Social Responsibility and a Thriving Business

Every day, companies are becoming more focused on social responsibility; whether it’s speaking out on inequality, protecting the environment, or serving the hungry and homeless.

Regardless of the cause, being a more socially responsible business has many benefits and can help you in more ways than just receiving a tax deduction at the end of the year and having a feel-good feeling in your heart.

Research shows that being more socially aware can positively influence your business’s bottom line. In 2017, Cone Communications published a study with the below key findings:

• 63% of U.S. consumers are looking to businesses to take the lead on social and environmental change.

• 78% of people wanted companies to address social justice issues.

• 87% of consumers said they would be willing to buy a product or service based on a company’s advocacy concerning a social matter.

• 76% of those surveyed said they would decline to do business with a company if it held views and supported issues that conflicted with their beliefs.

Customers and employees, alike, want to support businesses that are aware of their communities’ needs and respond generously. This generosity can help cultivate innovation and collaboration and even help with obtaining funding from investors.

How Do I Help My Business Become More Socially Responsible?

Create A Social Responsibility Mission

Regardless of your industry, there is always an opportunity to make your community better.

For example, Honest Game spoke about their company’s mission to bring equal access to college sports for all student-athletes during VAULT Unlocked’s July Virtual Lunch. They work toward this mission through automating academic eligibility with verifiable academic data, providing real-time eligibility updates so everyone has a clear pathway to get into college.

Weave Social Responsibility Throughout All Business Decision

Even for companies that are for-profit entities, the benefits aspect of your business must be critical to what you’re doing when completing day-to-day activities.

Before making any decisions in your business, think about how it will impact your team, your community, and the world at large. Will someone be negatively affected by this decision? If so, what could you do to lessen or remove those negative consequences?

Make Your Effort Long-Lasting

Becoming and continuing to be socially responsible should not a marketing ploy or a one-time endeavor. To be successful, you’ll need to treat it as an ongoing effort to help a good cause in your community. Pour into your cause regularly and organize yourself to make sure you can continuously help your community thrive.

“Being an entrepreneur is hard… you may have fifteen sales calls in one day, a lunch video interview and then you have to build a pitch deck,” says Joyce Anderson, co-founder of Honest Game. “It’s hard and it requires a lot of multi-tasking, but every day I know we’re working towards this goal that’s going to make people’s lives better.”

Does your company have any social responsibility initiatives? If so, how are you and your team choosing to execute them? If this is something you’d like to begin implementing, what is a small step you could take today to get started?

Interested in learning more about VAULT Innovation and what our team of experts has to offer? Email us or give us a call to see if there is a fit to work together.

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