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.

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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)..

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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

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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

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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,

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“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

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Social media CSR campaigns tend to be short term

engagements. In order to go viral, they must be

emotive and

sharable.

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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.

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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.

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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).

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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).

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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.

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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.

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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.