August 21, 2024
Effective Goal Setting in…
Effective goal setting in marketing is essential to the success...
What do corporate social responsibility and marketing strategies have to do with each other? When we hear the term ‘corporate social responsibility’, we may think about environmental sustainability. But customer expectations are now such that sustainability has moved on from being the latest trend to an expected norm.
Environmentally conscious practices are rapidly becoming mandated by law in many countries. So, sustainability can no longer really be used as a major point of differentiation in marketing strategies. It’s becoming part of a wider movement. Not just about caring for the planet, but caring for the people who live on the planet!
Corporate Social Responsibility is a business approach that combines economic, social, and environmental concerns in a responsible and ethical manner. Such principles are a well-established feature of consumer-based marketing strategies and clearly attract ethically-minded customers.
High Street brands like Marks and Spencer and Lush are well known for their ethical principles. And this boosts their credibility with customers in many cases. But, increasingly, evidence of corporate social responsibility is being expected in the B2B world as well. People buy from people. And most of us want to work with people who care about the things that really matter, beyond financial gain.
If you’re looking for proof that you need to align your corporate social responsibility and marketing strategies, take a look at Sunbelt Rentals. The plant hire company has long been committed to socially responsible causes including a veterans programme and a homelessness project.
Whilst it’s nice that they care, some may question the relevance of these projects. Couldn’t they just make a donation and focus their energies on the business?
Maybe. But there’s no doubt that the company’s ethos is making a huge impact in its sector. Sunbelt’s commitment to social causes ultimately helped it win the Hire Company of the Year Award in 2024. It’s the most prestigious award for its industry in the UK. And that’s not going to go unnoticed by the company’s competitors and customers.
CSR is a huge selling point in the commercial world. Yet research indicates that a significant 72% of B2B buyers are more likely to purchase from companies that perform well on socio-political issues they deem important. So if you’re yet to evaluate your CSR and marketing strategies, now is the time to take action.
Linking corporate social responsibility and marketing strategies together will help your business:
Aligning corporate social responsibility and marketing strategies can open up more questions than it answers. Once you start looking more into the human side of things, it impacts your business’s ethos and team dynamics.
Should staff have the right to work from home? What about flexible working hours? How do I support social causes and remain politically neutral?
In the end, there are no absolutes in this. Values vary from business to business and person to person. So it’s a case of discovering what works best in your unique situation. But the key areas to bear in mind are broadly: ethical working practices, social causes and environmental causes.
One thing you should avoid at all costs when creating a CSR policy is greenwashing. You risk ruining trust with your audience if you make false claims just to make your business look good. So, here’s how to create meaningful policies:
If you’re wondering what specific policies you should include when incorporating corporate social responsibility into your marketing strategy, consider the following:
Corporate social responsibility is about more than just doing good. It demonstrates that you are a business with heart and reassures customers and prospects that you can be trusted. In turn, this will strengthen customer loyalty and boost conversions. So the best thing you can do is to make people aware of this by bringing your corporate social responsibility and marketing strategies together.