Briana Anderson - Cornell University

company’s status in terms of its responsiveness to its perceived societal obligations
(Brown & Dancin, 1997, Sen & Bhattacharya, 2001). The latter definition is most
relevant in the context of this thesis, as it incorporates the idea of ‘status’ that can be
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interpreted as a competitive advantage, i.e. those corporations that are perceived to be
meeting their social obligations will reap economic benefits.
Furthermore, public opinion polls indicate that the American public is
supportive of companies engaging in CSR activities, specifically that consumers will
reward those companies they perceive as strengthening communities (www.cause-
branding.com). In fact, a 2001 poll conducted in November of 2001 by Roper and Cone
Inc. showed a dramatic increase (before and after the September 11 th attacks) in the
demand of Americans for corporate attention to social needs, and a willingness to
financially support those companies that do. Additionally, the 2001 Cone/Roper poll
indicated that employees are more proud to work for companies with CSR initiatives,
have more loyalty to companies with CSR initiatives, and many employees would
actively seek out employment from a company that had CSR versus one that did not
(provided similar pay and working conditions).
Endorsers
An important aspect of a company adopting these CSR programs is
communicating its activities to their stakeholders. This communication often takes
place in the form of advertisements describing the activities/programs in a print ad
and/or is included on the company’s website. These CSR messages should be
credible, i.e. the targeted audience must believe that the organization is sincere in its
adoption of these policies. If the audience perceives the CSR message to be contrived
(or only in the self-interest of the company), the relationship can be damaged, possibly
resulting in a loss of competitive advantage from CSR activities. Basically, the
perception of corporate credibility is vital in CSR messages.