corporatesocialresponsibilitystrategysocialmedia-csrdb-130811171414-phpapp02

7/22/2019 corporatesocialresponsibilitystrategysocialmedia-csrdb-130811171414-phpapp02

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Corporate Social Responsibility Strategy &

Social MediaOverview

Daniel Bradley

Syracuse University

Communications Management Masters Program

PRL 600Social Media

August 12, 2013

For Educational Use Only


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Corporate Social Responsibility

Strategy & Social Media

Background

Research Questions

Literature Review

Industry Thought Leader Interviews

Benefits of Social Media for CSR

Best Practices

Challenges

Conclusions

Whats Next

CSR Strategy & Social MediaEducational Use Only

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Background

What is Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)?

CSR is a process with the aim to embrace

responsibility for the company's actions and

encourage a positive impact through its activities onthe environment, consumers, employees,

communities, stakeholders, and all other members

of the public sphere who may also be considered

stakeholders.

*Source: Wikipedia The Free Encyclopedia (2013)


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BackgroundSource: Cone Communications LLC (2013), www.conecomm.com

CSRReturn

Social Impact

Engagement and

Communications

SustainableBusiness

Practices


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http://www.conecomm.com/http://www.conecomm.com/


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Background

Social media is transforming the face of CSR, as

citizens worldwide have unprecedented access

to informationvia websites, blogs and apps

about corporate behavior.*

*2013 Cone Communications/Echo GLOBAL CSR STUDY


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Background

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)Flourishing Business Function

Social MediaStrategic Communication Vehicle for CSR


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Research Questions

What are the best practices for integrating

Social Media into CSR Strategy?

What communications theories are applicable

for CSR Strategy and Social Media?


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Literature Review

Examination of research articles on Social Media

and Traditional Channels

Analysis of Communications Theories

Social Construction Theory (Frederick, 2008)

Competitive Context Theory (Porter & Kramer, 2006)

Community Relations Theory (Heath & Ni, 2010)

Stakeholder Engagement Theory (Heath & Ni, 2009)


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Industry Thought Leader Interviews

Kate King, Digital Marketing Manager,

Timberland, blog.timberland.com

Linda Qian, CSR Communications Manager,

Intel Corporation, @Intelinvolved

Jonathan Yohannan, Executive Vice President,

Cone Communications, @jyohannan


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Social Media is a powerful communication

vehicle that can amplify CSR messages and

label a company as a good corporate citizen.


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Transparent Nature of Society

It is expected that companies will do good and

communicate the good that they do.


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Tool for listening, monitoring, and responding

to conversations about your CSR efforts and

relevant trends in the field.


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Stakeholder Engagement and Dialogue

Thought Leaders, Social Influencers, Employees,

Consumers, Local Communities, and Regulators


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Social Media is a natural fit for CSR.

Social Media is a world-wide phenomenon for

organizations to embrace.

If a company does not use Social Media for CSR,

stakeholders will assume nothing is being done.


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Best Practices

Develop a systematic and comprehensive

strategy with a solid foundation.

Define interests, passions, and audiences.

Construct the CSR identity of the brand.

Know the goals and purposes for CSR advocacy.


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Best Practices

Create a solid infrastructure and agenda.

Dont leave it to one area; involve all key players.

Clarify roles; form a Center of Excellence.

Invest in resources and personnel.

Establish user guidelines and train.

Empower CSR leaders.


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Best Practices

Engage with Important Stakeholders.

Focus on stakeholders who have credibility,

influence, expertise, or relevance with core

business issues.


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Best Practices


Communicate with CSR Thought Leaders and

Social Influencers to ensure a seat at CSR Table.


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Best Practices


Conduct regular employee engagement.

Create a social media channel for employees.

Display Employee CSR Engagement (volunteerism and

real impact stories) on social media platforms.


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Best Practices


Involve the companys local communities.

Establish neighborhood connections.


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Best Practices


Respond to positive and negative conversations.


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Best Practices

Content is King.

Content should align with the brands mission and

provide a competitive advantage.

Messages must be clear, honest, informative, and

compelling.


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Best Practices

Storytelling

Explain what the brand is doing for CSR.

Use in-depth stories to highlight impact of CSR.

Humanize the content.

Describe the brands social identity.


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Best Practices

Report Outcomes & Results of CSR Programs

Corporate Responsibility Report

Executive Summary

Use appropriate social media platforms.

Demonstrate impact of CSR.


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Best Practices

Selection of Social Media Platforms

Look at strategy and where audiences are found.

Each platform has strengths and limitations.

Incorporate multiple channels if relevant.


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Best Practices


Twitter

Excellent channel for engaging with Thought Leaders

and Social Influencers

Discovery and networking tool

Real-time communications


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Best Practices


Blogs

Good for engaging with Thought Leaders and

stakeholders who share an interest in CSR topics

Excellent storytelling vehicle

Ability to share long-form content


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Best Practices

Two Examples of Excellent Blogs

Intel: CSR@Intel

Slogan: Exchanging ideas and enriching lives through

innovation in education, technology access and sustainablesolutions. *Source: Intel Corporation (2013)

Blog.intel.com/csr/

Timberland: the bootmakers blog

Slogan: Stories from the Timberland community about our

brand, our business, our products and our passions. Making

Our Difference: TBL CSR. *Source: Timberland LLC (2013)

Blog.timberland.com/category/corporate-social-responsibility/


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Best Practices


Facebook

Highlights a brands CSR efforts to large audiences.

Good way to engage consumers

Excellent channel for using pictures to tell a story


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Best Practices

Define success and measure outcomes.

Measurement programs should include

quantitative and qualitative metrics.


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Challenges

Social Media is inherently risky.

Lack of Control

Message Interpretation Issues

Inability to formulate how data affects society


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Challenges

Lack of adequate strategies or infrastructure

The building blocks are not defined.

Content is not aligned with business strategy.

Using Social Media for demonstration only.


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Challenges

The more a company talks about CSR, the

greater chance for negative feedback,

criticism, and scrutiny.


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Conclusions

Research Question #1

Best practices for integrating Social Media intoCSR Strategy:

Develop a comprehensive strategy.

Create a solid infrastructure. Monitor and listen to CSR feedback.

Align content with business goals.

Engage with important stakeholders.

Select social media platforms appropriately. Tell your brands CSR story explicitly & consistently.

Measure outcomes for success.


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Conclusions

Research Question #2

These communications theories are valuablefor CSR Strategy & Social Media.

Social Construction Theory

Competitive Context Theory

Community Relations Theory

Stakeholder Engagement Theory


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Whats Next? (The Trends)

Importance of Social Media in CSR Strategy

Storytelling and Discussion over Statistics

CSR Complexity

Stakeholder Engagement

Niceness

Performance


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Whats Next (The Future)

The concept of CSR will continue to evolve.

Trust and Innovation will be paramount.

Social media will broaden CSR opportunities.

Engagement will drive CSR reputation as a

good corporate citizen.


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Whats Next (The Future)

Social media is increasingly supplementing / replacing more

traditional means of communications (press releases, pitch

letters, etc.) and I think thats going to continue regardless of

whether the story is product-related or CSR-focused. Social

presents so many great opportunities that we havent had intraditional communications to share our stories and engage

on a deeper level with consumers and thats exciting.*

*Source: Kate King, Digital Marketing Manager, Timberland, Personal Communication (2013)


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CSR Strategy & Social Media

Questions

Email: [email protected]

Twitter: @dmbrad93

CSR St t & S i l M di 39
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]

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