Wanted to update everyone on some interesting research on advocacy we recently did on how social media can be employed to further corporate responsibility. We (KRC Research and the Social Impact team at Weber Shandwick) found that crowdsourcing plays a vital role in helping companies drive engagement for their corporate social responsibility (CSR) programs. Wikipedia describes crowdsourcing as an “open call to an undefined group of people…to solve complex problems and contribute with the most relevant and fresh ideas.” The survey was conducted among corporate executives in large-sized companies with responsibility for philanthropic, social responsibility or community relations. They are advocates themselves because these jobs require strong conviction about what is important and what is the right thing to do to meet corporate business goals.
The research found that a sizable 44% of companies have used crowdsourcing. In addition, an overwhelming majority (95%) of those who have used crowdsourcing found it invaluable to the organization’s pro-social or CSR efforts.
What particularly stood out for me was the reasons why these advocating executives say crowdsourcing is valuable for CSR programming. They said that it surfaces new perspectives and diverse opinions (36%), builds engagement and relationships with key audiences (25%), invites clients and customers from nontraditional sources to contribute ideas and opinions (22%) and it brings new energy into the process of generating ideas and content (16%).
The latter is particularly important to all advocacy programs — igniting the process by energizing people. It seems that the “energy” component is what really makes the difference so I was glad to see it among the top reasons mentioned why crowdsourcing helps drive corporate CSR. Where would advocacy be without advocates’ energy to mobilize these efforts to build a better planet? It should be at the heart of all corporate efforts. The question is how to find that energy and capitalize on it. How do you ignite it to drive mobilization? Energizing people is an important ingredient of true advocacy and worth deeper thought. Maybe a good topic in itself for crowdsourcing. Hmmmm.
An interesting article surfaced last week on a wholly new corporate position — Chief Good Officers (CGOs). The article mentioned our recent research on the impact of crowdsoucing on corporate social responsibility. The CGO would be the newest evolution of the CSR Officer. The idea is that this person would straddle the CSR position with marketing/advertising that aims to attract customers. The CGO would create “brand purpose” and drive action to the company’s causes by bringing them to life. “This is the chef who blends financial and social bottom lines into a tasty dish that is as engaging as it is impactful for consumers.” I think that the CGO is an alternative version of the CAO–the chief advocacy officer. So be it.
We take social advocacy seriously. Our Social Impact team just surveyed with KRC Research over 200 executives responsible for CSR type activities to learn how they were managing some of their challenges today. What did we learn?
We learned how important impact actually is. Having an impact on critical issues is the number one reason why corporations invest in philanthropic or socially responsible activities, according to the executives surveyed. A second reason given for CSR-funding is the opportunity to see an organization’s values in action (25%). I think that is a good reason. Interestingly, having an impact on critical issues (30%) outranked several more business-oriented motivations, such as building customer loyalty (15%), differentiating the company from competitors (6%) and engaging and retaining employees (4%).
The latter finding somewhat surprised me because it underscores the need for companies to better measure the link between CSR and employee satisfaction. Social advocacy deserves to be higher up on executives’ agendas as a primary benefit of good social responsibility. Employees can be a company’s best advocates if they understand how CSR drives growth, attracts talent and retains the best. In this anti-business environment, it is important to make the CSR case at home (the office) and in the community.
In our research lately, we’ve seen how important employee satisfaction is to how corporate communications officers are measured. Communicating about the value of CSR to employees and communities deserves greater attention in order to reduce some of the anti-business perception that seems to linger. CSR is the gift that keeps giving if companies would only focus more on communicating it well.
Do you have a dog or cat in need of grooming? If so, here is an opportunity to advocate for the Gulf of Mexico oil spill clean-up efforts. Consider taking your pet to a groomer who will donate your pet’s fur to Matter of Trust, a San Francisco nonprofit organization that has established a process for collecting animal fur and human hair to create nylon “booms” that naturally absorb oil from the water. Last week retailer PETCO began shipping donations of pet fur from its grooming salons to aid in creating these booms to soak up and remove oil from Gulf of Mexico waters. Once fur shipments arrive in the Gulf Coast region, volunteers gather to assemble the booms and prepare for their deployment. The booms are made by stuffing donated nylon stockings with hair and fur. With nearly 1,000 grooming salons pitching in, PETCO expected to ship up to a ton of donated fur per day hoping to reach 5 tons through this past weekend.
As a pet owner, I say it’s about time my pets begin contributing to society! Joking aside, this is a truly unique and worthwhile program. Get your four-legged friends to advocate for the wildlife in the Gulf who so gravely face endangerment.
Recently became aware of this very cool mobile application that lets consumers advocate for causes just by scanning certain products in stores or restaurants with their iPhone or Android. It is called CauseWorld and it is sponsored by Citibank, Kraft Foods and Proctor & Gamble who have provided nearly $1,000,000 for you to donate. No purchase of their products is necessary – you walk into a store and scan the barcode of products. Each time you scan a product you earn “karmas” and when you earn enough, you can donate them to a variety of charities with which CauseWorld partners.
A really innovative way of turning advocacy into action.
Google today launched a person finder to quickly connect those looking for missing people in Chile and those with information about earthquake victims. You can choose between – “I’m looking for someone” and “I have information about someone”, and then query the database or enter new information. A great way to advocate for people searching for loved ones in this new world calamity.
I found myself landing on a new site called Justmeans. It has an interesting premise which isthat companies can subscribe and communicate with those interested in their good work. Companies who join use Justmeans’ distribution service to syndicate their work to various social networks. They have an impressive array of clients such as HP, Seventh Generation, Timberland, Financial Times, Best Buy, Intel, Accion, Campbell Soup (disclosure: some are clients although I learned about this site through my son who is involved with Starting Bloc). I was able to find out about what different companies are doing in the responsibility space all on one site. Since I am always interested in new conferences, I learned that Justmeans and the FT are organizing summits and have two coming up in NY this fall. For companies looking to reach advocates, it is an interesting way to communicate with those that matter. Check it out. I am going to follow some companies’ twitters through justmeans and see how it goes.
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All About Advocacy is a blog written by and for people who believe in the accelerating power of Advocates in society today.
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Everything posted in this blog represents personal opinion of the individual authors. It does not necessarily represent the views of Weber Shandwick or its clients.
An interesting 
We take social advocacy seriously. Our
Google today launched a 
