Nowadays, a lot of companies are adopting new policies and shifting their value propositions in order to be more Corporate Socially Responsible. Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a concept in which a business should willingly contribute positively to the community. The business integrates certain tasks or activities in order to “operate in a more economic, social and environmentally sustainable manner”[1]. Some businesses however, try to exploit the opportunity of using CSR and instead greenwash their customers for their goal of making more profit. Greenwashing is defined as “the act of misleading consumers regarding the environmental practices of a company or the environmental benefits of a product or service.”[2]
An example of greenwashing is the case of, Coca Cola, which implemented the marketing campaign of “PlantBottle”, has been convicted of greenwashing. Coca Cola has been found to have exaggerated the PlantBottle’s positive effect on the environment without any supporting evidence. It is important for businesses to remain transparent especially about all their claims or they will lose credibility and even worse, ruin their image.
An excellent example of a business implementing Corporate Social Responsibility is Budweiser. Budweiser’s “Thank You Designated Drivers” advertising strategy is beneficial to both Budweiser and society because it encourages drinking age youths to have designated driver when they go out drinking. This in turn would lead to a lower rate of ‘drinking under the influence’ accidents. This strategy gives an impression that Budweiser doesn’t care only about making profits but also about its customer’s welfare.
The marketing campaign of a business is a really important aspect as it directly reflects on the brand image of the company. If the business is convicted or exposed for unethical marketing (greenwashing), it would do more harm than good for the business’s in the long run. However, if a business implements Corporate Social Responsibility correctly and is backed with evidence, the business will prosper and lead to increase of positive awareness of the brand.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A5YBYkPNov8
References:
http://www.unido.org/en/what-we-do/trade/csr/what-is-csr.html
http://www.ethicalconsumer.org/commentanalysis/factsvgreenwash/corporatesocialresponsibility.aspx
http://strategyonline.ca/2013/07/30/budweiser-thanks-designated-drivers/
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A5YBYkPNov8
https://www.verdensskove.org/en/node/35317
http://www.greenwashingindex.com/wp-content/uploads/987_coca-cola-PlantBottle-5-566×311.jpg
http://shelleygeorge.files.wordpress.com/2010/07/bud-logo-2.png
[1] http://www.international.gc.ca/trade-agreements-accords-commerciaux/topics-domaines/other-autre/csr-rse.aspx?lang=eng#CSR
[2] http://stopgreenwash.org/