Joining Forces: Corporate Social Responsibility and Social Media

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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.

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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 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

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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

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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.