”
-Naomi Mandelstein,
Huffington Post
IMAGE: FLICKR, NILS GEYLEN
Social media CSR campaigns tend to be short term
engagements. In order to go viral, they must be
emotive and
sharable.
IMAGE: FLICKR, MKHMARKETING
In the end, CSR campaigns spur business
profits, garner public relations buzz and
create value for the social whole. Therefore,
adopting CSR into one’s corporate mandate
has a very high return on investment.
IMAGE: FLICKR, SIMON CUNNINGHAM
So what are some examples of successful
social media CSR campaigns?
A total of
109,451,719 tweets, texts, Facebook shares,
and calls were made during this year’s day-long initiative (That,
2014).
Bell’s “Let’s Talk” campaign is a CSR initiative
that raises awareness about mental health.
IMAGE: FLICKR, MARC WITHIEU
The campaign’s success is largely due to its integrative use of social media
. Bell went directly to where
modern millennials talk and
converse— Twitter and Facebook— and ignited a
conversation that de-stigmatized mental illness.
Tweets, texts, and
posts were shared by everyday Canadians
and public figures.
For example…
ALL SCREENSHOTS VIA TWITTER
In their #BRLove4All campaign, Banana Republic supported equal marriage
rights by encouraging
consumers to post a photo of themselves and their
significant other onto social media outlets like Twitter,
Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest (Prynn 2013).
IMAGE: FLICKR, SOCIALISTALTERNATIVE
ANOTHER EXAMPLE
Last December, Westjet airlines made Christmas wishes come true when they delivered surprise gifts to unwitting
passengers, creating a YouTube viral sensation within days (Trifunov, 2013).
IMAGE: FLICKR, DOUG
Viewed by over 30 million people within
one week, Westjet’s corporate benevolence
was advertised to millions of viewers
(Trifunov, 2013). The video is a perfect
example of how social
media is integral to the success of any CSR
campaign.
IMAGE: FLICKR, JASON HOWIE
The current state of business shows how doing good is no
longer good enough; companies cannot be reactive
— they must be proactive with their CSR initiatives in
order to add true value to society. As recent history has
shown, there is no better place
to start than by utilizing social media.
IMAGE: FLICKR, AFRICAN RENEWAL
References Mandelstein, Naomi. (2013). 5 Tips for Corporate Social (Media) Responsibility Communications. Huffington Post. Web.
Prynn, Hesta. (2013). Gay Friendly Brands X Miguel Jams. Paper Mag. Web.
Rowley, Melissa. (2009). Why Social Media Is Vital to Corporate Social Responsibility. Mashable. Web.
That, Corinne. (2014). Bell's 'Let's Talk' day raises nearly $5.5M for mental health initiatives. CTV News. Web.
Trifunov, David. (2013). WestJet airline surprises passengers with Christmas gifts (VIDEO). Global Post. Web.