The debate as it stands…
Every day, brands sit side-by-side with social and political issues. Adverts for all kinds of consumer goods are nestled snugly around current affairs articles in newspapers; they’re played just before and after the news; while advertising billboards and protesters share the same streets.
For years, the mainstream thinking has suggested that consumers really care about the ethics of a company and its social stance. Every year brands spend money on their Corporate Social Responsibility budgets (the Fortune Global 500 spend around $15.2bn a year on CSR) and this has a range of benefits beyond just the good they’re doing: employees feel like they have more purpose; and it’s been shown to make them less liable to be prosecuted for corruption.
