Corporate Social Responsibility: What Is It and Why Does It Matter?
Now more than ever, potential customers are vetting the businesses they go to. People are becoming more conscious of how companies treat their employees and what they are doing to improve the world. This is where corporate social responsibility comes in.
What Is Corporate Social Responsibility?
Corporate social responsibility (CSR) has nothing to do with the law but everything to do with morality. It is a type of self-regulation where a business tries to be socially accountable. This means they try to positively contribute to the economy, the environment, or the public. There is no specific way to practice CSR, but it is an important part of a company being perceived well.
Types of Corporate Social Responsibility
There are four main categories of corporate social responsibility: environmental, ethical, philanthropic, and economic.
Environmental
Practicing environmental CSR means ensuring your business is behaving as environmentally friendly as possible. Here are some ways to be environmentally friendly.
Reduce pollution
Use reusable plastics
Reduce water consumption and waste
Use more renewable energy and recycled materials
Plant trees
Ethical
To meet the requirements for ethical CSR, you need to operate fairly and ethically. This means you work to have fair treatment of all stakeholders, including investors, leadership, customers, suppliers, and employees.
Other ways you can be ethical are:
Pay a higher wage if the minimum isn't a "livable wage."
Only use products that meet fair-trade standards.
Don't buy products made through child labor or slavery.
Philanthropic
A big part of corporate social responsibility is actively working to make the world a better place, which is what philanthropic CSR is. On top of being ethically and environmentally friendly, it is important to take some of your earnings and donate to charities or non-profits. You could donate to a cause that relates to your business, one that doesn't relate, or you could even create your own non-profit aimed at giving back.
Economic
You can't give much if your business is doing poorly financially. Having good economic responsibility means you make sound financial decisions so that you can do work in the public and environmental sectors. Your goal isn't just to have great financial profits but rather to use those profits to make a difference in the world.
Why It Benefits Your Business
Practicing corporate social responsibility is tremendously beneficial to your business. Customers are looking to see what businesses are doing to try to help. If your business is only serving itself, it is likely to push customers away. Even if you have a great product, not practicing corporate social responsibility can make people turn away from you.
Businesses who reach out into the community to try and help are more likely to draw in customers. People see that the business is trying to make an impact in one way or another, so they will be more likely to buy from that company. This allows the business to take that money to make an even bigger difference.
Conclusion
Corporate social responsibility is not something businesses are legally required to do, but it is something they are morally responsible for. As a beacon in the community, businesses can take their money/platform to make positive change for the economy, environment, or public at large.
Practicing corporate social responsibility is also helpful for your business because it draws in customers. People are much more likely to support a business that is helping in some way. So, consider helping out in an environmental, ethical, philanthropic, or economic way.
At Host Events, we want to help you make a difference. So, contact us today to book a virtual volunteering event for your team.
