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Business For Good Marketing

How brands can change the world through social good actions

By Mark Hamilton, Head of Marketing EMEA , Social Good and Business Equality

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March 24, 2021 | 6 min read

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Making giving back a priority now is helping these businesses stay agile. Discover how your brand can make the most of investing in doing good.

group of people in a room talking

Discover how your brand can make the most of investing in doing good.

Whether you’re a small business owner or part of a global brand, there’s never been a better time for brands to drive change.

The world needs positive change now more than ever. But positive change rarely happens on its own. It requires creative thinking, big ideas and a collective effort.

And when brands leverage their strengths in the service of a good cause, the impact can be remarkable.

A shift in consumer priorities

Research across 12 key markets in 2019 found that, on average, 28% of surveyed shoppers encouraged others to buy a product after learning about a business’s values, causes or practices. Covid-19 has only heightened the interest in brand values.

Edelman research from 2020 revealed that 65% of people surveyed stated that how a company responds to Covid-19 will have a huge impact on their likelihood to buy the brand in the future.

What’s more, Facebook’s research into Gen Z found that younger generations have a particular investment in making sure the brands they engage with do good. That means that investing in social good now could be an important way of future-proofing your brand.

Among Gen Zers surveyed in Europe, more than half expect brands to make their stances on social and political issues known publicly. This rises to 69% in the UK.

How companies are doing good

David Flynn and Stephen Flynn, the twins behind the sustainable, plant-based food company The Happy Pear, are a fixture in their hometown of Greystones, County Wicklow.

Speaking to Facebook, David shared how the pair went from one vegetable shop to running four cafes, writing cookbooks, hosting online cookery courses and stocking their vegan products in supermarkets across Ireland.

“Happy Pear is built on the ideals of creating a happier, healthier world and building a community around that,” he said.

During Covid-19, with families stuck at home, The Happy Pear twins began using Facebook and Instagram stories to host Instagram cooking classes for parents and carers to share with their children.

They also offered food to healthcare workers at local hospitals and, where safe, gave away fresh goods to nearby communities by posting availability on Instagram.

By doing so, The Happy Pear was not only able to stay connected during an isolating time, but also nurture an online community based on their values.

Adopting a new approach

It’s not just small and medium enterprises that benefit from investing in social good. In Italy, pet food brand Purina ran a campaign to raise awareness of the benefits of pet adoption by promoting a new platform created by the Italian National Association of Animal Protection.

It produced a series of short video ads foregrounding the relationship between adopted pets and their owners. The ads were shown to people aged 25 to 64 with an interest in pets or pet food.

The heartwarming adverts encouraged conversations about pet adoption across Italy, while also achieving a 3.7-point rise in brand favorability and an 8-point lift in ad recall.

While different brands will have different approaches, thinking strategically about what your customers value – in Purina’s case, their pets – can help inspire new ways of doing good.

The future of doing good

Social good can look different for each business, but the motivation is universal. Investing in giving back isn’t just good for the direct beneficiaries of social good initiatives – it’s good for the economy, relationships with customers and businesses.

Mark Hamilton, EMEA head of marketing, social good and business equality at Facebook suggests: ”When brands leverage their strengths in the service of a good cause, the impact can be remarkable. At Facebook, our goal is to connect and accelerate business initiatives that drive social good and create real-world impact. Facebook is ideally positioned to foster these elements.”

Here are some tips for social good from the platform:

  • Building a community for a cause: Content that highlights brand values is a great way for your business to connect with customers who share your ideals. A content calendar can help you make sure you’re speaking regularly about the things you and your community value.
  • Show up when and where it matters: Tap into sentiment around key cultural moments, such as Pride Month and Ramadan, where giving back is a priority, to speak to communities that share your brand values.
  • Amplify your brand and impact: Facebook and Instagram Live events, fundraiser stickers on Facebook Stories and customer engagement through posts and comments are just some of the ways brands can get creative about sharing a cause with customers.

Get inspired with more ideas for social good at Facebook’s dedicated hub and discover the tools your brand can use to build communities and give back.

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