Corporate social responsibility (CSR) is something that consumers expect more and more from the businesses they do business with. As small business owners, we are uniquely positioned to make better decisions, take actions that align with our values, and be open about our why. In this episode, I’m talking about how we can continue to both do business and do good, and use that to our advantage without losing our self respect.
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I was listening to a podcast the other day and the host was talking about bad businesses who just had their PR team put a spin on things and make them look good again. Basically public relations was being touted as a way to wash, rinse and repeat their unethical and sometimes even criminal behaviour.
And I felt my blood begin to simmer.
Because you know what? We’re business owners and we don’t behave like that. We’re much better than that. I think there’s a massive swing underway towards proper corporate governance within the larger businesses, complete with transparency and accountability. It has been underway for a number of years but I feel it’s starting to really trend. Consumer activism is finally beginning to grow into a force that can quickly shape a company’s trajectory and, while it puts pressure on large companies that don’t necessarily have the capability to quickly shift direction or policy, it’s a fantastic opportunity for us smaller businesses to prove our corporate social responsibility.
Stick around, today I’m talking about how we can continue to both do business and do good, and use that to our advantage without losing our self respect.
INTRO
There’s a lot going on in the world today, lots of changes and upheavals and it seems like people are uniting in a way they never have before. I don’t know if it’s because so many of us have been at home alone for so long, slightly distant from the crowds that influence and perpetuate the norms and now we’ve had time to reflect. When we’ve been able to come together, people have united more strongly. I don’t know. I do know that I’m watching the groups of brave people who have put themselves forward to take a stand against wrongs like I haven’t seen before. Movements like Black Lives Matter, whose mission is to eradicate white supremacy and build local power to intervene in violence inflicted on Black communities by the state and vigilantes, and Every Child Matters which recognizes the harm Canada’s residential school system did to Indigenous children's sense of self-esteem and wellbeing, and as an affirmation of their commitment to ensure that everyone around us matters. Coincidentally, both of these organizations were founded in 2013 but seem to have only begun gaining traction on a larger stage in recent years.
I’m not here to get on a soapbox about the things that happen in the world, I’m not in a position to speak to it and I don’t presume to know enough to do the issues those organizations and others represent justice. My point is that there is a social awakening like most of us have never experienced.
And have a look at events current as of writing - Simone Biles, the American gymnast who stepped back from an Olympic team event, prioritizing her mental health. In the spring, she switched sponsors to Athleta because Athleta aligned more with her personal values; now her current sponsors are proving her choices right by standing by her and supporting her decision to prioritize herself as a human. These companies are aware of the change that is happening in the world, they see that we as people are recognizing there are big changes that need to be made in the world and, typically, those with the money are in charge.
In many ways, those with the money are the companies. But they get their money from us. Which ultimately means, we have the money. You know the expression, vote with your feet? Meaning you go where you want to shop, where you feel good supporting the business owners? That’s what is and what has been happening to some degree for years.
So okay, that’s all great that we are now becoming more woke as a society. But those are really big issues and really big companies at play, Athleta is owned by GAP and they aren’t small. What does this mean to us as small business owners?
Well, way back in 2017, Cone Communications did a study which I’ve linked in the shownotes, on corporate social responsibility. Back then, their research showed that 87% of respondents said they’d purchase a product because a company advocated for an issue they cared about and 76% would refuse to purchase a company’s products or services upon learning it supported an issue contrary to their beliefs.
So consumers want to support companies that support the same things they do. We actually have awesome opportunities that those big companies don’t have. We get to choose how, where and when we get to contribute to society. We get to choose what we share and how we do that. And because we’re the boss and we’re small, it doesn’t take much for us to make decisions or change direction. If you’re wondering about some examples of what we can do, well I’m happy to oblige!
You’re on social media, right? Do you have something you believe in? Something that you have experienced or someone you love has gone through? Something that interests you, for whatever reason? Put up a post or go live about it. Not just once or twice, but make it a regular thing. By calling attention to an issue, by drawing a connection between you and something - humanizing it, you are supporting that issue by raising awareness. I post about autism and parenting neurodiverse children. I don’t post every day and I don’t do it on my business profile, but many people have friended me on FB who don’t know me in real life and they get to see those posts. They get to see what I believe in, a piece of me that is personal, and it helps break down the stigma around people on the autism spectrum. It’s within my power to do and it’s within my personal comfort zone, it’s something I believe in so I use social media as my tool to raise awareness. You can, too.
You can sponsor causes or events. As a former community relations manager for a non-profit, I can tell you organizations are very appreciative of sponsorship and donations. Supporting sporting teams and other community-based activities are other great ways to be socially responsible.
You can contribute a portion of a sale to a cause of your choosing. A friend of mine is a bit of a serial entrepreneur and one of the first things she did was take a portion of her profits and sponsor a school in South Africa. Her then husband is South African and education was something very important to her so that was her choice.
You can make more environmental choices about the products you choose to sell or the suppliers you use. Like Carol Foy from Episode 48, Making a Positive Impact Through Aromatherapy. Carol chooses her suppliers based on a set of ethical considerations and contributes to her community in different ways including offering a refill service.
You can create your own code of ethics where you make a commitment to yourself that you will be inclusive, you will be environmentally sustainable, whatever it is that you feel strongly about but maybe haven’t made official.
And don’t forget things like volunteering - you can always devote time to a group or a cause you love. You can take your professional expertise and donate them to people in need, offer a scholarship or discount on your products or services. I’ve pitched a local autism support group and parent organization to media to increase their exposure and to highlight some of the changes the city had made to their community programming, making it more inclusive. It was something easy for me to do with the connections I had in that city and it meant a lot to the families who didn’t know that the supports were available to them in terms of the support group or from the city’s community activities. Win win.
Look. Women are typically known for running ethical and socially responsible businesses. Which is nice, eh? But here’s where you might feel a bit uncomfortable and I want you to hear me out with an open mind, ok?
All of this being good is awesome for the sake of it. But we’re in business and doing good; they aren’t mutually exclusive. If people are more inclined to support businesses that align with their ethics and values, and the research shows they are, and the more support your business gets the more good you can afford to do, well, doesn’t it make sense to let people know about your ethics and values?
So how can you share your values without feeling like you’re in the running for a social responsibility trophy? It can be really easy, I know you’ll find ways to share but here are a few to start you off.
Try something as simple as putting up a post every once in a while. I know I said you can do that to raise awareness of the issue or cause but you can also raise awareness of your own activities. If you’re volunteering somewhere or you sponsor something or donate somewhere, you can pop up a post or do a live and talk about what you’re doing. It can be as plain as saying hey, I was at my local food bank for the afternoon helping out - I really believe that full tummies create happier families and love giving my time to help make this happen. It’s pretty low key, not a heeeyyy look at me kind of thing, just a simple here’s what I value and here’s how I enact my values.
You can place the logo or a little emblem, something to indicate the organization or cause you support in the banner of your Facebook page. No extra commentary needed.
If you have a website, add a page or even just a little bit in your About You page that explains who you support, why and how. The page is an option if you have more information than a simple ‘hey I support so-and-so line’; not a great look when someone clicks to a page thinking there’s going to be a decent amount of information and there’s a solitary line, it doesn’t look as meaningful. But a line or two in your bio is perfect.
If you participate in some way with an event, you’ll often get recognition meaning you don’t need to toot your own horn. There’s usually a reciprocal agreement where you get different levels of recognition for different levels of donation or sponsorship so you could be mentioned in all event advertising, have recognition in the program or signage, or have your logo placed on tshirts or other promotional materials. And obviously if you are the one organizing the event, you get a significant amount of the publicity by virtue of being mentioned every time the event is talked about.
If you successfully pitch yourself to a media outlet, you can possibly find a way to talk about your community involvement. It’s always a nice angle to be able to talk about a cause you support, taking into consideration the purpose of the article and the media involved.
When you volunteer, wear a tshirt with a logo. Have a bumper sticker on your vehicle or on the basket of your bicycle. People will see it and often they file that information away for later use. If they are interested in the cause, they’ll want to know who else is similarly minded. And if they’re interested in the service or product you offer and they see you crossover with their personal values, well, they’ll definitely tuck that information away for future use. They might not even use your services themself but they’ll recommend you to someone else based on the shared value set.
None of this is a sure fire guaranteed way to immediately get more customers and sales. It’s a slow and steady process as most public relations efforts tend to be. But if you feel strongly about an issue or a cause, you should go ahead and support it to the best of your ability right now. And if you’re already doing the good work, there is no reason why you shouldn’t proudly own your values and actions. So while you don’t need to find a cause and devote yourself to it or create a ticker tape parade in your own honor, if you are genuinely passionate about something, share it.
Until next week my friend.
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