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Corporate Social Responsibility Strategy &
Social MediaOverview
Daniel Bradley
Syracuse University
Communications Management Masters Program
PRL 600Social Media
August 12, 2013
For Educational Use Only
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Corporate Social Responsibility
Strategy & Social Media
Background
Research Questions
Literature Review
Industry Thought Leader Interviews
Benefits of Social Media for CSR
Best Practices
Challenges
Conclusions
Whats Next
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Background
What is Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)?
CSR is a process with the aim to embrace
responsibility for the company's actions and
encourage a positive impact through its activities onthe environment, consumers, employees,
communities, stakeholders, and all other members
of the public sphere who may also be considered
stakeholders.
*Source: Wikipedia The Free Encyclopedia (2013)
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BackgroundSource: Cone Communications LLC (2013), www.conecomm.com
CSRReturn
Social Impact
Engagement and
Communications
SustainableBusiness
Practices
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http://www.conecomm.com/http://www.conecomm.com/7/22/2019 corporatesocialresponsibilitystrategysocialmedia-csrdb-130811171414-phpapp02
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Background
Social media is transforming the face of CSR, as
citizens worldwide have unprecedented access
to informationvia websites, blogs and apps
about corporate behavior.*
*2013 Cone Communications/Echo GLOBAL CSR STUDY
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Background
Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)Flourishing Business Function
Social MediaStrategic Communication Vehicle for CSR
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Research Questions
What are the best practices for integrating
Social Media into CSR Strategy?
What communications theories are applicable
for CSR Strategy and Social Media?
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Literature Review
Examination of research articles on Social Media
and Traditional Channels
Analysis of Communications Theories
Social Construction Theory (Frederick, 2008)
Competitive Context Theory (Porter & Kramer, 2006)
Community Relations Theory (Heath & Ni, 2010)
Stakeholder Engagement Theory (Heath & Ni, 2009)
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Industry Thought Leader Interviews
Kate King, Digital Marketing Manager,
Timberland, blog.timberland.com
Linda Qian, CSR Communications Manager,
Intel Corporation, @Intelinvolved
Jonathan Yohannan, Executive Vice President,
Cone Communications, @jyohannan
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Benefits of Social Media for CSR
Social Media is a powerful communication
vehicle that can amplify CSR messages and
label a company as a good corporate citizen.
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Benefits of Social Media for CSR
Transparent Nature of Society
It is expected that companies will do good and
communicate the good that they do.
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Benefits of Social Media for CSR
Tool for listening, monitoring, and responding
to conversations about your CSR efforts and
relevant trends in the field.
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Benefits of Social Media for CSR
Stakeholder Engagement and Dialogue
Thought Leaders, Social Influencers, Employees,
Consumers, Local Communities, and Regulators
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Benefits of Social Media for CSR
Social Media is a natural fit for CSR.
Social Media is a world-wide phenomenon for
organizations to embrace.
If a company does not use Social Media for CSR,
stakeholders will assume nothing is being done.
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Best Practices
Develop a systematic and comprehensive
strategy with a solid foundation.
Define interests, passions, and audiences.
Construct the CSR identity of the brand.
Know the goals and purposes for CSR advocacy.
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Best Practices
Create a solid infrastructure and agenda.
Dont leave it to one area; involve all key players.
Clarify roles; form a Center of Excellence.
Invest in resources and personnel.
Establish user guidelines and train.
Empower CSR leaders.
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Best Practices
Engage with Important Stakeholders.
Focus on stakeholders who have credibility,
influence, expertise, or relevance with core
business issues.
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Best Practices
Engage with Important Stakeholders.
Communicate with CSR Thought Leaders and
Social Influencers to ensure a seat at CSR Table.
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Best Practices
Engage with Important Stakeholders.
Conduct regular employee engagement.
Create a social media channel for employees.
Display Employee CSR Engagement (volunteerism and
real impact stories) on social media platforms.
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Best Practices
Engage with Important Stakeholders.
Involve the companys local communities.
Establish neighborhood connections.
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Best Practices
Engage with Important Stakeholders.
Respond to positive and negative conversations.
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Best Practices
Content is King.
Content should align with the brands mission and
provide a competitive advantage.
Messages must be clear, honest, informative, and
compelling.
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Best Practices
Storytelling
Explain what the brand is doing for CSR.
Use in-depth stories to highlight impact of CSR.
Humanize the content.
Describe the brands social identity.
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Best Practices
Report Outcomes & Results of CSR Programs
Corporate Responsibility Report
Executive Summary
Use appropriate social media platforms.
Demonstrate impact of CSR.
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Best Practices
Selection of Social Media Platforms
Look at strategy and where audiences are found.
Each platform has strengths and limitations.
Incorporate multiple channels if relevant.
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Best Practices
Selection of Social Media Platforms
Excellent channel for engaging with Thought Leaders
and Social Influencers
Discovery and networking tool
Real-time communications
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Best Practices
Selection of Social Media Platforms
Blogs
Good for engaging with Thought Leaders and
stakeholders who share an interest in CSR topics
Excellent storytelling vehicle
Ability to share long-form content
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Best Practices
Two Examples of Excellent Blogs
Intel: CSR@Intel
Slogan: Exchanging ideas and enriching lives through
innovation in education, technology access and sustainablesolutions. *Source: Intel Corporation (2013)
Blog.intel.com/csr/
Timberland: the bootmakers blog
Slogan: Stories from the Timberland community about our
brand, our business, our products and our passions. Making
Our Difference: TBL CSR. *Source: Timberland LLC (2013)
Blog.timberland.com/category/corporate-social-responsibility/
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Best Practices
Selection of Social Media Platforms
Highlights a brands CSR efforts to large audiences.
Good way to engage consumers
Excellent channel for using pictures to tell a story
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Best Practices
Define success and measure outcomes.
Measurement programs should include
quantitative and qualitative metrics.
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Challenges
Social Media is inherently risky.
Lack of Control
Message Interpretation Issues
Inability to formulate how data affects society
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Challenges
Lack of adequate strategies or infrastructure
The building blocks are not defined.
Content is not aligned with business strategy.
Using Social Media for demonstration only.
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Challenges
The more a company talks about CSR, the
greater chance for negative feedback,
criticism, and scrutiny.
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Conclusions
Research Question #1
Best practices for integrating Social Media intoCSR Strategy:
Develop a comprehensive strategy.
Create a solid infrastructure. Monitor and listen to CSR feedback.
Align content with business goals.
Engage with important stakeholders.
Select social media platforms appropriately. Tell your brands CSR story explicitly & consistently.
Measure outcomes for success.
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Conclusions
Research Question #2
These communications theories are valuablefor CSR Strategy & Social Media.
Social Construction Theory
Competitive Context Theory
Community Relations Theory
Stakeholder Engagement Theory
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Whats Next? (The Trends)
Importance of Social Media in CSR Strategy
Storytelling and Discussion over Statistics
CSR Complexity
Stakeholder Engagement
Niceness
Performance
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Whats Next (The Future)
The concept of CSR will continue to evolve.
Trust and Innovation will be paramount.
Social media will broaden CSR opportunities.
Engagement will drive CSR reputation as a
good corporate citizen.
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Whats Next (The Future)
Social media is increasingly supplementing / replacing more
traditional means of communications (press releases, pitch
letters, etc.) and I think thats going to continue regardless of
whether the story is product-related or CSR-focused. Social
presents so many great opportunities that we havent had intraditional communications to share our stories and engage
on a deeper level with consumers and thats exciting.*
*Source: Kate King, Digital Marketing Manager, Timberland, Personal Communication (2013)
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CSR Strategy & Social Media
Questions
Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @dmbrad93
CSR St t & S i l M di 39
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