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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 m
edia h
as cha
nged th
e face
of CSR. Outlets such as Twitter, Facebook, Wordpress,
and Instagram provide a platform to voice one’s
dissatisfaction if a company is practicing business
IMAGE: FLICKR, MIKAEL ALTERMARK
unethically, unsustainably, or irresponsibly.
So what are the leverage points?
How can companies use social media to advance a company’s 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…
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.