Deck 8: The Next Frontier Social Media Storms As a Marketing Tool

Question 1

What is brand activism and what is corporate sociopolitical activism?

Answer 1

Sarkar and Kotler (2018) defined "brand activism" as an attempt by firms to solve the global problems their future customers and employees care about. The companies' involvement into societal and global issues is called "corporate sociopolitical activism" (CSA) and it is defined as "a firm's public demonstration (statements and/or actions) of support for or opposition to one side of a partisan sociopolitical issue".

Question 2

What forms can brand activism take? Please provide an example.

Answer 2

Brand activism can have different forms, varying from simply donating money towards a specific cause to making a clear stand through campaigns and public statements. Students can provide various examples (e.g. Nike campaign supporting the Black Lives Matter movement).

Question 3

What do firms need to be careful of when they get involved in brand activism?

Answer 3

Many times the consumers are the ones who put pressure on companies to take a stance for serious societal issues and who request a deeper understanding of what a brand or a company stands for. Nevertheless, for consumers who share different views or values compared to the brand that chooses to get involved in brand activism, the results could be the exact opposite, leading to disassociation with the brand, expression of negative sentiment or even boycotting of the products or services. Also, brand managers need to be aware of the possibility for alternative interpretations of a campaign's storytelling and allocate enough thought so as their message and storytelling to be as clear as possible. Authenticity and connecting the content and drive of brand activism with the core values and purpose of the company is crucial. If this does not happen, brand activism might be perceived as "woke washing" - an effort to mislead the shareholders and this can have a negative impact on the brand's image. Moreover, it is crucial for companies to identify a cause that is meaningful for the targeted audiences that has the dynamic to create synergies with the brand and to indicate a clear side. Choices on when, where and on what topics to get involved as an organization need to be made with strategic thinking lenses (Burnett, 2019).

Question 4

Have NGOs used social media storms to accomplish their goals? Please provide an example.

Question 5

What should be the role of authenticity in brand activism and why?