corporate societal marketing: a promising form of corporate social responsibility paul n. bloom...
TRANSCRIPT
Corporate Societal Marketing: A Promising Form of Corporate Social Responsibility
Paul N. BloomKenan-Flagler Business SchoolUniversity of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
Basic Argument
Among the many social responsibility initiatives a company can pursue, corporate societal marketing programs deserve close attention, as they can differentiate your brand in the eyes of (skeptical) consumers and enhance your bottom line, while also improving social welfare.
Agenda
Review trends in “corporate societal marketing”
Discuss why it can work Cover the implications for marketers Highlight the biggest implementation
challenges
Corporate Societal Marketing Marketing initiatives that seek to differentiate a
brand/company through social involvement Cause-related marketing Corporate social marketing Strategic philanthropy and sponsorship Community relations projects Sustainable development and environmental (green)
programs Economic development programs Quality/safety improvement programs Self-regulation initiatives (e.g., ethics codes) Consciousness raising
Corporate Societal Marketing Marketing initiatives that seek to differentiate a
brand/company through social involvement Cause-related marketing Corporate social marketing Strategic philanthropy and sponsorship Community relations projects Sustainable development and environmental (green)
programs Economic development programs Quality/safety improvement programs Self-regulation initiatives (e.g., ethics codes) Consciousness raising
Corporate Societal Marketing Marketing initiatives that seek to differentiate a
brand/company through social involvement Cause-related marketing Corporate social marketing Strategic philanthropy and sponsorship Community relations projects Sustainable development and environmental (green)
programs Economic development programs Quality/safety improvement programs Self-regulation initiatives (e.g., ethics codes) Consciousness raising
Corporate Societal Marketing Marketing initiatives that seek to differentiate a
brand/company through social involvement Cause-related marketing Corporate social marketing Strategic philanthropy and sponsorship Community relations projects Sustainable development and environmental (green)
programs Economic development programs Quality/safety improvement programs Self-regulation initiatives (e.g., ethics codes) Consciousness raising
Corporate Societal Marketing Marketing initiatives that seek to differentiate a
brand/company through social involvement Cause-related marketing Corporate social marketing Strategic philanthropy and sponsorship Community relations projects Sustainable development and environmental
(green) programs Economic development programs Quality/safety improvement programs Self-regulation initiatives (e.g., ethics codes) Consciousness raising
Corporate Societal Marketing Marketing initiatives that seek to differentiate a
brand/company through social involvement Cause-related marketing Corporate social marketing Strategic philanthropy and sponsorship Community relations projects Sustainable development and environmental (green)
programs Economic development programs Quality/safety improvement programs Self-regulation initiatives (e.g., ethics codes) Consciousness raising
Corporate Societal Marketing Marketing initiatives that seek to differentiate a
brand/company through social involvement Cause-related marketing Corporate social marketing Strategic philanthropy and sponsorship Community relations projects Sustainable development and environmental (green)
programs Economic development programs Quality/safety improvement programs Self-regulation initiatives (e.g., ethics codes) Consciousness raising
Corporate Societal Marketing Marketing initiatives that seek to differentiate a
brand/company through social involvement Cause-related marketing Corporate social marketing Strategic philanthropy and sponsorship Community relations projects Sustainable development and environmental (green)
programs Economic development programs Quality/safety improvement programs Self-regulation initiatives (e.g., ethics codes) Consciousness raising
Statement of Ethics
Corporate Societal Marketing Marketing initiatives that seek to differentiate a
brand/company through social involvement Cause-related marketing Corporate social marketing Strategic philanthropy and sponsorship Community relations projects Sustainable development and environmental (green)
programs Economic development programs Quality/safety improvement programs Self-regulation initiatives (e.g., ethics codes) Consciousness raising
Outlook for CSM
Promises to become more prevalentHard to differentiate brands through better
product features, better service, cleanliness, or more clever and visible advertising.
Therefore need to turn to: price (i.e., Wal-Mart) or pulling on heart strings to create affinity and limit
skepticism CSM may do this better than CRM (and loyalty
programs) or sports sponsorships Examples: Newman’s Own, Whole Foods,
Starbuck’s
What CSM Can Do
Can improve social welfareThrough the program itselfThrough helping nonprofits be more effective
Can improve corporate social reputation Can improve brand image and equity Can improve employee loyalty and service Can improve brand sales and profits
Corporate
Social
Initiatives
Societal
Welfare
Corporate
Marketing
Initiatives
Nonprofit.
Social
Initiatives
Corporate
Social
Reputation
Brand
Image and
Equity
Brand
Sales
Employee
Loyalty and
Service
Corporate
Profits
How CSM Does What It Does
All marketing initiatives are designed to create more favorable beliefs, attitudes, intentions, and behaviors toward brands
Compared to other actions, adding social content to an initiative may create stronger changes in beliefs, etc. by getting consumers to weight “style of marketing” more positively and strongly in evaluating a brand than other functional and image attributes
It may do this whether the cause-brand fit is strong or weak
Exposure to Marketing Initiative
Judgments/Feelings: Beliefs/Weights Given to Initiative & Other Attributes
Brand Attitude
Brand Purchase Intention
Brand Purchase Behavior
Degree of Fit of Initiative with Brand
Amount of Social Content of Initiative
More Specifically… Consumers have “persuasion knowledge”
They are always trying to figure out what marketers are up to
High levels of skepticism Reward what they like (Attitude toward Ad a strong predictor
of Attitude toward the Brand)
Hence, “style of marketing” becomes an important attribute in evaluating a brand
When it’s social it may get weighted more heavily and positively than when it’s more conventional.
Also, halo effects on other functional and image attributes When it’s a good fit, it may be better or worse, depending on
consumer feelings about sincerity
Pilot Study Demonstrating Effect
Asked consumers to rank eight different “profiles” of a beer brand, where they were varied systematically based on container type, price, calories, protein, and type of sponsorship (2 levels of each).
Can infer how much they weight these attributes based on the rankings
Some of the participants ranked a brand that had a social sponsorship as an option and others had a sports sponsorship as an option
12 ounce Bottle $5 per 6 pack
150 calories per servingFortified with 1.5 grams of Protein per serving
Sponsor of the Budweiser Designated Driver ProgramRANK IS: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 (no ties
please)
Conjoint ResultsBudweiser part-worths
-0.15
-0.1
-0.05
0
0.05
0.1
0.15
HF-S LF-S HF-C LF-C
Type of Sponsorship
Mea
n
“Designated Driver” and “Help Kids Read” > NASCAR and ABC Family Movie
A high fit social cause will lift the ranking of a profileequivalently to a 50 cent price cut per 6 pack.
Implications for Managers
Look for social causes as a way to differentiate yourself
Avoid really low fit social causes, but lower fit may work better if it is distinctive and credible
In addition to differentiability, pay attention to how substantial the market is that cares about the cause May require a more subtle approach if not substantial Examples in the Green Marketing context
Green Marketing Strategy Matrix
Low Differentiability on Greenness
High Differentiability on Greenness
Low Substantiality of Green Market Segments
LEAN GREEN SHADED GREEN
High Substantiality of Green Market Segments
DEFENSIVE GREEN
EXTREME GREEN
Implementation Challenges
Making your efforts be perceived as credible and distinctive Avoid being seen as a “tool” of associations and big companies
(although working with their social programs is fine) Strike out on your own with alliances with community groups
Need a portfolio of causes Since some causes may be risky (e.g., responsible drinking,
tobacco control), look for less risky other causes (e.g., education, the elderly, auto safety)
Sustaining the effort and continuing to inform consumers about what you are doing Needs attention similar to what is given to all aspects of
Integrated Marketing Communications Need internal marketing to get all employees cooperating