The art of ethical engagement
By Steve Mullins. Any consumer ranking of green brands in the UK would usually find Bodyshop at the top, thanks to the brand’s ‘ethical product halo’. But people simply aren’t interrogating enough, and there’s little deep knowledge of what many firms’ ethical components are, says Thinktank International, which is currently putting together a thinkpiece on ethical conversations and brands.
And the London-based market research firm believes the onus is on companies to get consumers understanding them in this area.
“People want to know the story about the product,” says Nick Roberts, associate partner at Thinktank. “And this can help build brand affinity.”
Claire Ralphson-Cook, Thinktank partner, agrees, and urges brands to be proactive. “The average person is trying to be a bit better on this, so it’s not just a matter of posting a few [coporate social responsibility] pages on a website.”
In fact, brands should aim to be more like their customers.
“They don’t all have to be Innocent,” she says. “What they do have to be is like people. The message should be, ‘this sort of stuff’s important to us and we are trying too’. That is seen as something quite human.”
“It’s about offering people something, getting them involved – engagement on a pure ethical level doesn’t work,” says Roberts. “Consumers want brands to help them bring out their good sides. For example, something like Nike wristbands got people involved in something worthwhile, and it gave status and was fashionable.
“And while Bodyshop comes out on top, it actually does little to engage consumers.”
Thinktank is currently getting its hands dirty with a bit of social media monitoring around the World Cup, where it’s looking at CSR campaigns conducted by companies such as adidas and Puma in South Africa.
“It’s clear that there’s a real opportunity for these brands to engage consumers with the things they are doing,” says Ralphson-Cook.
“What is working is the idea of Puma having a long-term sponsorship in Africa,” says Roberts.
Ralphson-Cook will present the World Cup ethical brands findings at our Buzz about the social media buzz event on 14th July.
