John Grant: Author of the Green Marketing Manifesto & Co-Opportunity

Corporate Social Responsibility

One of the world’s worst brands to represent one of its better ideas?

What companies expect CSR to do?

• Engage employees & recruits• Build the corporate brand• Demonstrate values• Galvanize efforts• Go beyond business as usual• Drive innovation• Satisfy cynics and critics

(& hopefully also reduce their impact :)

The kind of brand that fits these tasks

Whereas C.S.R. is mostly seen as a…

And the name probably doesn’t help

Corporate – Social - Responsibility

No wonder some companies have created their own brands instead

And some collective efforts too…

The problem with applying consumer branding to a public issue is it can come across as spin? (aka

greenwash)

Globescan

Branding well at the public level means (beyond information and image) framing within a bigger

narrative

“Don’t talk about taxingthe rich,talk about investing in America”

Others have done this quite well

Starting points for reframing CSR

THE OPEN CORPORATION

PLANET SAFE

THE LONG VIEW

THE EARTH RACE

INDUSTRIAL ELEGANCE