“To speak with a human voice, companies must share the concerns of their communities.” – Thesis #34 of 95 found within “The Cluetrain Manifesto.”
On January 12, 2010, a 7.0 earthquake rocked the coastal region of Port-au-Prince, Haiti. News venues were quick to cover the events, and efforts to accumulate and mobilize relief began immediately. While keeping in mind that ethics can be defined as normative standards of behavior, let’s briefly examine the corporate position in response to Haiti.
Is posting a logo on the homepage of a company website that says, “Donate to Help Haiti” a genuine fundraising effort in which the company has planned to initiate and implement? Or, is the logo a simple corporate social responsibility move, tactically placed on the home page because the normative standards of behavior in our society suggest giving during great times of need is strongly suggested? Let’s break it down further.
Does the company make a public effort, through PR initiatives or spending ad dollars, on various means of getting their message out? Is it wrong to spend corporate assets on ways to advertise the company is taking part in a large-scale fundraising campaign for relief? I would say no it is not wrong. In fact it is acceptable and admirable because the company is spending their own money to jumpstart a philanthropic effort, which directly benefits others. They are investing in a vehicle that may or may not serve as a means to better appeal to their closest constituencies while simultaneously helping those in need.
This effort is similar, yet clearly distinctive from advertising. In advertising, a company spends money to buy airtime and space in publications at a marginal cost than what they anticipate future sales of their product to gross. This is a tangible calculation based on the data collected from market segments, past track records of product sales and so on. In pushing a philanthropic effort, a company is making a gamble for something worth far more than accrued earnings – and that is reputational sustainability and enhancement. While reputation is more or less intangible, consumers, customers and constituencies are very much aware of its existence.
The ultimate question for corporate entities is – Are you intrinsically motivated to mobilize various forms of relief through raising funds or are you slapping a ‘Donate Here’ icon on the website as means of positioning the company in a more favorable light because relief is driving the bandwagon?
Do you think any corporations are simply and haphazardly jumping on the bandwagon for the sake of image? Or conversely, have you encountered a corporation that is spearheading the effort and truly going the distance to make a difference in the lives of those who are most closely impacted by this disaster?
The PR Purview 